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Italians Reluctantly Switch to Euro
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"How are Italians referring to the new euro? How about the plural and pronunciation?"
DOUGCANNON
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To inform Italians of the introduction of the euro, the Italian government conducted an extensive marketing campaign that included TV commercials, print ads, and radio plugs. The euro was used in place of the lira in accounting and banking transactions for the past two years as "virtual" currency, and prices for goods were printed in both the euro and the lira so that Italians could acclimatize themselves to the new bills and coins.
Yet on January 1, 2002, when the euro became the common currency for twelve participating countries in the European Union, Italy seemed to have the most difficulty in adopting the new currency. Many Italians waited until the last minute to switch from lire to euros and are having a particularly hard time in the country that has been slowest to adopt the new currency.
According to the European Commisssion, during the first few days after the new year the percentage of cash transactions in Italy conducted in euros lagged behind that of other member countries. Throughout Italy, there were long lines outside banks, post offices, toll booths and train stations. Then bank employees went on strike, claiming they were overworked due to the overwhelming number of people atttempting to convert lire into euros.
Euro's First Victim
On top of all this, Renato Ruggiero, the pro-European Foreign Minister, resigned in protest at the euroscepticism (euroscetticismo in Italian publications) of the Cabinet and the Government's unenthusiastic reception for the euro. A torrent of criticism followed from EU officials and dismayed
European foreign ministers, who called the resignation a blow to its credibility and questioned Italy's commitment to the euro and European integration. Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, recognizing an opportunity to show off his questionable diplomatic skills, named himself as interim foreign minister and plans to serve as long as necessary until a successor is selected.
Addio alla Lira
Italians may have been reluctant to bid farewall to the lira because of the large underground economy in Italy. According to the National Center For Policy Analysis, economists estimate Italy's underground economy at a minimum of 15 percent of GNP and a maximum of 25 percent. Whatever the truth statistically, there is no doubt that the economia sommersa in Italy is pervasive. Converting lire to euro could conceivably expose unrecorded economic activity to the Ministero dell'Economia e delle Finanze, always on the lookout for tax evasion. Some of those waiting outside banks were understandably edgy because, bank officials said, they included older Italians who were depositing millions of lire they had been hiding in their homes for years, money they now have no choice but to convert to euros.
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