Contro il governo Draghi — Communist Party of Italy held nationwide protests against Draghi government

Hundreds of members and supporters of the Communist Party, Italy (Partito Comunista) participated yesterday, Saturday 27th February, in nationwide protests against the government of Mario Draghi. From Rome's San Silvestro square to Piazza Castello in Turin, the communists sent a strong message of struggle, reaffirming their strategic aim of social alliance against the pro-capitalist, closely affiliated with EU and NATO,  policies of the new government. 

Protests were held in numerous cities, including Milan, Florence, Genova, Napoli, Palermo, Reggio Calabria, Terni and elsewhere,

Italy's Communist Party marks its 100th anniversary

Today, 21 January, marks the 100th anniversary since the foundation of the Communist Party of Italy in 1921, following a split in the Italian Socialist Party (PSI). The Party was founded in Livorno in 21 January 1921, headed by Antonio Gramsci, Palmiro Togliatti and Amadeo Bordiga.

In a turbulent course of 70 years until the final dissolution in 1991, the Communist Party of Italy, renamed as Italian Communist Party in 1940s,  left an indelible mark in the country's history. A member of the Communist International until 1943, it became the largest Communist Party in the western world with almost 2.3 million members in 1947. 

Belarus under the threat of a "color revolution"?

The landslide victory (with 80.23% of the votes) of incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko in Belarus’ presidential elections on Sunday sparked violent protests by supporters of the opposition in Minsk and other cities. A protester was killed and dozens were injured following clashes with police forces. 

Opposition leader  Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who received 9.9% of the votes, refused to accept the results, stating that they were rigged. 

“I consider myself the winner of this election” Tikhanovskaya said in a statement before leaving the country for Lithuania.

Berlinguer: A good man, but not a communist

The following article was written by Marco Rizzo, General Secretary of the Communist Party, Italy (Partito Comunista) and published in "l'Unità" newspaper in November 11, 2015 under the title "Berlinguer, un brava persona ma non comunista". 

The article is a reminder of the deeply reactionary and reformist nature of Eurocommunism, a prominent founder and promoter of which was Enrico Berlinguer.

By Marco Rizzo.

There is always a beginning. We ask ourselves: What brought to consumption the great historical and political experience of Italy’s communists? What led Antonio Gramsci’s party to become today’s party of Matteo Renzi?

Marco Rizzo: "Covid-19 killed EU and capitalism. The only solution is socialism"

Interviewed by affaritaliani.it, the General Secretary of the CC of the Communist Party, Italy (Partito Comunista) Marco Rizzo analyzed the actual reasons behind the dramatic situation that exists in Italy due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“The dramatic health situation that Italy is experiencing these days shows clearly how in the last 30 years, since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the disappearance of the Soviet Union, the entire welfare state and public healthcare of our country has been dismantled”, points out Rizzo. 

Italy's Communist Party increases its power in Rome by-elections

Communist Party leader Marco Rizzo gained the 4th place in the supplementary elections that took place on Sunday in Rome’s Lazio 1 constituency. 

Rizzo received 2.62% of the votes, which is seven times higher than the percentage in the 2018 elections (0.37%), thus marking a successful electoral performance for the Communist Party (Partito Comunista), given the existing correlation of forces.

A message, written in Italian, at the Communist Party's official website reads: 

"Si Fottano!": Italian communist leader Marco Rizzo tore up EU Parliament's resolution which equates communism with fascism

Thousands of members and supporters of the Communist Party (Partito Comunista) from across the country gathered on Saturday in Rome's Piazza Santi Apostoli, protesting against Italy's bourgeois government and the European Union. 

In a symbolic gesture, the General Secretary of the Communist Party, Italy, Marco Rizzo tore up a copy of the recent EU Parliament's resolution which equates communism with fascism. In his speech, Rizzo condemned the resolution for rewriting history through the unhistorical and despicable claim that the 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop pact was the cause behind the Second World War. 

