VZCZCXRO5872
RR RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHROV RUEHSL RUEHSR
DE RUEHRO #1144/01 2811603
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 081603Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY ROME
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2763
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHFL/AMCONSUL FLORENCE 3839
RUEHMIL/AMCONSUL MILAN 0270
RUEHNP/AMCONSUL NAPLES 4052

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 001144 
 
NOFORN 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/07/2019 
TAGS: PGOV PREL IT
SUBJECT: ITALY: CONSTITUTIONAL COURT REJECTS LAW GRANTING 
CRIMINAL IMMUNITY TO TOP OFFICIALS 
 
ROME 00001144  001.2 OF 00...

Classified By: CDA Elizabeth L. Dibble for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
¶1. (C/NF) SUMMARY:  The Italian Constitutional Court declared 
unconstitutional a 2008 law granting temporary criminal 
immunity to PM Berlusconi and three other senior officials. 
The court's decision will allow several pending criminal 
cases against Berlusconi to proceed.  Government spokesperson 
Paolo Bonauiti called the ruling blatantly political and said 
Berlusconi's center-right government will finish its 
five-year mandate, ""as decided by the Italian people."" 
Berlusconi's response was more emotional as he lashed out 
against ""communists"" on the court and a media culture 
dominated by the left.  Berlusconi also broke a political 
taboo by taking direct aim at President of the Republic 
Giorgio Napolitano whom he said was ""elected by a leftist 
majority"" and that we ""know which side he is on.""  Berlusconi 
holds a solid majority in both chambers of parliament, and 
his government is not immediately threatened by this ruling. 
However, the decision has weakened him politically, and 
defending himself from criminal investigations could become a 
significant distraction.  Berlusconi's harsh criticism of 
Napolitano also threatens further divisions between 
Berlusconi and the President of the Republic.  END SUMMARY. 
 
COURT RULES AGAINST LAW GRANTING IMMUNITY 
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¶2. (SBU) On October 8, Italy's Constitutional Court ruled 
nine to six that a 2008 law known as the ""Lodo Alfano,"" which 
suspends criminal prosecutions against the top four 
institutional positions in the Italian state is 
unconstitutional.  Declaring that the law violated 
constitutional guarantees of equality before the law, the 
decision will allow at least four criminal investigations 
against PM Silvio Berlusconi to proceed.  The legal 
underpinnings of the ruling will also complicate any effort 
by Berlusconi's parliamentary majority to quickly pass a 
modified version of the Lodo Alfano--which is, itself, a 
modified version of a similar law previously rejected by the 
Constitutional Court. 
 
BERLUSCONI LONG PLAGUED BY CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS 
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¶3. (SBU) Corruption and other criminal charges have plagued 
Berlusconi since he entered politics in 1994.  Berlusconi 
says leftist prosecutors in a highly-independent judiciary 
are on a political witch-hunt, and he denies any guilt. 
Berlusconi has never been definitively convicted in a 
criminal case although several close associates have.  To 
avoid a conviction in some cases, Berlusconi lawyers ran out 
the clock on the statute of limitations. In one case, a 
Berlusconi-controlled parliament reduced the statute of 
limitations on the category of crimes for which Berlusconi 
was accused. 
 
¶4. (C/NF) Italy's highly independent judiciary was a 
traditional refuge for communist party members during the 
Cold War.  Moreover, the timing of judicial 
actions--including against some center-left officials--often 
appears political, including the October 5 decision by a 
civil court to rule against Berlusconi's Finivest holding 
company on a long-pending Euro 750 million suit by a business 
competitor who claimed Finivest's corruption of a judge cost 
it business opportunities.  Whether guilty of corruption or 
not, Berlusconi's many supporters have traditionally shrugged 
off the allegations as irrelevant in the same way they have 
forgiven his frequent sexual transgressions and public gaffes. 
 
BERLUSCONI ACCUSES THE COURT, THE PRESS AND THE PRESIDENT 
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¶5. (C/NF) Government spokesperson Paolo Bonauiti called the 
ruling politically motivated and said Berlusconi's 
center-right government will finish its five-year mandate, 
""as decided by the Italian people.""  A visibly angered 
Berlusconi, speaking in an unusually shaky voice, responded 
emotionally to the verdict.  He lashed out at the ""red 
judges"" on the Constitutional Court, and accused President of 
the Republic Giorgio Napolitano of ""roots totally in the 
history of the left,"" saying Napolitano's recent appointment 
to the court proves ""what side he is on.""  Berlusconi said 72 
percent of the Italian press is controlled by the left 
(despite the fact he owns the lion's share of Italian media) 
and even criticized how variety shows often poke fun at the 
PM for his many sexual improprieties. Berlusconi continued 
that he ""won't give up,"" and declared ""Long live Italy! Long 
live Berlusconi!""  Reflecting the mood among many in 
Berlusconi's party, one official told Poloff ""this was a 
political coup d'etat conceived by entrenched powers opposed 
to  Berlusconi."" 
 
THE OPPOSITION/SOME ALLIES CALL FOR CALM 
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¶6. (U) Though more radical parties have called for Berlusconi 
to resign, Democratic Party (PD) Secretary Dario Franceschini 
said he hoped Berlusconi would not waste time trying to pass 
another law designed only to protect himself and criticized 
Berlusconi for attacking Napolitano.  Significantly, 
President of the Chamber of Deputies Gianfranco Fini, a 
Berlusconi ally and co-founder of the ruling party who has 
recently feuded with Berlusconi, also told Berlusconi to 
""respect the Constitutional Court and the Head of State."" 
 
COMMENT: BERLUSCONI WEAKENED BUT NOT DEFEATED 
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¶7. (C/NF) COMMENT:  Berlusconi holds a solid majority in both 
chambers of parliament and is still popular with his 
political base.  Moreover, the opposition Democratic Party is 
disorganized, and coalition dissidents are not strong enough 
to act against Berlusconi--as much as some would like to.  As 
a result, though weakened, Berlusconi's government is not 
immediately threatened by the negative ruling. Although it is 
still too early to predict the ultimate impact of the 
decision and imminent criminal investigations, Berlusconi's 
emotional outburst against the well-respected President 
Napolitano is likely to resonate badly with many Italians and 
might lead to further divisions between the two institutions. 
 And, as Berlusconi himself has said, defending himself 
against criminal investigations will distract him from the 
work of the Italian people.  END COMMENT. 
DIBBLE