The situation regarding
amendments to the civil unions bill now before the Senate is
still unclear on Monday, because rightwing populist Northern
League (LN) still hasn't revealed which of its amendments it
intends to retract and which to leave on the table, said
Democratic Party (PD) Senator Luigi Zanda.
Zanda said that makes it impossible to estimate the number
of secret votes on the bill, although he said he hopes it won't
be more than about ten.
Zanda said that although PD has left its members free to
"vote their conscience" on the bill, he estimated that "no"
votes within the party number no more than seven or eight.
"Freedom to vote conscience means there's no obligation to
majority, because on (stepchild adoption clause) Article 5, a
Renzi government position doesn't exist," said PD Senator Andrea
Marcucci.
"A great party like PD doesn't change its mind so easily.
We'll go ahead on civil unions, because the bill and the PD
amendments are constitutional and balanced, including the
stepchild adoption," Marcucci said.
A group of 16 senators from Premier Matteo Renzi's
Democratic Party (PD) on Monday warned against a secret vote on
the bill becoming the means to opportunism, "offered to he who
has no scruples in using people's rights for a different game,
which has nothing to do with ethical conventions".
"PD cohesion on the line of unanimity deliberated in
assembly, while respecting the freedom of conscience of each
person, is the only way to avoid problems and bring through a
law that can no longer be postponed," the group said.
Popular Area (AP) Senators Maurizio Sacconi and Nico
D'Ascola said the key to the bill's passage or failure isn't the
stepchild adoption clause but rather the first three articles of
the bill regarding the institution of marriage.
"The final vote, the break or the understanding, will be
played out there".
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