AGI Online, Italy
http://www.agi.it/english/news.pl?doc=200310131340-1054-RT1-CRO-0-NF11&page=0&id=agionline-eng.oggitalia
FREEMASONRY: COSSIGA TELLS MARTINO, "YOU HAVE PREJUDICES"
(AGI) - Rome, Oct 13 - Former Italian President Francesco Cossiga has formally apologised to Antonio Martino for calling him a Mason, and in a statement issued today he said he was very sorry for what happened. He added, "I noticed the resentful tone in which he denied this ('he lied') which despite being liberal and 'American', he still has prejudices against this institution". However he is right to deny this, because there are persistent rumours even in the Ministry for Defence. Cossiga stated, "I am very sorry for causing him difficulties when I stated that he was a Mason. This was just to demonstrate the nature of the piazza del Gesu' institution and the fact that many gentlemen swell the ranks of the Masonry. In fact "much of the political class during the Risorgimento and before Fascism belonged to the Masonry", such as Sicilian Principe di Paterno. Cossiga concluded, "if Antonio Martino is not a Mason, he did well to deny it, because denying my statement he has denied widespread rumours within political, university and social circles in Italy and within his own Ministry. It is right that he knows that part of the authority rightly associated with him has been also linked to his alleged membership of the Masonry and with the influential Masonry in the United States". (AGI)
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