Gianni De Michelis

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Gianni De Michelis

Gianni De Michelis (born on 26 November 1940 in Venezia) is an Italian politician.

1 Political career
2 New Start
3 Education
4 Career
5 External links

[edit] Political career

His political experience starts with the Italian Socialist Party where he get elclcted to the council of Venice. He got elected for the first time to the Italian Parliament in 1976 and was successfully elected again in 1979, 1983, 1987, 1992 and 2006. He was Minister for State's Participation from 1980 to 1983. He then became Minister of Work in 1986 (with Bettino Craxi as President of the Council). His career however reached the top with his nomination to the Vice-Presidency of the Council in 1988-1989. He became Minister for Foreign Affairs in 1989 and kept that post until 1992.

Between 1993 and 2001, during the so called "judicial storm of Mani Pulite", was accused of curruption along with many most of the socialists MPs and regional administrators. Within more than 35 different trails, apart from the numerous favorable verdicts, he has been convicted of corruption and was sentenced to 1 year and 6 months (negotiated) in Venice for highways bribes in Veneto and to 6 months for illegal financing (Enimont bribe, also negotiated).

[edit] New Start

However in 1996 he founded the political movement called Socialist Party with former PSI members, which later was joined by the Socialist League of Claudio Martelli and Bobo Craxi to form the Socialist Party New PSI in 2001. He was elected secretary of the new party at the first congress.

Member of the European Parliament for Southern with the NPSI, and is therefore a Non-Inscrit in the European Parliament waiting for the acceptance of his party's request of membership in the European Socialist Group. He sits in the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, and is a substitute for the Committee on Legal Affairs, a member of the Delegation for relations with the People's Republic of China and a substitute for the Delegation to the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly.

His leadership however had been contested in the congress of October 2005 where the former son of Bettino Craxi, Bobo claimed to have been declared secretary after De Michelis had left the hall declaring the Congress void. This led Bobo to open a judicial case. The judge, on the second verdicts, gave unquestionably confirmed the right to use the symbol and the secretacy to Gianni De Michelis.

At the elections of 2006 he was elected MP for the Italian parliament but gave his seat to Mr Lucio Barani since he decided to stay in the European Parliament.

[edit] Education

1963: Graduate in pure chemistry (University of Padua)

[edit] Career

1963-1972: Voluntary assistant and then Professor of general chemistry (University of Padua)
Town councillor (1964-1980 and 1990-1995) and councillor with responsibility for urban planning (1969) of the municipality of Venice
1972-1980: lecturer in general chemistry (University of Venice)
1980-1999: associate Professor
1976: Member of the PSI national party executive, responsible for organisation of the party at national level
1976-1994: Member of the Chamber of Deputies of Italy
1980-1983: Minister for State Holdings
1983-1986: Minister of Labour
1987-1988: Chairman of the PSI deputies
1988-1989: Deputy Prime Minister
1989-1992: Foreign Minister
1992-1993: national Vice-Secretary of the PSI
1997-2001: national Secretary of the PS
Chairman (1984-1992) and member of the Executive Committee (since 2001) of the ASPEN Institute in Italy
since 2001: national Secretary of the Nuovo PSI (Italian New Socialist Party)
since 2002: Chairman of IPALMO - Institute for Latin America and the Middle East
since 2003: European member of the ASEM Task Force
since 2004: Member of the European Parliament