The Regional Council of Sardinia yesterday rejected a motion that wanted to have the island declared an independent country. The motion had been put forward by the Sardinian Party of Action (PSd'Az) and had the support of MPs of other parties. According to ANSA news agency, 31 assembly members voted against the declaration, while 17 voted in favour and 2 abstained, including the president of Sardinia, Ugo Cappellacci.

Another vote was held in order to call an advisory referendum on independence. In this case, the result was very narrow: 26 members voted against, 25 in favour while 2 abstained.

PSd'Az members supported both ideas, as did representatives of other political forces, for example Claudia Zuncheddu (Sardigna Libera, elected being member of Rossomori). But according to Sardegna Oggi, also voted in favour of independence several members of ruling Italian conservatives People of Freedom. On the contrary, Italian centre-left Democratic Party members rejected the motion.

PSd'Az had said that decades of disrespect for Sardinians by the Italian government justified the declaration of independence.

Cappellacci: "It is fair that the Sardinian people can express itself on independence"

During the motion debate, president Cappellacci said that he considered it to be "fair" that "the Sardinian people can express itself on the issue of independence". The Sardinian president underlined that the "right to self-determination of the peoples is recognized by international law". But he added that, having committed himself to respect the Italian Constitution, he could only accept to proceed with the issue of independence as foreseen in that legal text.

But Article 5 of the Italian Constitution makes it clear that "the Republic is one and indivisible".