Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi Nationality Italian | Name Giuseppe Tatarella Role Italian Politician | |
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Died February 8, 1999, Turin, Italy Political party Italian Social Movement, National Alliance | ||
Giuseppe Tatarella (17 September 1935 – 8 February 1999) was an Italian politician who served as deputy prime minister in the first cabinet of Silvio Berlusconi from 1994 to 1995.
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Early life and education
Tatarella was born in Cerignola, Apulia, in 1935. He held a law degree.
Career
Tatarella was a lawyer and journalist. He worked for the local branches of neo-fascist Italian Social Movement party, which was launched by Benito Mussolini's followers in 1946 based on his strong nationalistic ideals. In the 1960s he launched the weekly Puglia D'Oggi (meaning Puglia Today in English). In 1970, he became a member of the Puglia regional council. In 1979, he was first elected to the parliament and retained his seat until 1999. He served as floor leader of the AN at the parliament for a long time.
Then he became a senior member of National Alliance (AN) that was established in January 1994. The party was the continuation of the Italian Social Movement. In 1996, he took over the Il Roma, Naples-based daily, and served as its editor until 1999.
He was appointed deputy prime minister to the first cabinet of Silvio Berlusconi, which was the first right-wing and 53rd cabinet of Italy after World War II, on 10 May 1994. He also served as the minister for posts and telecommunications in the same cabinet and was one of four AN members in the cabinet. However, only his appointment was considered to be significant. Indeed he was surnamed Minister of harmony. He was in office until 1995. Tatarella also won his seat from Bari in the elections held on 22 April 1996. In January 1997, he was named as the head of a parliamentary subcommittee, named "form of government". It was one of four subcommittees that constituted a bicameral committee of parliament set up to discuss the institutional reorganization of Italy.
Views
Although Tatarella was described and viewed as a fascist, he never admitted it and stated "I am a nationalist, a Catholic and a democrat."
Death
Tatarella died of a heart attack at a hospital in Turin at age 63 on 8 February 1999. A funeral service was performed for him in Bari.