Berlusconi's wife goes public, again, over his eye for ladies

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's penchant for pretty women is a source of "suffering" for his wife, she wrote in an open letter published today.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's penchant for pretty women is a source of "suffering" for his wife, she wrote in an open letter published on Thursday.

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"I want it to be clear that I and my children are the victims and not accomplices in this situation. We must put up with it and that makes us suffer," Veronica Lario wrote.

The letter, the second such public outburst from Lario, dealt mainly with Berlusconi's choices of candidates from his People of Freedom party to stand in European Union elections set for June.

Some are reportedly pretty young women with no political experience.

"The presence of pretty women in politics is neither a plus or a minus," said Lario, a 52-year-old former stage actress who is 20 years Berlusconi's junior.

"But behind the facade of curvy feminine beauty, what is even more serious is (Berlusconi's) impudence and lack of reserve ... That offend the credibility of all women," said Lario, adding, "especially those who have always been in the front lines defending their rights."

"Someone wrote that all this is no more than some extra fun for the emperor," Lario wrote. "I agree, what is in the papers is shameless rubbish, all in the name of power.