Ladies' Programme alla Berlusconi

"The most recent sex scandal from the villa of the Italian prime minister has aroused much interest among guests to the upcoming G8 summit in Abruzzo - above all in the Ladies' Programme. The term takes on a whole new meaning when spoken by Berlusconi," writes the Financial Times Deutschland in an ironic comment. "This explains the anticipation on the part of individual summit participants that the Ladies' Programme will be at the centre of the political agenda. For his visit to Italy on Wednesday, Libya's revolutionary leader Muammar al-Gaddafi has already expressed the wish to speak in front of 700 women representatives from politics, business and culture, including Italy's Minister for Equal Opportunity and ex-model Mara Carfagna. In the end the prospect of Berlusconi swinging the protocol sceptre could also strengthen the regular Ladies' Programme. Last year, for example, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy was conspicuous by her absence. This year the wife of the French president may well want to stay at her husband's side - provided of course that he takes her with him in the first place."

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