Provocative, poetic, and profoundly insightful, Roberto Maggioli's Li impiegati del Comune is one of the most important novels ever written about life in the Italian public service. Dr. Sandro Sessa—a government functionary who sees his entire career crumble when he is unjustly imprisoned after refusing to sign off on a series of fake promotions—has just published an English translation of this classic text with introductions recounting the story behind Maggioli's imprisonment and describing how it has influenced Italian literature. This post will not be accessible to unregistered users so please register to view it ---> https://www.blogger. com/post-edit.g?blogID=2705127152283789537&postID=2069105408414844060&from=pencil The term "impiegato" (or "employee") was coined in the 1960s to designate government workers after the coup d'état, which led to the creation of executive committees made up of corporate employees. An impiegato is more than just a bureaucrat; he is also expected to be a loyal partisan of political power. In fact, the character who is known as the "impiegato" in this novel is a civil engineer—but he takes a desk job because he doesn’t see much future in his field. A member of the Communist Party, Roberto Maggioli spent much of his life as an impiegato . In 1969, after numerous articles and books condemning injustice and corruption within Italian government agencies, Maggioli was tried and convicted for defamation (and violation of military secrecy) and sentenced to eight months in prison. Today it is still illegal to speak out against the government without first obtaining special permission from Italy's National Security Council (CNIS). The unauthorized publication of Li impiegati del Comune, and the subsequent imprisonment of its author, turned Maggioli into a national cause célèbre. In 1969, just after the Italian political crisis known as the "coup d'état," Roberto Maggioli was appointed technical director of the then new Comune di Palermo. He was to investigate corruption in public works contracts and write a report for Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti. Instead he worked undercover and uncovered widespread bribery at all levels of government. Maggioli's explosive exposes were suppressed by both Prime Minister Andreotti and his ministers. Instead he was accused of conspiracy and defamation and spent eight months incarcerated in prison. During his imprisonment, Maggioli continued to write. He was released in 1973 without having been allowed to defend himself in court, nor were the charges ever brought to trial. For Roberto Maggioli — and many other impiegati before and since — whistleblowing on government corruption became a profoundly moral imperative, even at the risk of one's liberty and one's life. Upon its first publication in Italy (1977), Li impiegati del Comune caused a sensation. It sold more than 200,000 copies within six months; it was subsequently translated into French and Spanish; and two subsequent editions were published. 8eeb4e9f32 41
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