Sergio Cofferati

"[...] comics, perhaps out of snobbery, literary superficiality or simple indifference, are always considered second-rate, a pastime for the masses, a poor art form and therefore too often mistreated. Well, I repeat, for me this is a mistaken judgement. Example: Dino Battaglia interpreted great classics from Melville to Maupassant to Rabelais, and his work was truly a unanimously recognised masterpiece, a magnificent work."

"We must be extremely rigorous in prosecuting crimes, and equally rigorous in not allowing crimes to be exploited."

"(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."

"Stefano Rodotà is a high-profile candidate who is well placed to represent the country at European and international level. The work and rights that give him dignity, the value of citizenship and the foundations of the Constitution have always been an important part of his culture."

"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."

"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."

"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."

"Even with the murders of Ruffilli, Tarantelli and D'Antona, terrorist madness sought to strike scholars and intellectuals in the service of the state. But this time, Biagi was killed while the confrontation and negotiations in which he was participating in an authoritative capacity were underway. This is a targeted attack on social cohesion policies, but also on the very mechanism by which social dialogue takes place. It is intended to influence the social partners involved in the negotiations. This is another reason why it is important to remain as firm as ever in the fight against terrorism, but also to have the intelligence to quickly restore social dialogue. In its physiological, natural forms: negotiation, the possibility of reaching agreements, or moving on to conflict and struggle if there is disagreement. Terrorism cannot dictate the timing, the merits or the dynamics of the debate. I think it is entirely understandable that the government should confirm its intentions on Article 18. It is equally essential that the trade unions do the same, with a critical assessment of the government's proposals and with struggle and conflict. [...] It is all perfectly normal and natural. There was a confrontation with the government that did not have a positive outcome, there was a breakdown, and the trade unions asserted their reasons with this initiative. Terrorism wants to prevent this natural process. And all those who support this attempt, more or less unconsciously, are making a serious mistake."

"[...] for the first time, an executive has proposed changes to the rights system, with an economic and social policy that is explicitly hostile to the ideas and proposals of the trade unions. Article 18 has become the symbolic reference point for all this. There is conflict, but there is nothing more ‘orderly’ than the struggles that CGIL-CISL-UIL have waged in recent months. When people talk about a ‘climate of hatred’ – referring to the trade unions – they are making statements that are out of place and have no basis in the reality of Italian society. Some attacks are not only unfounded, but literally disgraceful."

"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."

"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."

"Luciano Lama was secretary general of the CGIL trade union at a time when terrorism was a particularly aggressive cancer in Italian society. He had the merit and great courage – together with others – to take the CGIL against political violence and terrorism. He was a true moral authority in this country, a role that, unfairly, was not fully recognised."

"Interviewer: 'What do you think when they accuse you of wanting to strike against Marco Biagi's ideas? Cofferati: I don't think anything. It's a statement that offends me."

"This government does not merely want to break up the trade union movement, it wants to change its very nature. It began by saying that the CGIL is not a trade union but a political force: ridiculous!"

"(On the Renzi government) I think it is a centre-left government that produces policies that are unacceptable to some of its voters."

"While political representation is becoming increasingly rare because parties are becoming lighter, even fluid, according to some, resorting to the streets on major issues is becoming almost a necessary outlet for voters who no longer have places and tools through which to express their opinions. Interviewer: You mean that without mass parties, the only option left is the streets? Cofferati: The streets become the main place where people can express their ideas. Interviewer: But isn't there a risk that protest will have no effect? That it will become a mere outlet? Cofferati: That wouldn't be a bad thing or a cause for concern. A demonstration can also bring about change."

"[...] without places and subjects of mediation, conflict increases. The stronger the trade unions, the less conflict there is. The more deeply rooted a party is, the better it manages its relationship with the electorate."

"[...] 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."

"Cofferati didn't do what he was supposed to do. I had even bet the newspaper on him. He was the new leader of the left and he backed out. He disappointed millions of people."

"It was impossible to socialise or joke with him. Cofferati is the trade unionist with whom I have had the most difficult personal relationship. [...] In truth, he immediately withdrew from the national competition. He chose not to be defeated and to start over."

"I am very fond of Sergio Cofferati. He is the Italian trade unionist with whom I felt most in tune when I was a minister. [...] He is contradictory, he has not been consistent with what he thought and what I believe he still thinks."

"If Cofferati had continued with reformism, he probably would not have brought three million people onto the streets, but he would have positioned himself as a point of reference for broader political alliances."