Interviewer: The CGIL and its secretary are accused of having political motives. Of wanting to ally themselves with judges and the ‘girotondi’ (protesters). Cofferati: These are unacceptable accusations. I contest choices that I believe to be wrong on their merits; they continue to say that the CGIL is not doing its job as a trade union, that we have a political strategy. The right to criticise cannot be demonised. And there is a misguided underestimation of the role of social representative organisations. The government has a duty to pursue its objectives, but it must know that if part of the social representation does not share these objectives, a break and then conflict are inevitable. I would never dream of contesting their legitimacy to govern, but they cannot contest the legitimacy of my right to oppose them with the rules of democracy and a practice established over many decades.
Sergio Cofferati (born 1948) is an Italian trade unionist and politician. He was secretary general of CGIL from 1994 to 2002, mayor of Bologna for the Democrats of the Left from 2004 to 2009, and Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2009 to 2019 elected as a candidate of the Democratic Party.
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[...] the devastation of the headquarters of Italy's most important trade union is seen by workers and people as a tearing apart of their identity, of who they are, of their values. It is a deep wound, not defined by the extent of the damage, which is irrelevant. Wanting to deface a historic organisation such as the CGIL means crossing the threshold of alarm.
It is one thing to reject war, because you do not promote it, encourage it or justify it, but here war is happening: Putin is waging it. We must help those under attack in every way possible, with political and military means. And this is a story we know well. Why do we not look to our past? Would we ever have freed ourselves from the Nazis and the Fascists without the use of arms? Didn't those who helped us in those years also do so with military means? I want peace. I believe in the absolute value of peace and democracy, but when it is under attack, it must be defended by any means necessary. If we do not distinguish between aggressors and the attacked, we risk making wrong and ideologically twisted choices.
[...] i fumetti, un po' per snobismo, forse per superficialità letteraria oppure per semplice qualunquismo vengono sempre considerati una roba di serie B, un passatempo per la massa, un'arte povera e quindi troppe volte bistrattata. Ebbene, lo ripeto, per me è un giudizio sbagliato. Esempio: Dino Battaglia ha interpretato grandi classici da Melville a Maupassant a Rabelais e il suo lavoro è stato veramente un capolavoro unanimemente riconosciuto, un'opera magnifica.
Il personaggio di Bonelli ha scandito generazioni, resistito a mode e cambiamenti, mandato messaggi positivi ed educativi per i ragazzi. Tex, infatti, è un positivo: sta dalla parte dei giusti – non dico dalla parte dei buoni, termine inflazionato, di questi tempi... –, ha coraggio e dignità, è un bianco, ma è anche il capo degli indiani. Leggendo le avventure mi ha sempre colpito la rappresentazione dello spirito di gruppo, il legame con il figlio, con l'indiano, con l'amico Carson. Il messaggio è quello che conta, in tutte le cose: i cartoni animati e i fumetti giapponesi sono pieni di violenza e morti, Tex è pieno di scazzottate e morti, anche, ma è l'avventura, con la maiuscola, è la fantasia che va.
(On the footballers' protest) You can't idolise a champion on Sunday because he wins your team a match and then forget that maybe the night before he was found drunk and fighting, and then when he and his teammates try to defend the rights of the whole profession, especially the weaker and less wealthy players, they are told they can't because they are rich and spoiled. I would have understood if they had asked for more money, but for the first time they are fighting for rights, not for material reasons: this is something new and should be admired.
Un conto è ripudiare la guerra, perché non la promuovi, non la solleciti e non la giustifichi, ma qui la guerra c'è: la sta facendo Putin. Dobbiamo aiutare gli aggrediti in ogni modo, con gli strumenti di carattere politico e militare. Ed è una storia che conosciamo. Come mai non guardiamo al nostro passato? Ci saremmo mai liberati dai nazisti e dai fascisti senza l'uso delle armi? Chi ci aiutò in quegli anni non lo fece forse anche con gli strumenti militari? Io voglio la pace. Credo nel valore assoluto della pace e della democrazia, ma quando è attaccata va difesa in ogni modo. Se non si distingue tra aggressori e aggrediti, si rischia di compiere scelte errate e ideologicamente contorte.
Questo Governo non vuole soltanto la rottura del movimento sindacale, ma il suo mutamento genetico. Ha cominciato col dire che la CGIL non è un sindacato, bensì una forza politica: ridicolo!
I consider this accusation not only unfounded but also offensive to this organisation and its history. The Italian trade union is an enemy of terrorists and is considered by them, not surprisingly, as one of the targets to be explicitly fought. The reason is easy to understand for those who want to see it. The CGIL, and other trade union and social organisations, fought to eradicate terrorism from Italian society, even when terrorism was strongest and most deeply rooted in society. When it tried to penetrate the world of work to gain cover and influence behaviour. It would not have been defeated in the 1970s and 1980s if there had not been a clear and unhesitating decision by the trade union to confront terrorism and violence head-on.
When peace is threatened, it must be defended. The invader must be stopped. In Ukraine, there is a violent, destructive invasion of a defenceless population. Therefore, we must use all the tools that the situation calls for: diplomatic action, economic and financial sanctions against the invader. At the same time, we must help those under attack with relief measures and by strengthening their ability to defend themselves, including through military aid and the supply of weapons.
(Sul governo Renzi) Penso che sia un governo di centrosinistra che produce politiche non condivisibili per una parte dei suoi elettori.
Interviewer: ‘Wasn't it a mistake [...] to claim that Biagi collaborated with both the government and Confindustria?’ Cofferati: In claiming, as I did, that there is collusion between Confindustria and the centre-right government, I expressed a political opinion. Nothing more and nothing less, nothing to do with individuals or relationships with individuals. I was and still am convinced of this. And what I said about Professor Biagi was simply an objective fact: he was the coordinator of the group that drafted the ‘White Paper’ and was also a collaborator of Confindustria. The professor's death affected me deeply; I am not affected by accusations that I consider completely unfounded. I never considered Biagi an adversary: he was a valuable expert.