by BJW Nashe
Tax fraud, false accounting, mafia collusion, embezzlement, corruption and bribery of police officers and judges, conflict of interest, abuse of office, soliciting sex from a minor…
Sounds like the plot summary for a season of The Sopranos. Actually, it’s a partial resume of Silvio Berlusconi, three-time prime minister of Italy. After years of scandals, controversies, and criminal proceedings, last week Berlusconi was sentenced to a year in prison for tax fraud, which will most likely be served under house arrest or in the form of community service, due to his age. Berlusconi has also been convicted of soliciting sex from a minor, but that case is still tied up in a lengthy appeals process.
Berlusconi remains an extremely wealthy man. Yet his life as a political leader, and his “bunga bunga” days, appear to be over.
Berlusconi asserts that he is a victim of “judicial persecution.” His supporters claim he is under attack by a “left-wing conspiracy.” Most of us think he is simply corrupt — probably more corrupt than any other political figure in the contemporary Western world. Yet there’s no denying that he handles his corruption with considerable savoir faire. A conservative politician in Italy,Berlusconi has a very lax approach to personal morals. He has no puritan blood running through his veins. At times he resembles a shamelessly decadent aristocrat from some bygone era.
The tax fraud conviction is no doubt a black eye for Berlusconi, which places his future as a politician in jeopardy. However, it seems unlikely to have much negative impact on his Mediaset TV empire. As recently as July 29, for instance, Berlusconi sealed a lucrative deal with Rupert Murdoch’s Fox Sports, which includes coverage of hugely popular European soccer events.
Around the world, Berlusconi is best known for his highly publicized sex scandals, rather than for anything related to politics or business or television. His hard-charging, glitzy sexcapades have led to serious criminal charges. They have also served as red meat for tabloid journalists and late night comedians around the globe. And why not? Berlusconi’s debauchery makes Anthony Weiner’s “sexting” debacle and Elliott Spitzer’s hooker scandal seem like Disney material by comparison. When it comes to sex in politics, Berlusconi is the the 800 lb. gorilla in the villa, the mack daddy of high-rolling, jet set orgies. He is Don Corleone in the grip of a furious sex addiction.
Berlusconi’s infamous “bunga bunga” parties are by far the most intriguing aspect of his whole saga. Whether they will land him in prison remains to be seen. He was convicted earlier this summer for charges from 2010 pertaining to abuse of office and purchasing sex with an underage, Moroccan-born model and dancer called “Ruby the Heart-Stealer.” He is currently appealing the conviction.
The abuse of office charge stems from calls Prime Minister Berlusconi made to a Milan police station in May 2010 to have the young woman known as “Ruby” – real name, Karima El Mahroug – released from custody on a theft charge. She was 17 at the time. Berlusconi was supposedly alerted to the arrest by a Brazilian showgirl, allegedly working as a prostitute, who called him on his mobile phone while he was attending an OSCE summit in Paris.
Prosecutors claim that Berlusconi was worried the police would discover Ruby’s role in the notorious “bunga bunga” parties held at his villa outside Milan. Berlusconi wanted to hush up his relationship with Ruby, who reportedly attended as many as 13 of the parties, starting on Valentine’s Day, 2010 (an appropriate kick-off date). He told the police in Milan that Ruby was the granddaughter of Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian leader, and that she must be released in order to avoid a diplomatic incident with Cairo. (One has the admire the creativity of this alibi.) Berlusconi then ordered Nicole Minetti, an Anglo-Italian showgirl turned politician, to go to the police station to fetch Ruby, who was then consigned to the care of a Brazilian starlet.
This is quite a whirlwind story for a prime minister to be engulfed in, featuring starlets and prostitutes and showgirls — not to mention Mubarak, whose relationship to Ruby is unclear, probably pure fiction. So it goes in the fabulous world of Silvio Berlusconi. Indeed, this case has provided the public with fascinating insights into the prime minister’s daily (and nightly) life, and how he liked to entertain at home, even in the midst of an economic crisis in Italy that threatened the stability of the entire nation.
The Italian public, needless to say, has had urgent questions in regard to the whole scandal. Even outside Italy, people have been eagerly devouring any new information. Here’s a summary of the basic facts.
First of all, what is a “bunga bunga” party?
There are two explanations of where the phrase comes from and what it means. Neither of them is too reassuring. Berlusconi has indicated that the term is derived from a politically incorrect joke that he likes to tell about a pair of left-wing politicians who are captured by a tribe of cannibals in Africa. The second explanation says the phrase was borrowed from Berlusconi’s illustrious friend, the late Muammar Gaddafi, and refers to a harem of young women, or an orgy involving a powerful leader. Either way, “bunga bunga” is now defined as an erotic party or private strip show with sexual favors dispensed by young women.
What exactly went on at Berlusconi’s “bunga bunga” parties?
Prosecutors allege that more than 30 beautiful, glamorous young women were enlisted to attend Berlusconi’s parties. Each woman was paid several thousand euros to “appear” at the events. Their job was to perform erotic dances in an underground “bunga bunga” room which featured a stage, a bar, and a small dance floor. The women wore costumes. A popular “Sister Act” featured pole-dancers dressed as nuns. Another model once wore a Barack Obama costume. On occasion, the women reportedly kissed and fondled a statuette of Priapus, the god of fertility. According to witness statements, the women would “touch the intimate parts” of Berlusconi, who in turn would fondle them intimately. As the night wore on, well, we get the picture. The evening’s entertainment descended — or escalated, depending on your point of view — into an all-out Caligula-style orgy. A close associate of Berlusconi has described the “bunga bunga” parties as “excess, abuse of power, and degradation.”
Who is “Ruby the Heart-Stealer?”
Ruby, or Karima El Mahroug, was born in Morocco and brought to Italy as a child. Her immigrant parents settled in Sicily, where they struggled to make ends meet. Karima supposedly ran away from home several times as a teenager. A friend of Berlusconi, who works as a presenter on one of his TV channels, spotted Karima participating in a beauty contest as an underwear model. The TV presenter-friend, who in a separate trial faces charges of procuring prostitutes for Berlusconi, allegedly invited the Moroccan teen to attend a “bunga bunga” party at the prime minister’s villa near Milan. Berlusconi soon grew enamored of the 17 year-old girl known as Ruby, reportedly giving her tens of thousands of euros in cash. Prosecutors insist she had sex with him in exchange for the money, but she denies the charge and says she has never worked as an escort. She claims Berlusconi was “like a father” to her.
What penalties does Berlusconi face?
In June, a Milan court sentenced Berlusconi to seven years in jail and banned him from public office after convicting him of paying for sex with a minor and of abuse of office. He will remain free pending the outcome of his appeals, which are expected to take several years to resolve.
For Berlusconi, currently facing house arrest for the tax fraud conviction, the “bunga bunga” parties are over. Ironically, his house arrest may be carried out at the same villa that once hosted his grand orgies.