ITALY RIGHT-WING GOVERNMENT - LEGITIMACY AND CRITICISM

The March 1994 general election in Italy brought a right-wing coalitio n to power in the country for the first time since the Second World Wa r. This article examines the background to the victory of Silvio Berlu sconi's coalition and its possible implications for future development s in both Italian domestic and wider European politics, looking in tur n at each of the major groupings on the political right in Italy. In p articular, the author notes the de facto lifting of the prohibition on participation of the 'heirs of fascism' in democratic governments and the need for a form of government capable of yoking economic universa lism with cultural particularism.