The National Assembly of the Homosexual Coordination of the Democrats of the Left took place on Sunday morning at the National Unity Festival in Genoa. Marina Sereni and Gianni Cuperlo, representatives of the DS national secretariat, attended the meeting.
One of the posters of the DS campaign on PACS
The meeting was opened by a report from the national spokesperson Andrea Benedino who has forcefully urged the DS to take responsibility for including the demands of the Italian gay and lesbian movement in the center-left's program, starting with the proposed law on the Civil Solidarity Pact (PACS), which the DS recently requested be scheduled for discussion by the Justice Commission of the Chamber of Deputies.
This need was shared in his speech by Marina Sereni who has committed to this end on behalf of the DS national secretariat. "We need," Sereni stated in her speech, "for civil rights to take a central place in the center-left's programmatic proposal, similar to what happened in Zapatero's Spain.".
An immediate first response from the DS was the presentation that Gianni Cuperlo has made the DS's next national campaign in support of the PACS, which will launch in the coming weeks through posters throughout Italy. "A campaign," said Cuperlo, "that positions the DS clearly and explicitly on the issue of rights.".
At the end of the meeting, Andrea Benedino, 29, was re-elected as national spokesperson for the next two years. Benedino is currently the councilor for education in the Municipality of Ivrea and recently served as a candidate in the European elections on the Uniti nell'Ulivo list in the North-West constituency. Along with Benedino, the new CODS National Board of Directors was also elected, which is composed of: Alessandro Zan, Paolo Gerra, Davide Blanc, Enrico Pizza, Ennio Trinelli, Francesco Rocchetti, Edoardo Del Vecchio, Nunzio Liso, Agata Ruscica, Marco Marchetti, Stefano Bucaioni, Veniero Fusco, Marco Volante, Paola Concia, and Celeste Buratti. Permanent guests have been indicated Franco Grillini, DS parliamentarian and Vanni Piccolo, president of the CODS national assembly.
During the debate, the following spoke: Sergio Lo Giudice, National President of Arcigay, who declared: "It is necessary that the battle over civil unions now become a central issue on the political agenda for the entire party and the centre-left.".
Aurelio Mancuso, National Secretary of Arcigay, emphasized how: "In this new phase, it is important for everyone to do their part well: the Cods within the party and the movement, united, in society.".
Franco Grillini, DS MP, Honorary President of Arcigay, recalled that: "The DS campaign on PACS marks a historic turning point for which credit must be given to all the comrades who have worked hard in recent years to change the political culture of the largest party of the Italian left.".
Paola Concia, of the DS National Directorate, remarked that "Now is a historic opportunity for the Italian LGBT movement. The CODS must also renew itself and give due consideration to the perspectives of lesbian women." Edoardo del Vecchio, spokesperson for the Lazio CODS, called for "greater collegiality in decision-making, direct involvement of all CODS entities, and broader political action in the run-up to the DS Congress." Celeste Buratti, the CODS representative for trans people, emphasized the urgent need for "the party to commit to transgender issues, particularly by supporting the small solution law." The assembly applauded Marco Volante's joining the CODS, making him the spokesperson for gay DS members in Milan.
