That Italy’s judiciary is a communist coven is a claim Italy’s prime minister Silvio Berlusconi makes virtually daily.

Recently, in the face of Rubygate these claims have reached a new crescendo.

But is it true? Has Italy’s judiciary been penetrated by communist infiltrators? In other words, is there any evidence that Berlusconi’s mantra that judges in Italy are communists is true?

The short answer appears to be no – as far as I can make out there is not much evidence to support Mr Berlusconi’s favourite assertion. Moreover, Berlusconi never seems to have produced any proof that the judges hearing cases which concern him are communists. This is odd as one would imagine that a man with his resources, extreme wealth, and power would be able to find something to substantiate his oft repeated claims.

Or are Italians just being sucked into what one might be termed a lie which has come to be believed?

Joseph Goebbels, Adolf Hitler’s propaganda minister once stated:

“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.”

Could this be the case with Berlusconi? I have to admit that it’s having an effect, in that I’m writing this, and others are wondering whether Berlusconi’s claims that all the cases which have been brought against him over the years have been politically motivated. Hence the reason for this article.

Berlusconi’s supporters are convinced their master is the victim of a commie plot.

When an investigation reveals that Berlusconi might be guilty of some crime or other, or when a court decides against him, the investigators and judges involved are all communists.

Of course, when a court finds in his favour, Berlusconi does not stand up and announce that he was saved from prosecution by judges who are not communists.

Actually, this would be a dangerous claim to make publicly as it is possible that in two cases involving Berlusconi, one may have been dismissed, and in the other Berlusconi may have been convicted, and yet both may have been heard by the same judges. The possibility of this happening is quite low, but it does exist.

Imagine if this situation did arise. What would Berlusconi claim? That the judge or judges in question were part-communist? Or that they’d been got at by external communist influences in the case which went against him?

I’m fairly certain Berlusconi could come up with a suitably vague explanation which would then be pumped around Italy via his media to shed him in a good light.

How Judges are Selected in Italy

Judges in Italy are selected to hear cases using a rotation system, so the probability of Berlusconi always ending up in courts presided over by judicial communists is relatively low.

I suppose it is possible that this rotation system has been manipulated to ensure Berlusconi always ends up in front of a panel of commie judges, but if this were the case, Berlusconi’s brethren should have uncovered such manipulation years ago. As far as I know, they have not – please correct me if I am wrong.

Finding Proof that Italy’s Judges are Communists

I’ve tried to find some evidence that Berlusconi’s claims of commie judges might be true, and I found this report dated 2005, the title of which is self-explanatory:

RECRUITMENT, PROFESSIONAL EVALUATION AND CAREER OF JUDGES AND PROSECUTORS IN EUROPE: Austria, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands and Spain
Research project with financial support from the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (FISR programme).
Research coordinated and edited by: Giuseppe Di Federico 2005

The section which is of interest and might support Berlusconi’s claims is this sentence on page 146 of the document:

The laws regulating promotions were radically changed by Parliament between 1963 and 1973 under pressure from the CSM, from the powerful Association of Magistrates and with the support of the leftist parties (most notably of the numerous parliamentarians of the Communist Party).

From reading the same report, the radical changes apparently came about as a result of worries that judicial interpretations in Italy had become too fascist. Now, it seems that in the eyes of Berlusconi, judicial interpretations in Italy have become too communist!

Italy’s magistrates treat Berlusconi’s continued claims with great consternation and insist their work is not influenced by political leanings. Obviously, these magistrates are unlikely to admit they are a bunch of commies – but there does not appear to be much, if any, evidence they are.

However, reader Silvia (who is probably Italian) left this interesting comment, which suggests that Berlusconi’s fear of commie judges may have some grounds, even if it is not clear whether the commies are still occupying positions of power within Italy’s judiciary:

All the Italians who studied philosophy during the five years of the Italian high school know who
Gramsci was. He was one of the most important leaders, with Togliatti and Berlinguer, of the Italian Communist Party, PCi.

He wrote that in order to transform Italy into a communist country like Russia, a violent, or military insurrection was not the right way. He thought that it was best to put communist and socialist people in the most important institutions and points of powers of Italy: journalists, high school and university professors, judges, the board of RAI ( state owned Italian television), the board of the Italian Central Bank ( Banca d’italia )…. These people, at the moment of the Revolution, would have betrayed the democracy and the 1945 Constitution to support the installation of a communist dictatorship. In part he was able to do that : especially during the Seventies,
a certain share of these institutions were infiltrated. The Americans knew that, and they gave money to Italian neo-fascists and anti-communist sinister people who created illegal organizations like Gladio and P2.

When he says that THE ITALIAN JUDGES ARE COMMUNISTS, he has some strong historical proof .. Italians who have at least a high school education know this, and that is the reason why a lot of Italians still follow him, even after everything he has done.. Until the day that all the judges who are right now working in Italy do not reach the age of retirement and a new generation of judges is born, this shadow will be upon all the Italian judges : to be compromised with a political ideology, and this is not acceptable for a modern western country, as is not acceptable a prime minister ” who consorts with minors “.

Are the Cases Against Berlusconi Politically Motivated?

Well, that politics is a dirty game is nothing new. Any and all means may be employed to score a victory over political opponents.

It is possible, though I have no proof, that certain politicians who would like to take over from Berlusconi have been pointing investigators in the right direction. I suppose that if this is the case, then it could be argued that there is a certain degree of political motivation behind the cases against Berlusconi.

Then again, Berlusconi himself is not beyond using claims of illegality to unseat his own opponents, as was evidenced by the recent attempts to force ex-Berlusconi ally Gianfranco Fini out on the grounds that the sale and ownership of a property in Monte Carlo was not transparent. A court victory, even if the matter has not gone to court, would have achieved a political victory.

It would appear that Berlusconi is prepared to risk hearings managed by commie judges when he brings a case against someone else.

Upcoming Court Cases Featuring Berlusconi

As for the cases concerning Berlusconi which are about to come to court, and which he fears he will lose even if he continues to maintain his innocence: all, in Berlusconi’s opinion, are in the hands of politically motivated communist judges. Furthermore, Berlusconi is convinced the judges are working hand in hand with Italy’s left, and/or those who would like to depose him.

Still, to ensure he is never found guilty, and he never has been, Berlusconi is prepared to go to great lengths – up to and including reforming Italy’s legal system, introducing laws to de-criminalise certain crimes and to keep himself out of future trouble, Berlusconi wants to clamp down on telephone wire tapping too.

What do you think? Are Italy’s judges impartial, or are they commies after Berlusconi’s rich blood? Do you have any evidence that judges in Italy are communists?

Or are Italy’s judges doing nothing more than attempting to uphold the rule of law in Italy?

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