Berlusconi has passed a law which makes the Prime Minister and the other top three political officials immune from prosecution. This has allowed him to evade any kind of punishment in the bribery court case involving David Mills. Mills himself was convicted and given a four and a half year prison sentence – a charge that could well have applied to Berlusconi if he had been tried, as he was an original co-defendant. His ability to do this makes a mockery of the idea of universal justice. Former anti-corruption magistrate Antonio Di Pietro has stated that ‘the law is unconstitutional because it introduces a double standard’ (1).

(1)http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/ europe/italy/4162266/Silvio-Berlusconi-could-lose-immunity-from-prosecution.html

The fact that Berlusconi has ownership of large portions of the Italian media surely compromises the independent reporting of news. One of the strengths of UK democracy is seen to be our politically diverse press, along with the independence of TV networks such as the BBC. Without the adequate space for freedom of political thought there becomes a danger of brainwashing or lack of political awareness, and from there comes a breakdown in active democracy. It also leaves the theoretical possibility that specific interest groups may be over-represented if they appeal to Mr. Berlusconi’s heart (or wallet).

Premier Berlusconi has recently been subject to sordid accusations about his involvement with teenage glamour model Noemi Letizia, and claims that he has improperly used state aircraft to fly his own private guests to his villa in Sardinia. Despite the weight of these misdemeanors, his immunity from prosecution and lack of incisive political censure has meant that he has easily been able to dodge the ramifications of these alleged actions. Furthermore, he seemingly has some kind of alliance with the Vatican which lends him valuable support in such sleaze cases. The recent furore over his relationship with Letizia received no moral censure from Bishops who stated merely that one’s behaviour is within the realms ‘of individual conscience’ (1). Seemingly all sources of criticism can be silenced or written of as smear, undermining any notion of accountability.

(1)http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/ timestopics/people/b/silvio_berlusconi/index.html