Salvatore Cuffaro
Encyclopedia
Salvatore "Totò" Cuffaro (born February 21, 1958 in Raffadali
, Agrigento
) is an Italian
politician, former President of Sicily
, currently serving a 7 years sentence for aiding the Mafia
. His nickname is "Vasa Vasa" [Kiss Kiss] for his tendency to kiss all and sundry - he claims that he has kissed a quarter of all the people on the island.
and Surgery
at the University of Palermo
, with a specialization in radiology
, Cuffaro joined the Christian Democrat
(DC) party during his student days. Then, after having served as City Councillor in his native city, Raffadali
, and Palermo
, Cuffaro was first elected Member of the Sicilian Regional Assembly
in 1991; in 1996 he served as Regional Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries.
His political career began under the wing of former minister Calogero Mannino, who in the past was suspected of having ties with the Mafia. Following the demise of the DC, he became a member of ex-DC splinter parties before joining the party Union of Christian and Centre Democrats (UDC). He first became known nationally in September 1991, when he defended his political patron Mannino, accused of being a witness at a Mafia wedding, live on television in a joint broadcasting of the Maurizio Costanzo
show and Michele Santoro
’s Samarcanda, accusing the presenters that their journalism was Mafia journalism. In the presence of Antimafia judge Giovanni Falcone
he accused the Sicilian prosecutors of manipulating state witnesses (pentiti
). In october 2009, Cuffaro denounced for "defamation and threats" the 5000 and above Youtube
users who commented the video of the TV show.
In 2001, after having joined the UDC, Cuffaro was endorsed by the House of Freedoms
as presidential candidate for Sicily. He won the election, with 59.1% of the vote, defeating Leoluca Orlando
. Cuffaro was elected as part of Silvio Berlusconi
's sensational clean sweep of the island, when his coalition won all 61 of its parliamentary seats.
On June 26, 2003, it was revealed that Cuffaro was being investigated for Mafia
-related crimes, after Domenico Miceli, a fellow UDC politician, was arrested for allegedly acting as a link between a Mafia
chief and top Sicilian politicians, including Cuffaro. A few months later he was committed for trial. Despite all this, Cuffaro stood for the 2004 European Parliament election
. Later that year, Cuffaro was appointed national vice-secretary of UDC, the party headed by Pier Ferdinando Casini
. Until 2008 he was also President of COPPEM
.
, he was elected senator for his party, UDC. In the 2006 regional election
, he was successively re-elected President of Sicily with 53.1% of the vote, defeating Rita Borsellino
, the Union
candidate and sister of the late judge Paolo Borsellino
, killed by the mafia in 1992.
Cuffaro and the Italian Minister of Justice, Clemente Mastella
were involved in a scandal when it was found that they had been best men of Francesco Campanella, a former member of the Mafia
and town councilor of Villabate
, who helped the boss Bernardo Provenzano
during his absconding. In 2001 Campanella used his official position to supply Cosa Nostra's top "godfather" with an identity card so he could travel abroad for medical treatment. In July 2000 Mastella and Cuffaro had been witnesses at Campanella's wedding.
He was recently the object of media attention thanks to the film La Mafia è Bianca (The Mafia is White) by Stefano Maria Bianchi and Alberto Nerazzini, which exposes rife corruption in the Sicilian Health service and shows a clip of police film footage of Cuffaro meeting with a known mafioso. Cuffaro took the publishers to court for defamation but lost the first round of the case.
On October 15, 2007, assistant public prosecutor Giuseppe Pignatone requested eight years' imprisonment for Cuffaro charged with aiding and abetting Cosa Nostra and passing confidential information about the trial to the so-called moles in the Palermo Antimafia directorate.
