Blog Italy

Hey blog-followers!

I recently arrived in Italy, one of my favourite countries in the world. What a pleasure to be here, it’s like coming home. The Italian culture, the people who are always extrovert, the delicious food, …. As you can read, it’s a dream to live in this country! But every country has its shortages and so has Italy. And the country's biggest problem is, as we all know, Berlusconi.

It seems like the Prime Minister of Italy is accused of something every week. This time we could read that he has been accused of paying for sex with an under-aged prostitute and abuse of power. He abused his power by helping the girl when she was accused in another case. He tried to get out of these problems by saying he thought the girl was the granddaughter of the Egyptian leader, Mubarak. The process will start on 6 April 2011 and Berlusconi risks an imprisonment for this case. Despite the fact Berlusconi lost his immunity from conviction, he doesn’t have to appear in court in person. Berlusconi is also involved in three other trials what may infect his worldwide image even more. In Italy, Berlusconi still hasn’t lost his popularity since the poll ratings are still around 35%.

I think the problems of Berlusconi are affecting the image of Italy. Negative ‘publicity’ about a Prime Minister causes a negative view towards the whole country. I personally think this is a shame for Italy since the country has a wonderful culture and the people are extrovert and friendly all the time. It’s typical that the whole country suffers from the acts of its Prime Minister, but they shouldn’t be judged for that. Political issues have to stay purely political and they shouldn’t have consequences for other facets of the country like for example the economy. Italy is a very important economic country of the EU and should stay so. When we look at the country’s history, it’s amazing what she has already realised. Personally, I see Italy as one of the countries who’s at the base of the world economy these days. I think the country does suffer from the negative publicity. Almost every week the whole world hears negative messages of the country and its political figures, what causes people to create a general thought of Italy. According to me it would be better if they decided to discharge Berlusconi and to give him the punishment he deserves . In this case, Italy is a little too soft and conservative I think. They’d rather give him another chance. If Italy decides to discharge him, they would be faced with some changes, but it would have a positive influence on their general image.

I still adore Italy, but not its prime minister. He creates a rather negative image for the country because of his personal problems and that’s unfair towards its inhabitants. Besides this, Italy is a country you should really visit some time!

If you want to read the article check, out http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12083491

That’s it for today! I’ll catch up with you when I arrive in France, another country of love.

Ciao!

Kimberly Pauwels