Berlusconi Immunity Denied: Italy ETF Under Pressure?
Michael Johnston submits:
Italy’s top court ruled on Wednesday that a law granting Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi immunity from prosecution was in violation of the country’s constitution, a development that makes the head of state vulnerable to claims of fraud and corruption. The ruling is widely expected to limit Berlusconi’s ability to push through social and economic reforms as Italy, the Euro zone’s third largest economy, tries to keep its recovery on track.
The law, introduced by Berlusconi last year, had allowed him and three other key government figures to avoid prosecution during their time in office. It had been used earlier this year to protect the media mogul turned politician from charges that he paid a lawyer for providing him favorable evidence in previous trials. With the immunity law now tossed out, two trials involving Berlusconi will now resume, one involving the payments to lawyer David Mills and another focusing on financial irregularities in the selling of program rights in the Mediaset TV empire.
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