Riassunto esame Fundamental rights, Prof. Cossiri Angela Giuseppina, libro consigliato The Constitution of Italy. A Contextual Analysis, Cartabia Lupo

The making of the Italian constitution

The Albertine Statute

The Albertine Statute was the first constitution adopted by Italy. It was not enacted by people representing the constituent power but was conceded by the monarch. After the riots which occurred all over Europe during 1848 and under their pressure, King Charles Albert of Savoy decided to concede it. It was issued on 4th March 1848.

At that time, Italy was not unified. Therefore, the Albertine Statute was issued in the Reign of Sardinia and Piedmont. For many years, this statute was applied only to a little portion of Italy. The unification lasted until 1861, and Rome became the capital city in 1871. The territories which were previously under the control of the pope were unified to Italy in 1861, while Rome was conquered only 10 years after.

Why is the Albertine Statute not a constitution?

The idea of the constitution was based on the idea of popular sovereignty. For that time, the conservative reign of Charles Albert would not be able to accept this idea. The notion of statute in Italy recalls the tradition of Italy of municipality during the Middle Ages: the statute disciplined some aspect of public life. It was conceded by the king; therefore, it had no democratic nature. However, it represents a perfect example of a constitution of the liberal age, which emerged at the beginning of modern constitutionalism.

Indeed:

• It was a conceded charter.
• It was flexible: it could be amended by the ordinary legislative procedure. If the parliament under the Albertine Statute adopted an ordinary act against the constitution, it would prevail over it, since they were at the same level.
• Short: it comprehended the fundamentals of the state, government, and very basic rights (property, habeas corpus, etc.).

The evolution of the Albertine Statute

The Albertine Statute was a flexible one. This is evident from the evolution which invested in the formal government established by it. At the very beginning, there was a pure constitutional system, a very strong division of power:

• Parliament is the lawmaker.
• Government gives execution to public decisions.
• King is invested with executive power as the art. 5 stated.

These bodies could not interfere in the spheres of each other. The main idea was to overwatch the work of each other. As time passed, this formal government evolved into a quasi-parliamentary system: parliament gained a more powerful role, and the government developed a double link:

• King, who appointed people within the government.
• Parliament: the government needed the confidence of it.

Even if the art. 5 was still in force, the formal government evolved further, becoming substantially appointed by the parliament on the basis of the confidence that the government gave to it. In other words, the Prime Minister and ministers were appointed by the government.

Limitations and changes under the Albertine Statute

As the Albertine Statute was a short constitution, there were some rights which were not regulated, such as the right to vote, a matter which was up to the parliament to decide. It was progressively extended. In 1919, universal male suffrage was allowed. This was quite revolutionary because previously only a little percentage of Italian males had the right to vote for parliamentary members. It was basically a single class who was able to vote, the bourgeoisie, who shared a similar point of view and took decisions on the basis of their economic interests. With the reform of 1919, other social classes were allowed to vote and to bring their different views of the world inside the parliament and institutions.

This created tremendous tension in the country: riots spread all over Italy. This situation ultimately led to the attempt of Fascism. In 1922, Fascists led by Mussolini marched on Rome to impose their rule. On that occasion, the king, who had formally the power to appoint ministers, decided to appoint Mussolini as Prime Minister. From here onward, formally, the Albertine Statute was not repealed. However, the rights recognized were substantially substituted, and the formal government designed by it was suspended.

The rise of Fascism and the fall of the Albertine Statute

Fascism was a progressive revolution through a series of reforms. For this reason, it was defined as a dictatorship by steps. This was possible because of the flexibility of the statute. Most of the crucial laws for the establishment of the dictatorship were passed as ordinary laws. The bodies of the party progressively became institutions of the state. This caused the transformation from a liberal state to a totalitarian state. Fascist militia were incorporated into the public authority.

Some reforms concerning the electoral system were issued:

• 1923: two-thirds of the seats to the winner (the fascist party). Most freedoms were suspended.
• 1928: Only a single list was allowed, marking the most important electoral reform. The fascist party was the only one.

A series of ordinary legislation which were in line with the fascist ideology were introduced:

• Leggi fascistissime (1925-1926): Gran Consiglio del Fascismo, a collegial body of the party, became part of the governmental system of the country.
• Camera dei Fasci e della Corporazione: a further transformation of the Italian bodies of the state.

Italy during and after WWII

In 1940, Italy entered WWII. This represented a terrible defeat, and a violent opposition within the country emerged. In 1943, King Vittorio Emanuele III regained his role as king, dismissed Mussolini, who was arrested, and appointed Marshal Badoglio. The situation was dramatic: in the south, the Allies arrived, landing in Sicily and starting to conquer southern Italy. In northern Italy, Germany occupied the territory, and a part of the country was under the control of a fascist state after the Germans were able to free Mussolini.

In northern Italy, a lot of different groups of citizens fought against both Fascism and Nazism. These groups were not politically homogeneous: Christian democrats, socialists, communists, and liberals. All political parties who opposed Fascism before organized themselves into these groups. This movement of Resistenza was considered a second founding moment for Italy, after the Risorgimento. The groups fighting in the Resistenza were organized in a committee, called CNL, which decided to have a Consulta Nazionale, an advisory assembly to rule on the country. The liberation lasted until 1945. At the same time, the new Italian government was ruled by Badoglio.

The birth of the new Italian constitution

In 1943, the government and the CNL signed the Pact of Salerno in 1944. They decided to entitle an assembly, a constituent assembly, to draft a new constitution, which should substitute the Albertine Statute. However, it was postponed until after the end of the war.

Two goals were set:

• To make people decide the form of the state through an institutional referendum.
• To make people vote for the members of the constituent power.

Since King Vittorio Emanuele III was considered closely related to the ascent of Mussolini, he was substituted by his son, Umberto. The institutional referendum was held on 2nd June 1946. For the first time, universal suffrage took place in Italy: in northern Italy, the Republic prevailed, whereas in the south, the Monarchy won the majority. Since Northern Italians were numerically more, the Republic won. Christian democrats greatly prevailed. A big share was obtained by the socialist and communist parties. The constituent assembly was entitled to draft the constitution, whereas the government was charged with making ordinary legislation.