Cuffaro's indictment emerged from an inquiry set up to trace leaks during an inquiry into a local doctor, Giuseppe Guttadauro
, accused of being the Cosa Nostra boss in its Palermo stronghold Brancaccio
. Guttadauro learned that his home was being "bugged" from another doctor. The colleague alleged that he, in turn, had been tipped off by Cuffaro. Guttadauro was recorded describing how the Mafia had funded Cuffaro's 2001 election campaign. According to a transcript, he told that Cuffaro was handed packages of cash "in the least elegant, but most tangible way possible".
On January 18, 2008, Cuffaro was found guilty of having helped the Mafia and was given a five-year sentence, during which time he will be suspended from all public offices. Cuffaro was not found guilty of outright collusion with Cosa Nostra but the court concluded he acted in favour of several people sentenced for Mafia crimes and committed breaches of confidentiality. By Italian law, both the sentence and suspension from public office can only begin after the automatic appeals process is concluded. The prosecution had asked that Cuffaro be given an eight-year sentence but judges concluded that while he had helped the Mafia, there had been neither conspiracy nor willful intent. He has denied all wrongdoing and refused to step down, despite that he has also been banned from public office. "I knew I didn't do anything to willfully help the Mafia and tomorrow morning I intend to be back at my desk," Cuffaro said after the court adjourned.
The day after, Cuffaro handed out cannoli
, a Sicilian pastry, as if celebrating the sentence, which he considered positive as he was not convicted for ties to the Mafia. The ricotta
sweets have become "instrumentalized," he told the daily Corriere della Sera
. Adding that he "never celebrated" and fully understands the weight of the charges brought against him. He didn't bring the celebratory cannoli with him, but one of his many well-wishers did.
, lamented that Cuffaro remained in office while Sicilian businessmen were defying the Mafia by increasingly refusing to pay systematic "protection" money. A widely published photo of him offering his aides a tray of cannoli pastries to celebrate fuelled the outrage.
nominated him in the 2008 general election
and he was re-elected senator
. On January 23, 2010 the Palermo
Appeals Court confirmed his two previous convictions and added the aggravation of favoring the Mafia
, sentencing him to seven years in prison. He subsequently announced his intention to appeal the sentence before the Supreme Court and to resign from all party offices. On January 22, 2011, the Supreme Court definitively confirmed the sentence.Sicily senator Salvatore Cuffaro jailed in mafia case, BBC News, January 23, 2011
Raffadali
Raffadali is a comune in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about 80 km south of Palermo and about 10 km northwest of Agrigento.-Prehistoric:...
, Agrigento
Province of Agrigento
Agrigento is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily in Italy. It has an area of 3,042 km², and a total population of 454,370...
) is an Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
politician, former President of Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
, currently serving a 7 years sentence for aiding the Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
. His nickname is "Vasa Vasa" [Kiss Kiss] for his tendency to kiss all and sundry - he claims that he has kissed a quarter of all the people on the island.
Christian Democrat
A graduate of MedicineMedicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
and Surgery
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
at the University of Palermo
University of Palermo
The University of Palermo is a university located in Palermo, Italy, and founded in 1806. It is organized in 12 Faculties.-History:The University of Palermo was officially founded in 1806, although its earliest roots date back to 1498 when medicine and law were taught there...
, with a specialization in radiology
Radiology
Radiology is a medical specialty that employs the use of imaging to both diagnose and treat disease visualized within the human body. Radiologists use an array of imaging technologies to diagnose or treat diseases...
, Cuffaro joined the Christian Democrat
Christian Democracy (Italy)
Christian Democracy was a Christian democratic party in Italy. It was founded in 1943 as the ideological successor of the historical Italian People's Party, which had the same symbol, a crossed shield ....
(DC) party during his student days. Then, after having served as City Councillor in his native city, Raffadali
Raffadali
Raffadali is a comune in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about 80 km south of Palermo and about 10 km northwest of Agrigento.-Prehistoric:...
, and Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
, Cuffaro was first elected Member of the Sicilian Regional Assembly
Sicilian Regional Assembly
The Sicilian Regional Assembly is the legislative body of the Sicily, as provided in its special status. By virtue of its particular state legislature, Regional Assembly is the only regional assembly to have the title of parliament and its components are defined Deputies.- History :The Sicilian...
in 1991; in 1996 he served as Regional Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries.
