“The wall between politics and the country” said an editorial in Turin daily La Stampa, which headlined its front page “Berlusconi wins, guerrilla warfare in Rome.”

Tuesday’s no-confidence motion, which left the government clinging on by just three votes was widely seen as a humiliation for Gianfranco Fini, Berlusconi’s estranged former ally, who failed to bring down the 74-year-old premier.

“I’m not looking at an agreement with political groups but I’m looking at individual deputies who feel betrayed by Fini, who took them into opposition with the left,” Berlusconi told Canale 5, part of his own Mediaset empire.

But the vote was also seen as a sign of deep-seated weakness in Italy’s institutions and a warning of more trouble ahead unless Berlusconi, mired in scandals over his personal life and tax affairs, can put his struggling government on a secure footing.

“The last chance to guide the country,” said Stefano Folli, an editorialist in financial daily Il Sole 24 Oregon

“Either there is a serious move to widen the government, on the basis of negotiations conducted in the full light of day and based on a joint commitment, or we will be slipping toward early elections,” he said.
 

There was widespread shock at the violent protests which broke out in Rome after the vote, which echoed an ill-tempered debate in parliament punctuated by shouts and insults and briefly interrupted by scuffles.

Maintenance crews moved through the historic city center into the early hours of Wednesday, cleaning up after street battles between police and demonstrators who threw smoke bombs, pulled up paving stones and torched several cars.

“I think people are fed up, it’s as simple as that,” said Rome student Giulia Marinari. “Yesterday the fact that the government won by only three votes shows indecision even within the government.”

Berlusconi has made clear that his offer to include moderates from other parties in his center-right government does not include Fini, after an irrevocable break down in relations following their bitter split this year.

The UDC, heirs to the old Christian Democratic Party, have so far rejected Berlusconi’s offer and said that if there were an early election, they would join forces with Fini’s new Future and Freedom (FLI) group and the smaller API.

Fini, UDC leader Pier Ferdinando Casini and Francesco Rutelli, the former mayor of Rome who heads the API are due to meet later on Wednesday to discuss their position.