History
In 1986 the Inter-parliamentary Women's Communist group and Arcigay (Italy's main gay rights organization), for the first time raised the issue of civil unions within the Italian parliament. This was led by Ersilia Salvato in the Italian Senate and by Romano Bianchi and Angela Bottari in the lower house who together attempted to introduce the idea of legislation. In 1988, following lobbying by Arcigay, Alma Cappiello Agate (lawyer and socialist parliamentarian) introduced the first bill in parliament (PdL N. 2340, Directive on the de facto family, 12 February 1988), calling for the acknowledgment of cohabitation between "persons". The bill failed, but Cappiello's proposal received wide coverage in the press (where some journalists spoke about second-class marriage), and acknowledged for the first time the possibility of homosexual unions.
During the 1990s a succession of civil union bills were regularly introduced and rejected in parliament, bolstered by discussion in the European Parliament on equal rights for homosexuals on marriage and adoption.
During the XIIIth parliamentary session, at least ten bills were presented (by Nichi Vendola, Luigi Manconi, Gloria Buffo, Ersilia Salvato, Graziano Cioni, Antonio Soda, Luciana Sbarbati, Antonio Lisi, Anna Maria De Luca, and Mauro Paissan). None of these ever made it to discussion on the floor of the house - not least due to the explicit influence and strident opposition of the Catholic hierarchy that was often behind the governing Christian democrat coalition, and intervened in political discussion.
In September 2003 the European Parliament approved a new resolution on human rights against discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. Each member state had to confirm it would work to abolish any form of discrimination - legislative or de facto. During the XIVth parliament political activity led by Franco Grillini debated proposals for PACs which found cross-sectional support.
Grillini introduced proceedings in parliament on 8 July 2002 based on legislation already existing in Denmark. However, the PACs principle was given particular resonance by the union on 21 October 2002 between Alessio De Giorgi and Christian Pierre Panicucci at the French Embassy in Rome. That day same Grillini introduced the bill in parliament; it ultimately failed but had been supported by 161 parliamentarians from the centre-left.
Read more about this topic: Recognition Of Same-sex Unions In Italy
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