The first committee of the
judiciary's self-governing body, the Supreme Council of
Magistrates (CSM), on Thursday opened a dossier aimed at
protecting Iolanda Apostolico, a Catania judge who has been
accused of bias after striking down a government migrant decree
and freeing a number of migrants in Sicily.
The bias claims weer made after Apostolico attended a
demonstration calling for migrants held at sea by then interior
minister Matteo Salvini to be released amid his controversial
closed ports policy.
Salvini, who is now deputy premier and transport minister,
posted a still of a video catching Apstolico at the protest, a
still whose provenance has yet to be established.
Magistrates union ANM has called the attacks on Apostolico an
unacceptable invasion of the judiciary's Constitutional
independence.
In its statement Thursday the CSM said "The first Commission of
the CSM in today's session has decided by a majority (with only
the abstention of President Enrico Aimi) the opening of the file
to protect the autonomy and independence of the judiciary
determined by the Apostolico case.
"The verification of...numerous requests to open a case for
protection arising from expressions considered by the proponents
detrimental to the autonomy and independence of the judiciary
has led the commission to deliberate preliminarily (unanimously)
the urgent analysis of the same to assess its consistency,
believing it absolutely necessary to address the issue with the
completeness it deserves".
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