Atreju, from Gufoadvisor to anti-left selfie: Fdi's kermesse without party flags at Circo Massimo
The Fratelli d'Italia party has expanded in space and time. From the first edition at the Colle Oppio in 1998 (when it was organised by the youth section of Alleanza Nazionale) it moved to the Circo Massimo, a location that has now become highly coveted for concerts from the Rolling stones to Maneskin
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Once past the accreditation boxes, the first face one comes across is the printed one of Giorgia Meloni. A mega-panel with the Prime Minister portrayed in a half-length white suit and then full-length in a blue dress lists, with the aid of a geographical map, the Prime Minister's 'over 580 international activities' (from China to Latin America) that have 'concretely raised Italy's prestige abroad'. Tracing the 'Italian way in the world'. And 'the Italian way' is the slogan chosen for Atreju this year.
Week-long event
.The Fratelli d'Italia party has expanded in space and time. From the first edition at the Colle Oppio in 1998 (when it was organised by the youth section of Alleanza Nazionale) it has moved to the Circo Massimo, a location that has now become coveted for concerts from the Rolling stones to Maneskin. Twice as long as last year's four-day event: gates open from 8 to 15 December, with a parade of 21 ministers, two opposition leaders Giuseppe Conte and Carlo Calenda (Elly Schlein was absent) and conclusions entrusted to the Prime Minister on the last day.
No Fratelli d'Italia flags or logos
Again this year, no Fratelli d'Italia flags or logos. 'This is not a party party, but a partisan party,' insists Giovanni Donzelli, who is responsible for the organisation. The spaces with a view of the Terme di Caracalla are pharaonic: a 5,000 square metre Christmas village with two tensile structures for debates, a mega ice rink, a giant white Christmas tree in the centre, and all around 40 wooden huts for catering and the sale of handicrafts. There is something for everyone, from Ariccia porchetta to lasagna. Including mulled wine. But there is also the little house where copies of the 'area' newspaper La voce del Patriota are distributed and the one where the militants of Gioventù nazionale (the youth section of Fdi) sell their T-shirts. Space is also given to culture with the little house where it is possible to buy everything from Marinetti's poems to the 'Black Book of the New Left'.
The maxi-panel with the opponents' best 'guffaws'
.A certain obsession with the left does indeed hover around the village. At the entrance, after the maxi-panel dedicated to the premier, the 'Gufoadvisor' stands out, with 'The best guffaws of the left'. And a stylised owl logo. The panel features well-known faces, from Elly Schlein to M5S leader Giuseppe Conte and Carlo Calenda. Under each photo, a statement and a news item contradicting it. By Schlein is reported (among others) the sentence: 'Total irrelevance of the government in Europe', accompanied by a headline on: 'Raffaele Fitto appointed executive vice-president of the EU Commission'. Calenda's statement (with the caption 'very high level of guffaws') is instead quoted after the elections at the end of September 2022: 'The government will last six months'. Easy comment: 'The government is firmly in place'.
The 'ideal world' according to the left
.Not only that. Next come signs with the results of the Fratelli d'Italia's request to the artificial intelligence to describe 'the ideal world according to the left'. The scenario is in strong colours: 'There are no safe countries, wild landings are on the way', 'a parliament in the hands of the red judiciary', 'the uterus for rent market is open', 'ownership of other people's homes is acquired through occupations', 'the police do not have the right to defend themselves', 'ecovandals can block the streets whenever they want', 'inclusive bathrooms are a reality'.
