(see related)
The centre-left Democratic Party (PD)
on Sunday called on Premier Giorgia Meloni to intervene over
sexist comments at a Rome museum event by Undersecretary
Vittorio Sgarbi that have caused a furore.
Employees at Rome's MAXXI contemporary art museum wrote to their
director to protest after Sgarbi spoke extensively about his
"dick" and his sexual conquests and gave estimates about the
number of women famous statesmen of the past had had sex with.
The profanity-heavy speech, made during an event to present the
museum's summer programme, can be seen online.
"Sgarbi's comments at MAXXI were extremely serious and
unacceptable, a sign of a worrying cultural regression," said PD
Lower House whip Chiara Braga.
"You cannot use a great cultural institution as a platform for
an undignified spectacle that is offensive to the (museum's)
women workers and to all women.
"We call for measures to be taken, convinced that Premier Meloni
cannot be indifferent to this.
"It wasn't jest, but a serious episode in terms of language,
tone and content".
Sgarbi, an explosive art critic who is never far from
controversy, was angered by the row.
"In that case, let's censor (Pier Paola) Pasolini's (novel)
Petrolio and (Lucio) Battisti's (song) Dieci Ragazze Per Me (Ten
Girls for Me)," he said.
The PD has also called on Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano
to report to parliament over Sgarbi's "serious, vulgar, sexist,
nasty comments".
On Sunday Sangiuliano said sexism was always unacceptable.
"I have always been categorically distant from sexist and vulgar
expressions, which I always judge to be unacceptable in any
situation and even more so in a place of culture by someone who
represents the institutions," Sangiuliano said.
"Respect for women is a constant of my life.
"For me, being a conservative means having substance, style and
aesthetics in conduct too".
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