Apr 4, 2006, 16:53 GMT
Rome - Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi caused an uproar in Italy on Tuesday by blasting a particularly vulgar insult at left-wing voters in the run-up to the April 9-10 general election.
Addressing a meeting of shopkeepers in Rome, Berlusconi said: 'I have too high an esteem of Italians' intelligence to believe that there are so many coglioni who may vote against their self-interest. I apologise for my coarse but effective language.'
'Coglione' is a highly vulgar appellative for testicles which Italians sometimes use to call an idiot, and which would be best conveyed by the English expression 'asshole.'
The insult sparked an uproar among left-wing leaders, and while opposition leader Romano Prodi refused to comment, others called on the premier to apologise.
'If he was a serious person he would apologise to those Italians he has offended and perhaps should ponder the fact that after these offensive words the number of Italians who will vote to oust him will increase further,' said Piero Fassino of the Left Democrats, Italy's largest opposition party.
Berlusconi later sought to defuse the row, saying his comment was meant to be 'ironic'.
'As usual, the left tries to manipulate my words so as to create a stir,' Berlusconi said.
Television images, however, showed that the premier was not smiling when he pronounced the phrase.
The row came during the final days of a particularly acrimonious election campaign in which Italy's outspoken premier has repeatedly lashed out at his opponents.
On Monday, for instance, he called Prodi 'a useful idiot' who was playing in the hands of his communist allies.
The media-mogul turned premier has a long history of making outlandish remarks.
His most famous dates back to July 2003, when he compared a German member of the European parliament to a 'kapo'', a concentration camp guard.
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