Secret votes on civil unions hard to estimate, Zanda says

(ANSA) - Rome, February 8 - 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".