Party of Italian Communists

Infobox_Italian_political_party
name_english = Party of Italian Communists

leader =
leader1_title = Secretary
leader1_name = Oliviero Diliberto
leader2_title = President
leader2_name = Antonino Cuffaro
leader3_title =
leader3_name =
leader4_title =
leader4_name =
foundation = 11 October 1998
dissolution =
headquarters = Piazza Augusto Imperatore, 32 00186 Rome
newspaper = [http://www.larinascita.net/ La Rinascita della sinistra]
membership_year= 2006
membership = 40,000 [http://www.regione.sardegna.it/documenti/1_53_20070122092625.pdf]
ideology = Communism, Eurocommunism
coalition = The Left – The Rainbow
international = "none"
european = "none"
europarl = European United Left–Nordic Green Left
website = http://www.comunisti-italiani.it
colorcode = red

The Party of Italian Communists ("Partito dei Comunisti Italiani", PdCI) is a political party in Italy.

History

It was founded in 1998 as a split from the Communist Refoundation Party (PRC) by Armando Cossutta, the original leader of the PRC. The current party leader is Oliviero Diliberto.

The main reason for the split was the unwillingness of the majority the Communist Refoundation Party to participate in the operation that toppled the government of Romano Prodi. Fausto Bertinotti had kept the party in alliance with the Olive Tree coalition for two years, but was leaving because of disagreement over social policy. Leaving would have left the government without a majority in the lower house of the parliament. The issue was hotly debated in the party, and in the end a few votes, coming from the Trotskyist faction, finally decided.

Members of the Party of Italian Communists in the European Parliament still sit in the European United Left–Nordic Green Left group with their erstwhile PRC comrades.

In the 9-10 April 2006 general elections, the party was a member of the winning coalition The Union ("L'Unione") and won 16 out of 630 deputies. The Together with the Union alliance consisting of PdCI, Greens, and United Consumers won 11 out of 315 senators.

In April 2007, Armando Cossutta, after two years of bickering with Oliviero Diliberto, finally left the party. In the meantime the PdCI, at its IV national congress, re-proposed to the PRC, the Federation of the Greens and other leftish forces (among them the brand new Democratic Left) to form a United Left, "a Left without adjectives". On 8–9 December 2007 the PdCI participated in the foundation of The Left – The Rainbow. In the 2008 general election the list gained 3.1% of the vote, thus failing to win any seats in the Italian Parliament.

On 20 July 2008 Diliberto was re-elected secretary in a national congress. In that occasion, after having declared the experience of a "united left" finished, he proposed to PRC the re-unification of the two parties and a "communist constituent assembly". [ [http://www.rainews24.it/notizia.asp?newsid=84020 RaiNews24 - Diliberto rieletto segretario del Pdci, contro la minoranza: non rispettato il pluralismo ] ]

Leadership

*Secretary: Armando Cossutta (1998–2000), Oliviero Diliberto (2000–...)
**Coordinator: Marco Rizzo (2004–...)
*President: Armando Cossutta (2000–2006), Antonino Cuffaro (2007–...)

*Party Leader in the Chamber of Deputies: Oliviero Diliberto (1998), Tullio Grimaldi (1998–2001), Marco Rizzo (2001–2004), Pino Sgobio (2004–2008)
*Party Leader in the Senate: Luigi Marino (1998–2006), Manuela Palermi (leader of the PdCI-Green's group, 2006–2008)
*Party Leader in the European Parliament: Lucio Manisco (1998–2004), Marco Rizzo (2004–...)

References

External links

* [http://www.comunisti-italiani.it/frames/index.htm Official website]