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Half a million Italians demonstrated in Rome last Saturday against the right wing government of millionaire businessman Silvio Berlusconi. The demonstration was organised by the Democratic Left party and its allies in the Olive Tree coalition. The Democratic Left is a part of the old Communist Party that adopted policies similar to the British Labour Party.

As Tony Blair met right wing Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi to discuss "flexible labour markets" and "economic liberalisation", a wave of workers' revolt was sweeping the country. Berlusconi, said there had been an "absolute convergence of views" between him and Blair.

The demonstration was supposed to begin at 5pm in Porto Alegre's market square. There were groups with banners at various corners, but they seemed dispersed and separate. But at seven that evening, when the summer showers had ended, 40,000 people flowed into a single column. They were young, old, black, white, men, women, Latin Americans, Africans, and a European contingent that included 1,500 Italians full of the enthusiastic spirit of Genoa.

"Nobody knows if they will have a job tomorrow or when they will be paid. People are almost paralysed by fear." This was what an Argentinian psychologist told journalists last weekend. No wonder. Argentina, an industrial country that once boasted a living standard as high as that of Italy, has been hit by an economic crisis.

The Socialist Alliance in England held its biggest ever conference in London last Saturday. Nearly 700 people came together to discuss how to turn the Socialist Alliance into a more effective, outward looking organisation. The day kicked off with an anti-war rally. There was an enthusiastic reception for guest speaker Gennoro Highore from the left wing Communist Refoundation in Italy.

About 250,000 striking engineers took part in a national demonstration in Rome, Italy, last week. Strike action shut dozens of major workplaces up and down the country. Officially, the strike was over a £10 a month pay increase, but in the highly politicised atmosphere of Italy it was about much more than getting a pay rise in line with inflation.

Major mobilisations against the war were due to take place across the world this weekend and next. In Italy three days of action described by the Il Manifesto newspaper as "against the war and the World Trade Organisation" were planned, culminating in a national march in Rome.

AROUND 15,000 people protested in Rome on Monday against the war. The protest was called by COBAS, the trade union organisation, and left wing political party Rifondazione. Also in Italy, in Milan 5,000 protested, while around 2,000 people joined demonstrations in Naples.

PARTICIPATING in the demonstrations in Genoa was for many a life-changing event. We saw Italian trade unionists join the diversity of the anti-capitalist movement in the biggest demo Europe had seen for many years. We knew another world was possible, and we came home and tried to tell as many people as possible.

TENS OF thousands of Italian activists are heading to Naples in the south of Italy two days before the Washington events to protest against a NATO summit. The authorities' fear of the protests means that the summit has been moved to an air force base six miles outside the city. Despite the police repression in Genoa, activists are determined to keep up the pressure on Italy's right wing government.

THE ITALIAN government is still feeling the after-effects of the great demonstrations against the G8 summit in Genoa last month. More photographic, video and eyewitness evidence of police brutality is emerging, keeping the pressure on right wing prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. The police killed one demonstrator during the protests. Many more were beaten by the police.

A GLOBALISE Resistance reportback meeting from the protests against the G8 summit in Genoa, Italy, attracted 300 people to Conway Hall in central London on Thursday of last week.