Marco Rizzo responds to the anti-communist slanders of "Lega Nord" member

Marco Rizzo (left). On the right, Iacopi with Matteo Salvini.
Photo: lariscossa.com

Being a communist is "an incurable disease". This is what Emilio Iacopi, a local representative of Matteo Salvini's Northern League (Lega Nord) and a former sergeant of Italian police, wrote during an anti-communist rant on social media. 

According to La Riscossa, organ of the Communist Party, Italy (Partito Comunista), the General Secretary of the Communist Party Marco Rizzo responded to the hideous remarks of Iacopi. More specifically he wrote on Twitter:

Athens turned red: Massive rally of the KKE sends message of hope and struggle (Photos)

A really massive and vivid rally of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) took place on Wednesday afternoon in central Athens, just 4 days before the double European and local elections of May 26th. 

Thousands of workers, young men and women, people of every age created a "red river" at Syntagma Square, sending a message of hope and struggle. 

The major speaker at the event was the KKE's General Secretary Dimitris Koutsoumbas. The rally was attended by a delegation of the Communist Party, Italy (PC) headed by the General Secretary Marco Rizzo who delivered a greeting message. 

Dimitris Koutsoumbas in Rome: "Every vote to the Communist Parties is a contribution to the common struggle of the people" (Video, Photos)

"Every vote to the Communist Parties consists a contribution to the strengthening of the common struggle of the people" said the General Secretary of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Dimitris Koutsoumbas during his greeting speech in Rome. 

Koutsoumbas, along with the KKE MEP Kostas Papadakis, attended an electoral rally of the Communist Party, Italy (Partito Comunista) in San Lorenzo district, where he received a warm welcome by the Italian comrades.

"Raise your head" - Dimitris Koutsoumbas and Marco Rizzo to address political event in Rome

The General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Dimitris Koutsoumbas is going to address a political meeting organized by the Communist Party, Italy (Partito Comunista) on Saturday 18 May, at 4 pm in Piazzale Tiburtino, at San Lorenzo in Rome (Facebook page). 

The event - which is organized under the slogan "Rialziamo da testa" (Raise your head") will conclude with a speech by the General Secretary of the CC Communist Party, Italy Marco Rizzo. 

Italy: Communists paid tribute to the 100th anniversary of Communist International

Photo from the event in Rome (Credit: La Riscossa).

An event in honor of the 100^th anniversary since the founding of the Communist International was held in Rome, on Saturday 2^nd of March, by the Communist Party, Italy (Partito Comunista). Numerous members and friends of the Party and its youth wing- the Front of Communist Youth (FGC) – attended the event. 

The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) was represented by Kostas Papadakis, MEP and member of the CC, who delivered a greeting speech.

Italian communist leader Marco Rizzo blasts Berlinguer's eurocommunist legacy

Marco Rizzo (left), General Secretary of the CC of the
Communist Party, Italy. Right: Enrico Berlinguer.

In a very interesting speech delivered at the 20th International Meeting of Communist and Workers Parties, which is taking place in Athens, the General Secretary of the CC of the Communist Party of Italy (Partito Comunista) Marco Rizzo strongly criticized the ideological and political legacy of the so-called "Euro-communism".

The intervention of Rizzo marks a break-up with the traditional reformist line of the - once powerful- Italian Communist Party. "We reject with extreme firmness any hypothesis of political alliances between parties, both for electoral purposes, which, even worse, in support of self-styled "left "governments. The Italian labor movement has paid heavily for the lines of collaboration and compromise with the reformist parties" said Rizzo and added:

"Vite di tutti, profitti di pochi": Who is to blame for Genova bridge collapse?

Poster by the Communist Party, Italy on the
Genova disaster: "Immediate Nationalisation".

At least 26 people were killed and 15 badly hurt after a motorway bridge in the northwest Italian city of Genova collapsed on Tuesday afternoon. Dozens of vehicles fell from a 45m height while, according to police sources, there are people who are still missing. 

