The “purple people” challenge Berlusconi online

While waiting for the march to start, a man strolls along a fountain holding a souvenir of the legendary golden bed Putin bestowed Berlusconi (famous thanks to the account of a prostitute who lay there with the President). A few steps away, a purple-clad family, children included, is posing for a picture. Under the trees, another protester, cheered by onlookers, is shouting the name of prominent political figures, foremost Berlusconi, whose portraits are reproduced on a billboard marked with “stop the mafia”.

A common language

Their main trademark is the colour purple with which they have imbued their banners, t-shirts and scarves. “By assembling themselves, they have discovered a common language”, observes Domenico Gallo, a Roman magistrate taking part in the march. They gathered from all around Italy via the Internet in order to organize the “No B day 2”, shorthand for “No Berlusconi Day 2”.

It’s the second time the self-proclaimed “Popolo viola” has organised a march of this magnitude. “We are against Berlusconi but also against Berlusconism”, stresses a Roman marcher – meaning against corruption, conflict of interest, policies that lead to precarity, in favour of freedom of information and respect of the constitution.

A difficult mix of flags

Around 2:30 PM, the march sets in motion with a joyful mood. “Berlusconi, pezzo di merda” (“Berlusconi, you piece of shit”), or “la mafia, fuori dallo stato” (“Mafia out of the state”), hails the crowd representative of all ages, along the streets of the capital. Sporting purple banners, the protesters have reached Rome thanks to a network of 300 buses (according to the organisation).

There are also other banners, associated to mainstream opposition parties. “There are too many of them”, a woman from Torino laments. Amongst others, the blue and white flag of the Italia dei valori - the IDV, founded by the former magistrate Antonio di Pietro – contaminates the purple dye of the crowd. Some political figures appear here and there. Nichi Vendola, governor of the region of Puglia and rising star of the opposition, is welcomed by the protesters.

Tired of being angry

At the end of the march, the large Piazza San Giovani is filled with protesters. Here, under the spotlight, figures from the civil society speak in turn about justice, the harm faced by the country’s constitution and freedom of the press, and the educational crisis. Not a single political figure had been booked. Anti-mafia activists and journalists talk one after the other, listing the scandals left in the dark by most of the media. “I’m tired of being angry (…), it’s up to your generation to change things”, Concita De Gregorio – editor in chief of the newspaper l’Unità – bellows with rage. The cry strongly echoes the social battle across the country. When the brother of Paolo Borselino, a judge murdered by the Mafia, appears on the stage, he’s met with an ovation.

Suddenly Berlusconi’s face pops up on the giant video screen, and the crowd begins hissing rabidly. The last protesters stay late to listen to young performers, enduring the frost of the night, while media already debates the official and unofficial number of participants: 10,000 for some, 5 times more for the others…

A sour lesson

Whatever the truth, it’s a far cry from the last protest, on December the 5th 2009. On this day, the No B Day gathered around 500,000 people. On October 2nd disappointment exacerbates the protesters’ mood, as it swings between the bitterness and the pleasure of marching convivially through the streets. In the meantime, the members of “Popolo viola” had been baptised into politics – especially those who had never engaged with party politics – and took part in the development of a new form of online democracy. Not without difficulty.

Local groups split, especially over the question of collaboration with political parties. They have yet to come up with an online decision-making process. “We must learn to debate online, to moderate ourselves”, Popolo Viola organiser GianFranco Mascia, acknowledges. He envisions the creation of an Italian version of Move On’  – define – that would allow people to connect online and directly intervene in the political discourse, bereft of institutional barriers.

In search of a loudspeaker

The bright-eyed and bushy-tailed protesters are quite surprised to see several members of the French media – France 3, Canal plus… -  covering the event and calling them «pioneers of cyberactivism ».  I’m often told with admiration, «in France, you really know how to put the country in a standstill». These people are desperate to be heard in a locked-up ‘videocracy’. The national TV channels are virtually absent at the march.

The next day’s front pages speak for themselves. Left-wing dailies like La Repubblica or Il Fatto quotidiano, echo the protest. But Libero, an unconditional supporter of Berlusconi’s politics, runs with the headline: «hatred on the streets». An interpretation that some feel doesn’t fit well with the events of the previous day, when half a million people marched through Rome with the Italian Constitution as their only weapon.

Picture FlickR CC redbanshee ; compaifecundo ; Jalore.