Giorgia Meloni shakes the stability of Italian politics

On September 25, 2022, Italians voted in the national elections since the last one in 2018. Meloni came to power the year marking the 100th anniversary of the fascist seizure of power by Benito Mussolini (1922.) Her campaign leading to her election as prime Minister has resulted in many fearing what is to come. During her speeches, she promised to cut taxes, reinforce anti-immigrant and refugee laws and to impose an anti-EU/EURO stance.

A month prior to her elections, she organized a naval blockade against illegal immigrants. Moreover, she called the European Union, “ the project of ethnic replacement of Europe’s citizens desired by the great capitals and international speculators,” and stated that the Euro was simply,” the wrong currency.” There are many similarities between the ways she and Mussolini advertised their campaigns; her appointed councilors have been giving Roman salutes and indulging in open racism. Before her election, she expressed the need for a directly elected president and a reduction in the role of the parliament, which is bound to become more male dominated due to conservative views.

People who voted against her had the suspicion she would convert to extreme protectionism, eliminating current gay rights and destroying any sense of EU support; this should’ve been an alarm for Italian democracy. In addition, the party has a history of supporting the PRO LIFE movement. But wouldn’t a woman prime minister change that? Many women believe that her campaign will hurt rather than help them. Prior to election day, influencers such as Chiara Ferragni have spoken out stating that Meloni would intend to make abortion practically impossible in all of Italy, starting with her Region, Le Marche.

When questioned about her views on abortion rights, Brothers of Italy leader Meloni said she intends to give women,’The right to not have an abortion.’ Currently, women must undergo a medical examination, observe a seven-day waiting period and sustain mandatory counseling sessions before following through with an abortion. This temporarily places women’s bodily autonomy on hold, subjecting it to the community's power. Furthermore, in several regions and cities-a safe and legal termination is practically impossible to obtain due to a lack of healthcare providers willing to carry out the procedure. Le Marche is currently governed by Francesco Acquaroli, a member of Meloni’s Brother of Italy, who explicitly opposes abortion on grounds that it would lead to ‘ethnic replacement.’ Many things point towards the abolition of the right to abortion in Italy, which severely worries all opposition members to Meloni’s Party.

Currently, EU leaders are working towards the improvement in their abilities to fight irregular migration and protect EU borders. On the 10th of February, after the conclusion of the European council, Meloni stated that the redistribution of migrants across Europe,’was never my priority.’ According to her ,’redistribution never worked. Less than 200 of 8,000 migrants were redistributed in 8 months following the Voluntary solidarity Mechanism.’ In 2023, Meloni’s government made trips to Northern Africa with the aim of reaching agreements on migration. Particularly with Libya, an agreement was put in place stating that Rome will give Tripoli EU-funded boats to embark migrants and bring them back to Libya.

Many see these policies as simply the beginning of Italian politics under Meloni…and many foreign diplomats fear for what is to come.