ROME, April 28 (Xinhua) -- Italian new parliament opened on Friday for business but outgoing Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi did not show up.

    It was not immediately clear whether the premier, who has consistently contested premier-elect Romano Prodi's victory, deliberately boycotted the ceremony by staying in his office, local media reported.

    Prodi, the former European Commission chief, said he "hadn't noticed" that Berlusconi wasn't there and felt happy "like the first day at school".

    Both the 630-seat House and the 315-seat Senate began proceedings with one-minute silence for the three Italian soldiers who were killed in a bomb explosion in Iraq on Thursday.

    The parliament's first business is to elect speakers.

    Voting will begin Friday afternoon, first in the House, and the

    results are expected on Saturday. Enditem