Yet another issue that blinds and deafens me with rage is the Lodo Alfano. This is a law, brought forth by the fourth Berlusconi administration in 2008, which would completely immunise the four highest posts in the government from any legal prosecution. This would include the President, the Prime Minister, and the Speakers of both houses of parliament. It's a rehash of a law that failed to pass in 2003, the Lodo Maccanico.
I don't really need to tell you how disgusting and scandalous this is, but I will. Italy would be the only country in Europe to actually make democratically elected officials less accountable. It completely undermines the constitutional principle of equality before the law, and the justifications for it are entirely based on the idea that Berlusconi (pictured above detailing how far he's going to climb up Italy's ass before dying), implicated in dozens of legal proceedings, is victim to some sort of far-flung left-wing conspiracy which aims to discredit him. It's a complete fucking embarrassment for the entire political system that a Prime Minister mired in legal proceedings who proposes a law which would immunise the Prime Minister from legal proceedings doesn't get laughed out of parliament, and out of the country.
The most recent chapter regards two constitutional judges, the judges who are to make a ruling on whether this unconstitutional law is constitutional or not (on October 6). One of the judges, Luigi Mazzella, invited Berlusconi, the Minister of Justice Alfano (who wrote up the proposed law), and another constitutional judge, Paolo Napolitano, to a private dinner at his residence. When a scandal broke out because of the clear fucking conflict of interests involved, Mazzella has today had the shameless impunity to write an open letter insisting that he didn't do anything wrong, that the law in question was not discussed, and that it was a lovely dinner he would love to repeat. Throughout he referred to the Prime Minister as “my dear Berlusconi”. What a fucking gay.
This isn't of much surprise to people both inside and outside Italy, of course. In a civilised country, judges don't have private dinners with individuals who've made a law they must rule on, and individuals directly affected by that same law. Politic Blunder FlashQuiz! What kind of fucking travesty of a democracy does that make Italian politics?
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1 comments:
It is perhaps a shame that country that has, in its long and distinguished history, given Western civilisation the very notion of universal, transparent law and the discursive legal process (cf. khadi-justice in Middle Eastern and North African cultures) through Roman law and, indirectly, via the Napoleonic code, should fall into such international disrepute.
Regrettably, and I say this following a recent stint in Rome, Italy is little better off - spiritually and civically speaking - than a Latin American banana republic. A more eloquent man than this commentator noted: "una volta, un giudice come me giudico' chi gli aveva dettato la legge / prima cambiarono il giudice e, subito dopo, la legge / oggi, un giudice come me lo chiede al potere se puo' giudicare/ tu sei il potere/ vuoi essere giudicato? / vuoi essere assolto, o condannato?"
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