Italians gear up to vote on nuclear power Sunday, 12 June 2011 01:35

ROME: Italians, today and tomorrow, are called to vote on four different subjects: nuclear power, privatisation of water and its service, and the “legitimate impediment” that will give complete immunity from penal laws to the Prime Minister and all Ministers ensuring Silvio Berlusconi from getting tried for several charges.

Di Pietro leader of Italia dei Valori party promoter of the referendum said “We were against nuclear power before Fukushima accident happened. Our actions are not just driven by an emotional feeling: there is deep rationality behind it. Nuclear power is not a solution for Italy’s energetic problems. Nuclear power has unsustainable costs and creates new energetic dependence like the one from uranium. Also the countries around us are banning nuclear power. We want to invest in renewable energies that are safer and that won’t weight on our energetic bills as nuclear power is already doing.”

And checking the present nuclear costs that Italians are paying, nuclear power is not convincing us not even economically speaking. Even if Italy had a very brief nuclear history, the country is still paying for it. 4 old nuclear plants to be dismissed with the related costs, 77 thousand cubic metres of radioactive waste to get rid of, ¤300m energy bill per year paid by Italians through taxes under the voice “system charges”.

The Department of Energy in the United States, said that nuclear power is the most expensive solution. Especially if you compare it to power generated by wind farms. Already in 2009 worldwide eolic plants have produced more electric power than the one produced by nuclear plants installed in the last 15 years.

As Italy is getting ready to vote on nuclear power, also the Pope is speaking out about it. “Political and economic priorities should be the adoption of a lifestyle that respects the environment. We have to support the research of new energy safe for human beings and not dangerous for the world” said Pope Benedict XVI remembering the tragedies that this year have happened “to nature, people and technologies” like the Fukushima. The Pope’s words have always an important impact on Italian voters as most of the country is Catholic. Italian police were alarmed by 150 people praying for public water yesterday in front of St Peter’s Church in Rome. More people are demonstrating today in Piazza del Popolo in Rome for the last day of referendum campaign. Greenpeace organisation has showed huge posters all over Italian monuments from the Coliseum in Rome to Piazza San Marco in Venice. Italians do not remember the last time the country was so active and convinced.

Between politicians the main differences are not in the orientation of the vote, in voting for a “yes” or a “no”, but between those that are voting and the ones that are not voting hoping that this referendum will not reach the quorum, the minimum numbers of votes necessary to be valid and get in force.

Berlusconi already said that he is not going to vote. “I will not vote because these subjects are not useful” Minister Gelmini said. The government looks isolated in its position as all the other parties of both right and left orientation are encouraging people to go and vote for the referendum. Napolitano, the Head of State, and Fini, the President of the Chamber of Deputies in the Parliament, said that they will vote and hope that Italians will do the same.

Bersani, leader of Partito Democratico main opposition party, said “Everyone should come and vote! I’ll go early on Sunday morning!” and also Emma Marcegaglia, President of Confindustria, said that she will vote.

People in Piazza del Popolo have discovered a new civic duty and civil responsibility towards their future and country. “I still don’t know what I will vote for, but I’m sure I’ll go and vote. To vote is a civic duty and civil right, I will do vote, and I find shameful that Berlusconi is not voting and inviting people not to vote! It’s so not democratic to push people not to express their will!” said a woman in Piazza del Popolo in Rome, participating at the closure celebration of the referendum campaign called “I vote”.

The new scandal is related to the votes of the Italians living abroad. One of the subjects (the nuclear power one) of the referendum was changed after the Italians abroad had already expressed their vote. Because of that the ballots were considered not valid and their vote canceled. In this way the vote of the Italians abroad will not count at all.

The PeninsulA

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