Premier Matteo Renzi told the
Senate on Tuesday that he is in favor of justice, not of
overzealous judges.
"Italy has had heroic judges but also in the past 25 years
it has experienced outright barbarism linked to overzealous
prosecutions," he said in reply to two center-right
no-confidence motions over an oil-industry graft probe that has
led to a current and former minister being questioned by
prosecutors.
"The notification that one is under investigation has
become tantamount to a definitive conviction in the media -
decent people's lives have been destroyed while criminals
profited from the populist attitudes of those who tarnished
everyone with the same brush," said Renzi, who leads the
center-left Democratic Party (PD).
"Because a notification is never equal to a conviction, we
will not request the 5-Star Movement (M5S) councillor in Livorno
to step down," Renzi added. One of the no-confidence motions was
filed by the anti-establishment M5S.
"I am certain the only legal proceedings will be a suit for
defamation against the PD, for which I hope you will give up
your parliamentary immunity," the premier told M5S lawmakers.
"Judges must speak through their rulings and we encourage
them to do so - but the rulings must be handed down quickly
because we want to know who is responsible, who is guilty, who
is stealing," Renzi said.
The justice system in Italy is notoriously slow.
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