First Meeting of the Republican Council of Ministers
By Benito Mussolini
The current situation in Italy—during which time the Republican Fascist government is assuming power—can be called, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the most serious in its history. This can be sufficiently demonstrated by the following simple considerations: on the morning of July 25th, Italy—despite being savagely tortured by Anglo-American bombing—was a State; and its territory, except the western part of Sicily, was intact. The Italian flag still waved over Rhodes, Tirana, Ljubljana, Spalato, Corsica and the Var River. Today, two months later, the enemy occupies a third of the country and all our overseas positions have been evacuated.
The loss of these positions, which had cost the Italian people so much blood and so much sacrifice, was provoked by a very harsh armistice never before seen in history, an armistice which was concluded without our allies' knowledge through an unprecedented betrayal. This betrayal is enough to forever dishonour the Monarchy and its accomplices.
The consequences of the armistice have been simply catastrophic. The Italian Navy was delivered to the enemy; all the other Italian military forces suffered a humiliating liquidation via a forced disarmament; Italy was subjected to continuous and ruthless bombings in order to "cover up" the negotiations with the Allies that were under way since the beginning of August; the national soul has fallen into a deep depression; there is disorder in both matter and spirit; and finally there is the continuation of the war, which is now taking place in our home territory, as anyone could have easily predicted. In light of this state of affairs, the directives that guide our Government's action must be the following:
To live up to the alliance with the nations of the Tripartite Pact, and therefore assume our place beside the German combat units, via the immediate reorganization of our military forces, beginning with anti-aircraft and coastal defenses. Pending the preparation of these forces, which has already begun, we must partake in a friendly and practical collaboration with the German military authorities operating on the Italian Front.
Through our military efforts we intend not only to erase July 25th from the pages of history, but even more so to erase the disastrous 8th of September. But to achieve our goals requires the territorial integrity of the Nation, its political independence and its place in the world.
Our new military effort requires the honour and interests of the Nation, and it will be impossible to accomplish unless life in the provinces returns to its normal rhythm and the citizens return to their conscious discipline so as to meet current needs. The next appointment of the Heads of the Provinces—concentrating authority and responsibility in one person—will restore the possibility of normalizing as much as possible the functions of our local institutions.
I am not planning—except in verified cases of illegal violence—a general repression against all those who in a moment of irresponsible and infantile aberration believed that a "military government" would be the most suitable to carry out the objectives of the Regime without any limitations. Nor will those people who proclaimed themselves anti-Fascists be subject to any special measures like those who declared themselves such during the days of July 26th and afterward.
But there is another category of individuals who will not escape severe sanctions; and I am speaking of all those members of the Party who hid their true sentiments under a formal adhesion to Fascism, sometimes they hid within the ranks for many years and infiltrated the highest offices, receiving honours and awards, but when it came time to put their loyalty to the test, during the days of the coup, they went over to the enemy. They are jointly responsible for the abyss into which the Fatherland has fallen.
Extraordinary provincial tribunals will judge these cases of treason and felony. This will serve as a warning for the present and for the future. The current Government also has among its plans another task of fundamental importance: that of preparing the Constituent Assembly, which will consecrate the program of the Party with the creation of the Republican Fascist State. Now is not the time for precise details on such a serious and delicate matter. But I believe two essential elements need to established right now: namely, that the Republic will be unitary in the political field but decentralized in the administrative field; and that it will have a very pronounced social content, so as to solve the "social question" at least in its most strident aspects, in other words to establish the place, function and responsibilities of labour in a truly modern national society.
As I said earlier, the situation from every point of view is very serious: but it is not desperate.
A Nation can not perish so long as it has the consciousness of being a Nation. There are people who suffered terrible trials, sometimes for centuries, yet still flourished. The forces of recovery are already in place. The Government intends to organize them, channel them and prepare them for the duties of war, because the fate of this war is still and always will be decisive for the future of our Fatherland.
I thank all of you for accepting my invitation and for being reunited around me in this moment. I count on your cooperation.
