Giorgia Meloni shattered Italy's highest glass ceiling when she was sworn in as the country's first female prime minister on Saturday, but she does not share her power with many other women. Meloni's list of ministers includes just six out of 24 women, or 25 percent, compared to her predecessor Mario Draghi's cabinet, which was 30 percent women and 50 percent in Matteo Renzi's government in 2014.
Women in Meloni's cabinet hold some of the junior positions, such as Tourism and Disabilities. All important offices of state - foreign relations, economy and home affairs - went to men, as did the departments of justice, health and infrastructure. The women were appointed to the labor and university departments.
The move will raise concerns that Italian women will not benefit from the Meloni government. Women's groups in Italy fear their rights will be curtailed under the Meloni government. After the election, thousands marched through Rome and Milan to support access to abortion, and Meloni, who wants to boost Italy's low birth rate and offer women alternatives to abortion, may lose some fear. on the family, the birth rate and equal opportunities.
Sandra Zampa, a Senator from the Left Democrats, told POLITICO: "There was no reason to believe that Meloni would do otherwise. I've never heard Meloni talk about women's rights. She is the daughter of a political culture and an ideology that has a negative record on equal opportunities and women's rights and has never hidden it. Zampa criticized the nomination of Roccella, "who is an ultra-conservative Catholic and for whom abortion is not a right." criticized 's combination of birth issues with women's rights, "which blocks both.
He was followed by the 24 ministers of Meloni. Meloni retained nine ministries for his own party, while giving five ministries each to the parties of partners Matteo Salvini and Silvio Berlusconi. The rest are technocrats.
The key post of Economy and Finance Minister is held by Giancarlo Giorgetti, who was Economic Development Minister under Draghi. After Berlusconi announced his friendship with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this week, left-wing politicians insisted it was inappropriate for Berlusconi's party to nominate the candidate for the foreign ministry.
But in the end, Berlusconi's deputy Antonio Tajani was confirmed as foreign minister and deputy prime minister. Italy's attitude towards Europe is said to be in good hands under Tajani, former President of the European Parliament.
Berlusconi also wanted his party to control the justice ministry, which would help him protect his companies and push through reforms. But with Berlusoni currently on trial for perjury and bribing witnesses, Meloni appointed prosecutor Carlo Nordio. Salvini made it clear that he wanted to return inside. ministry that he headed from 2018 to 2019.
That would have allowed him to win votes by fighting immigration, but since Salvini was on trial for refusing to let migrants board an NGO rescue ship during his tenure as minister, Meloni appointed him instead to the infrastructure minister.
Public servant Matteo Piantedosi, who worked with Salvini at the ministry, was appointed interior minister. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen congratulated Meloni on Saturday on his election as Prime Minister. "I'm counting and I'm looking forward to constructive cooperation with the new government," von der Leyen said in a tweet.