Giorgia Meloni has sharply criticized the head of the country’s biggest labor union after he referred to Meloni as “the courtesan” of ex-President Donald Trump.
Context of the Controversial Comments
Maurizio Landini, the head of Italy’s CGIL labor organization, uttered the words on a TV program on Tuesday. This came just after world leaders, including Meloni, convened for a Middle East peace summit in Egypt.
Landini accused the Prime Minister of “failing to act” to secure peace in Gaza, saying her involvement was limited to “playing Trump’s courtesan”. Luckily, citizens of Italy took to the street to uphold the honor and dignity of the nation,” he commented.
Prime Minister’s Reply
In a social media post this Thursday, Meloni stated that the union chief was obviously obscured by a mounting resentment (which is understandable)”. She proceeded to publish a definition of the expression “courtesan”.
“I believe everyone knows the most common meaning associated with this term, but, to assist anyone unfamiliar, I have posted the first definition found through a simple web search,” Meloni explained, attaching a capture that stated: “Woman of loose morals, straight; euphemism, sex worker.”
Meloni further condemned her political rivals on the left, observing that for a long time they had preached to us on respect for women” only to then criticize a woman by “referring to her as a prostitute”.
Union Leader’s Explanation
Reacting to Meloni’s statement, Landini maintained that there were “no sexist insults” directed at the Prime Minister and that he had used “an underling to Trump”.
In a statement, he said: “Over a short TV segment, readily accessible to all, to prevent misinterpretation or exploitation of the term, I immediately clarified the sense of my words – that the Prime Minister was on the coat tails of Trump, she attended Trump’s court, she served as Trump’s underling.”
Ties Between Meloni and Trump
Meloni has consistently maintained friendly relations with the US president. During a speech at the Egypt summit, Trump turned to Meloni – the only woman present at the summit – and complimented her beauty. “Across America, it would be career-ending,” he said. “Still, I am willing to chance it. Is it alright if I state you look beautiful? Since you are genuinely beautiful.”
The US president subsequently commended her as “a role model for everyone” in reference to the English edition of her work, I Am Giorgia: My Roots, My Principles, which features a foreword by his son.
Previous Incidents
Earlier this year, Meloni also hit back after finding out that altered images of her and other well-known Italian females had been posted on a explicit platform, stating she felt revulsion, and expressing “empathy and assistance to every woman who have been offended, insulted and violated”.