His political career began under the wing of former minister Calogero Mannino, who in the past was suspected of having ties with the Mafia. Following the demise of the DC, he became a member of ex-DC splinter parties before joining the party Union of Christian and Centre Democrats (UDC). He first became known nationally in September 1991, when he defended his political patron Mannino, accused of being a witness at a Mafia wedding, live on television in a joint broadcasting of the Maurizio Costanzo
Maurizio Costanzo
Maurizio Costanzo is an Italian television host and journalist. He is married to Maria De Filippi, an Italian television host.-Biography:Costanzo was born in Rome....
show and Michele Santoro
Michele Santoro
Michele Santoro is an Italian journalist, anchorman, television host and presenter.He also served till October 2005 as Member of the European Parliament for Southern Italy with the Olive Tree, part of the Socialist Group and sat on the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice...
’s Samarcanda, accusing the presenters that their journalism was Mafia journalism. In the presence of Antimafia judge Giovanni Falcone
Giovanni Falcone
Giovanni Falcone was an Sicilian/Italian prosecuting magistrate born in Palermo, Sicily. From his office in the Palace of Justice in Palermo, he spent most of his professional life trying to overthrow the power of the Mafia in Sicily...
he accused the Sicilian prosecutors of manipulating state witnesses (pentiti
Pentito
Pentito designates people in Italy who, formerly part of criminal or terrorist organizations, following their arrests decide to "repent" and collaborate with the judicial system to help investigations...
). In october 2009, Cuffaro denounced for "defamation and threats" the 5000 and above Youtube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
users who commented the video of the TV show.
In 2001, after having joined the UDC, Cuffaro was endorsed by the House of Freedoms
House of Freedoms
The House of Freedoms , was a major Italian centre-right political and electoral alliance led by Silvio Berlusconi. It was initially composed of several political parties:*Forza Italia *National Alliance...
as presidential candidate for Sicily. He won the election, with 59.1% of the vote, defeating Leoluca Orlando
Leoluca Orlando
Leoluca Orlando , is an Italian politician, who was mayor of Palermo in 1985-1990 and 1993-2000. He is best known for his strong opposition to the Sicilian Mafia.-Biography:Orlando was born in Palermo...
. Cuffaro was elected as part of Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi , also known as Il Cavaliere – from knighthood to the Order of Merit for Labour which he received in 1977 – is an Italian politician and businessman who served three terms as Prime Minister of Italy, from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006, and 2008 to 2011. Berlusconi is also the...
's sensational clean sweep of the island, when his coalition won all 61 of its parliamentary seats.
On June 26, 2003, it was revealed that Cuffaro was being investigated for Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
-related crimes, after Domenico Miceli, a fellow UDC politician, was arrested for allegedly acting as a link between a Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
chief and top Sicilian politicians, including Cuffaro. A few months later he was committed for trial. Despite all this, Cuffaro stood for the 2004 European Parliament election
European Parliament election, 2004 (Italy)
Elections to the European Parliament were held in Italy on 12 and 13 June 2004. Italy's highly fragmented party system made it hard to identify an overall trend, but the results were generally seen as a defeat for Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and a victory for the centre-left opposition...
. Later that year, Cuffaro was appointed national vice-secretary of UDC, the party headed by Pier Ferdinando Casini
Pier Ferdinando Casini
Pier Ferdinando Casini is an Italian politician.-Biography:President of the Italian Chamber of Deputies from 2001 to 2006...
. Until 2008 he was also President of COPPEM
Euro Mediterranean Partnership of Local and Regional Authorities
The Euro Mediterranean Partnership of Local and Regional Authorities , was created in 2000 to promote dialogue and development between local and regional authorities in the Euro-Mediterranean area....
.
