Giorgio Napolitano was sworn into office on Monday as Italy's new president, immediately vowing to be an impartial arbiter who would seek to bring the country's sharply divided political sides closer together. The 80-year-old life senator, the first former Communist to become Italian head of state, took his oath of office before a joint parliamentary session in the House, swearing to be "faithful to the Republic and loyally observe the Constitution".
His subsequent speech focused on the need for better relations between the country's warring coalitions, led on the one side by premier-elect Romano Prodi and on the other by outgoing premier Silvio Berlusconi.
Centre-left chief Prodi won the narrowest of victories against Berlusconi at the polls last month after a campaign seen as the most acrimonious in Italy's postwar history. The battling continued after the vote, with Berlusconi refusing to concede defeat and even charging electoral fraud.
Napolitano was elected last Wednesday on the votes on Prodi's coalition alone. He was contested by Berlusconi because of his past membership of the former Italian Communist Party. Napolitano's words sought to reassure his critics that he would carry out his role with due fairness and balance.
"At no point in my presidency will I ever be just the president of the majority which elected me. I will listen and respect all of you and all the ideological and political positions which you represent," he said. "I will devote all my energies to the common interest so that I can count on the trust of all Italian people," continued the former interior minister and House speaker.
He promised to work to ease the tense relations between the two coalitions, doing his best to create the "broadest, most constructive" dialogue within the limits of his largely ceremonial role. In other points, Napolitano underlined the importance of Europe and finding a common Constitution for the 25-state bloc. He urged more confidence in the ability of Italy's flagging economy to recover, at the same time calling for
greater "social justice and cohesion".
He made a special mention of women, saying they should play a bigger role in Italian public life and the workplace. Napolitano also addressed the issues of media pluralism and the justice system, areas in which the last government headed by media magnate Berlusconi was heavily criticised.
The new president said he was committed to boosting media pluralism and freedom of information, which he described as a "precondition of democracy", and reducing the "too many tensions which still surround the relations between the political and judicial worlds".
Napolitano included a tribute to his predecessor Ciampi, whom he described as a "model president", and greetings to Pope Benedict XVI, stressing that the State and the Catholic Church worked well together in many areas of Italian life. While most MPs set aside party differences and applauded Napolitano, there were still signs of simmering tensions.
When the new president entered the House, everyone rose to their feet and clapped except Berlusconi, who stood up but did not applaud.
When the head of state was giving his speech, members of the devolutionist Northern League deserted the floor including the outgoing labour and justice ministers. The divisions continued in the reactions to Napolitano's speech. Prodi praised Napolitano, saying he was a "president who would push for reconciliation and national unity".
Democratic Left chief Piero Fassino, whose party is the largest on the centre left, said Napolitano's speech had "shown he is a president who represents all Italians".
Berlusconi made no immediate comment but Fabrizio Cicchitto, a top member of his Forza Italia party, said the speech had betrayed in parts Napolitano's left-wing sympathies. "We hope that he really is going to be neutral... He didn't talk in a convincing way to the 50% of Italians who
voted for the centre right," he said.
Meanwhile, Forza Italia senators protested that the new head of state had failed to thank the outgoing government. The president is meant to be above the party fray and represent national unity.
He has the power to dissolve parliament and must sign parliamentary bills into law. He can send laws back to parliament if he thinks they are unconstitutional or lacking the necessary financial cover but he may only do this once. It is also his job to give the winner of Italy's election the mandate to govern so Monday's ceremony meant Prodi could finally be appointed.
On Tuesday, Napolitano will hold consultations with party leaders and other top politicians after which he will appoint Prodi. The former European Commission chief has said he will unveil his cabinet list within hours of being appointed.
Prodi's nine-party coalition ranges from Communists and anti-clericalists to staunch Catholics, making unity as difficult as it is crucial given his slim majority. Critics said his record had already been marred by an indecorous and all-too-public scramble for cabinet seats.
Prodi is having a particularly hard job in smoothing out the ruffled feathers of his smaller allies. One of the squabbles is over the defence ministry post, sought with equal determination by both centrist, Catholic UDEUR chief Clemente Mastella and top Radical Emma Bonino.
Even Prodi allies expressed concern that the cabinet discussions were degenerating into an unseemly race for posts. Prosecutor-turned-politician Antonio Di Pietro said that "we have the impression that some people are thinking more about ministries than the country's urgent needs".