The tragic incident in Genova seems to be another crime committed in the altar of profitability. In other words, another capitalist crime, in a system which risks the lives of the many for the profits of the few. 

The reaction from the Communist Party, Italy was immediate. In a message to his Twitter account, the Party's General Secretary Marco Rizzo offered his condolences to the families of the victims and wrote (free translation):

Italian communist leader Marco Rizzo: "The only revolution is the communist one"

Commenting on the recent developments in Italy and the failure of the two major parties to form a coalition government, the General Secretary of the CC of the Communist Party, Italy (Partito Comunista) Marco Rizzo wrote on his personal twitter account the following:

"The governmental incident indicates who is in charge in Italy. The EU, IMF and NATO are able to choose ministers and not only. We, the communists, know that, as well as Di Maio and Salvini knew that. Forward to the battle against capitalist globalization. The only revolution is the communist one."

Italy: Communists prepare for the electoral battle of March 4th #VotaComunista

With daily campaigns and events all over Italy, the Communist Party (Partito Comunista) prepares for the election which is due to be held on March 4th. 

General Secretary Marco Rizzo, as well as other Party cadres and members, are touring the country in order to discuss with the working class and the people, spreading the political positions of the Communist Party.

Italian Elections 2018: Perché votare per il Partito Comunista?

Interview with Marco Rizzo, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Italy (PC)

The General Secretary of the Communist Party of Italy (Partito Comunista), Marco Rizzo, gave a very interesting interview to the International Communist Press:

ICP: Before starting, could you inform our readers about the discussions within the Italian Communist Movement that led to the founding of your party, the Communist Party of Italy?

Marco Rizzo: The ideological and political origins of our Party refer to the political area of ​​the legendary organizer of the Italian Communist Party (PCI) during the Resistance, Pietro Secchia, who was an opponent of Togliatti for what concerned its moderatism according to the "Italian Way to Socialism". This area kept living through the magazine Interstampa and the Marxist Cultural Centers, born in Italy during the ‘80s. This area was, in fact, the backbone of the struggle of the pro-Soviet opposition within the PCI and the establishment of the new party, Rifondazione Comunista, after the PCI dissolution in 1991.

“Ni tierra, ni mar, ni aire par los imperialistas”: Internationalist event by the PCPE in Madrid

"No land, no sea, no air to Imperialists".

An international event against the imperialist wars takes place on Saturday, May 20, at 6.00 pm in Madrid (Auditorio El Madroño, C/ Villardondiego, 36). The event, organised by the Communist Party of the Peoples of Spain (PCPE), will be attended by representatives of other communisty parties, including the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Italy Marco Rizzo and the member of the International Relations Bureau of the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP) Can Seven. 

The KKE will be represented by the member of the Political Bureau Giorgos Marinos and Lefteris Nikolaou, member of the International Relations department of the CC of the Party. 

The event will be addressed by the General Secretary of the PCPE Ástor García as well as Marina Gómez, Secretary General of the CJC (Colectivos de Jovenes Comunistas).

ITALY: Communist Party raises its voice against the EU with a large demonstration

Sotiris Zarianopoulos, KKE MEP, delivers his
speech at the event.

On the occasion of the 60 years since the Treaty of Rome the Communist Party of Italy (Partito Comunista) organised a large anti-EU demonstration in Rome. The event was attended by representatives of Communist and Workers Parties, such as the Workers Party of Austria, the Communist Party of the Peoples of Spain (PCPE), the Communist-Revolutiony Party of France. 

The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) was represented by the KKE MEP Sotiris Zarianopoulos who delivered a greeting message.

Messages were also delivered by representatives of local labor unions and workers' associations. The event was concluded with speeches by the Secretary of the Front of the Communist Youth (Fronte della Gioventù Comunista) Lorenzo Lang and the General Secretary of Partito Comunista Marco Rizzo.