Re-elected
In the Italian general election, 2006Italian general election, 2006
In the Italian general election, 2006 for the renewal of the two Chambers of the Parliament of Italy held on April 9 and April 10, 2006 the incumbent prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, leader of the center-right House of Freedoms, was narrowly defeated by Romano Prodi, leader of the center-left The...
, he was elected senator for his party, UDC. In the 2006 regional election
Sicilian regional election, 2006
The Sicilian regional election of 2006 for the renewal of the Regional Assembly and the Presidency of Sicily was held on 28 May 2006.The election was competed by three competitors: Salvatore Cuffaro, incumbent President and House of Freedoms candidate; Rita Borsellino, candidate of The Union; and...
, he was successively re-elected President of Sicily with 53.1% of the vote, defeating Rita Borsellino
Rita Borsellino
Rita Borsellino is an anti-Mafia activist, Sicilian politician, and sister of the late judge Paolo Borsellino, killed by the Corleonesi in 1992 by a car bomb...
, the Union
The Union (political coalition)
The Union was an centre-left coalition of political parties in Italy. It was led by Romano Prodi, Prime Minister of Italy from April 2006 to April 2008, and former President of the European Commission.-Parties:...
candidate and sister of the late judge Paolo Borsellino
Paolo Borsellino
Paolo Borsellino was an Italian anti-Mafia magistrate who was killed by a Mafia car bomb in Palermo, less than two months after his fellow anti-Mafia magistrate Giovanni Falcone had been assassinated....
, killed by the mafia in 1992.
Cuffaro and the Italian Minister of Justice, Clemente Mastella
Clemente Mastella
Mario Clemente Mastella is an Italian politician. He is currently leader of Popular-UDEUR, a minor centrist Italian party. He was Minister of Labour in the Berlusconi government from 10 May 1994 to 17 January 1995, and Minister of Justice in the Prodi government from 17 May 2006 to 17 January 2008...
were involved in a scandal when it was found that they had been best men of Francesco Campanella, a former member of the Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
and town councilor of Villabate
Villabate
Villabate is a comune in the Province of Palermo in the Italian region Sicily, located about 8 km southeast of Palermo. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 19,441 and an area of 3.8 km²....
, who helped the boss Bernardo Provenzano
Bernardo Provenzano
Bernardo Provenzano is a member of the Sicilian Mafia and is suspected of having been the head of the Corleonesi, a Mafia faction that originated in the village of Corleone, and de facto capo di tutti capi of the entire Sicilian Mafia until his arrest in 2006.His nickname is Binnu u tratturi...
during his absconding. In 2001 Campanella used his official position to supply Cosa Nostra's top "godfather" with an identity card so he could travel abroad for medical treatment. In July 2000 Mastella and Cuffaro had been witnesses at Campanella's wedding.
He was recently the object of media attention thanks to the film La Mafia è Bianca (The Mafia is White) by Stefano Maria Bianchi and Alberto Nerazzini, which exposes rife corruption in the Sicilian Health service and shows a clip of police film footage of Cuffaro meeting with a known mafioso. Cuffaro took the publishers to court for defamation but lost the first round of the case.
Indicted and convicted
Cuffaro's indictment emerged from an inquiry set up to trace leaks during an inquiry into a local doctor, Giuseppe Guttadauro
Giuseppe Guttadauro
Giuseppe Guttadauro is an Italian Mafia boss and a high profile surgeon from the Rocella neighbourhood in Palermo...
, accused of being the Cosa Nostra boss in its Palermo stronghold Brancaccio
Brancaccio
Brancaccio is a neighbourhood of Palermo, Sicily. It is a semi-traditional area of the working class. It was important in the history of the Cosa Nostra....
. Guttadauro learned that his home was being "bugged" from another doctor. The colleague alleged that he, in turn, had been tipped off by Cuffaro. Guttadauro was recorded describing how the Mafia had funded Cuffaro's 2001 election campaign. According to a transcript, he told that Cuffaro was handed packages of cash "in the least elegant, but most tangible way possible".
