BILL GATES PUTS ITALY ON 'SHAME LIST'
BILL GATES PUTS ITALY ON 'SHAME LIST'
(ANSA) - Berlin, January 28 - Microsoft founder Bill Gates on Thursday renewed his criticism of Italy for being "stingy" in its foreign aid and said he had placed the country and Premier Silvio Berlusconi on his 'shame list'.
In an interview published by the German daily Frankfurter Rundschau, Gates said that "in the international community there is only one country which has reduced its foreign aid: Italy".
"I have placed it on what I call my shame list, which I'm happy to say has just one country on it. Were there ten, then it would be very serious indeed" he added.
In an appeal to Berlusconi, Gates said: "Dear Silvio, I'm sorry I have to make things difficult for you, but you are ignoring the poor people of the world and I don't believe that Italian voters agree with your (aid) cuts".
In an interview to another German daily, Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Gates observed that "rich people spend a lot more money for their personal problems, like baldness, than they do to combat malaria".
The reference appeared to be aimed at Berlusconi who has undergone a hair transplant.
The Microsoft founder now dedicates his time to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation he set up with his wife and in his second annual letter from the foundation, released on Tuesday, Gates singled out Italy for being stingy in its foreign aid.
Basing generosity on the percentage of gross domestic product a country gives in aid, Gates observed that "Italy was at the low end of European givers even before the Berlusconi government came in and cut the aid by over half, making them uniquely stingy among European donors".
He added that anti-poverty activist Bob Geldof "put it well when he said the Italian government is suggesting they want to balance their budget on the backs of the poor. How shameful".
"In June, I met with Premier Berlusconi personally to make the case for more support, but I was unsuccessful. This is a huge disappointment since I still think the Italian public wants to be as generous as people in other countries," Gates wrote.