On January 18, 2008, Cuffaro was found guilty of having helped the Mafia and was given a five-year sentence, during which time he will be suspended from all public offices. Cuffaro was not found guilty of outright collusion with Cosa Nostra but the court concluded he acted in favour of several people sentenced for Mafia crimes and committed breaches of confidentiality. By Italian law, both the sentence and suspension from public office can only begin after the automatic appeals process is concluded. The prosecution had asked that Cuffaro be given an eight-year sentence but judges concluded that while he had helped the Mafia, there had been neither conspiracy nor willful intent. He has denied all wrongdoing and refused to step down, despite that he has also been banned from public office. "I knew I didn't do anything to willfully help the Mafia and tomorrow morning I intend to be back at my desk," Cuffaro said after the court adjourned.
The day after, Cuffaro handed out cannoli
Cannoli
Cannoli are Sicilian pastry desserts. The singular is cannolo , meaning "little tube", with the etymology stemming from the Latin "canna", or reed. Cannoli originated in Sicily and are an essential part of Sicilian cuisine...
, a Sicilian pastry, as if celebrating the sentence, which he considered positive as he was not convicted for ties to the Mafia. The ricotta
Ricotta
Ricotta is an Italian dairy product made from sheep milk whey left over from the production of cheese. Although typically referred to as ricotta cheese, ricotta is not properly a cheese because it is not produced by coagulation of casein...
sweets have become "instrumentalized," he told the daily Corriere della Sera
Corriere della Sera
The Corriere della Sera is an Italian daily newspaper, published in Milan.It is among the oldest and most reputable Italian newspapers. Its main rivals are Rome's La Repubblica and Turin's La Stampa.- History :...
. Adding that he "never celebrated" and fully understands the weight of the charges brought against him. He didn't bring the celebratory cannoli with him, but one of his many well-wishers did.
Resignation
Cuffaro resigned on January 26, 2008. His resignation followed reports that the national government was planning a move to oust him. The announcement represents a reversal for Cuffaro, who earlier said he would hang on to his post and appeal his five-year prison sentence of January 18. Many, including some politicians from allied parties, were angry that he celebrated not being convicted of a more serious accusation - helping the Mafia as an organization. The head of Italy's politically influential industrial lobby, ConfindustriaConfindustria
Confindustria is the Italian employers' federation, founded in 1910. It groups together more than 113,000 voluntary member companies, accounting for nearly 4,200,000 individuals. It aims to help Italy's economic growth, assisting, in doing so, its members...
, lamented that Cuffaro remained in office while Sicilian businessmen were defying the Mafia by increasingly refusing to pay systematic "protection" money. A widely published photo of him offering his aides a tray of cannoli pastries to celebrate fuelled the outrage.
Re-election and appeals trial
While Cuffaro was undergoing his appeals trial, the Union of the CentreUnion of the Centre
Union of the Centre may refer to:*Union of the Centre , in Italy*Union of the Centre , in Italy...
nominated him in the 2008 general election
Italian general election, 2008
A snap general election was held in Italy on 13 April and 14 April 2008. The election came after President Giorgio Napolitano dissolved parliament on 6 February 2008 following the defeat of the government of Prime Minister Romano Prodi in a January 2008 Senate vote, and the unsuccessful tentative...
and he was re-elected senator
Italian Senate
The Senate of the Republic is the upper house of the Italian Parliament. It was established in its current form on 8 May 1948, but previously existed during the Kingdom of Italy as Senato del Regno , itself a continuation of the Senato Subalpino of Sardinia-Piedmont established on 8 May 1848...
. On January 23, 2010 the Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
Appeals Court confirmed his two previous convictions and added the aggravation of favoring the Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
, sentencing him to seven years in prison. He subsequently announced his intention to appeal the sentence before the Supreme Court and to resign from all party offices. On January 22, 2011, the Supreme Court definitively confirmed the sentence.Sicily senator Salvatore Cuffaro jailed in mafia case, BBC News, January 23, 2011