50. Justice! What is it?
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| Since I couldn’t find an adequate picture for this title I’ve put a photo of something "Clean" taken with my new camera. However, this is just an aside. |
What has really been boiling inside my head throughout this rather ugly week is justice- or at least the ambiguity of the term. Some definitions are:
Clemente Mastella, the resigning Minister of Justice of this country is a jovial, friendly chap but behind this friendliness he did enjoy holding the present majority in ransom by tipping the scales of votes one way or another. I remember a year or so ago when the present left wing majority won the elections by only a few thousands votes, Mastella, being the leader of a small group of politicians asked for the post of Minister of Justice and when the Senate (equivalent to the House of Lords) began voting for the selection of the Speaker for some reason “someone” kept misspelling the name of the candidate selected by the majority and consequently invalidated the voting. At the time it was said that it was only after the leader of the Left Wing coalition, Prodi, consulted some leaders of the coalition and given out the posts of ministers that the Speaker’s name was this time spelt correctly. There is no proof of course that Mastella was responsible for the misspelling, it was only the gossip passed around at the time based on the fact that it was never certain who Mastella would support and was on the verge on going on the other side more than once.
The reason why Mastella has this week resigned as Minister of Justice is because his wife, Sandra, has been accused of extortion and has been confined to home arrest. Being the President of a Region she is accused of having favored candidates for key positions in that Region. Suspicion of ‘illicit activities,’ as it was stated, is also addressed at the ex-Minister. As one sees, nothing really terrible has occurred. Favours in the world of politics is a day-to-day occurrence and in some states it is even legal- for example lobbing.
Of course, some rules and regulations must be maintained and I certainly don’t want to see Italy at the same point as when I first came here in the eighties when it was impossible to get a job in a school if you didn’t know anyone in the Christian Democratic (D.C) Party- that’s why I joined the socialists!
And talking about socialists- the leader at the time was Bettino Craxi who died in exile eight years ago yesterday. Before leaving Britain, so as not to lose touch with the English language I had enrolled in a Playwright correspondence course and the tutor gave me a piece of advice which at the time I found odd since he told me to send the play I had written to the different television stations in Italy. Apart from the fact that no TV editor would have accept anything which was not written in the same language as that of the country (not knowing much Italian, I wrote only in English), the stupidity was that there were no TV stations to send it to except the state TV and that had only two channels!!!
If now there exist umpteen of TV stations it is thanks to Craxi, who as the then Prime Minister of this country he “favoured” Berlusconi (the guy who walks on water- remember) and allowed him to set up his three TV stations and which within a few years, opened the way to many other independent channels.
I was not in Italy during the 90s when they showered Craxi with tomatoes and rotten eggs which caused him to go into exile so as not to face being sent to prison in Italy for having “favoured” some instead of others. What Italian law calls “bribes” other countries call “lobbing” and every politician has used those methods then, now and they will do so in the future- unfortunately, Craxi must have rubbed someone up the wrong way and he paid for everyone else! I suppose now, it’s Mastella’s turn to pay for everyone else!!!
I think the best way to end this squalid idea on Justice in Italy is in Mastella’s own words who said he was resigning in solidarity with his wife but there is the Minister of the Environment who has filled us up with rubbish but is remaining!!!
One newscaster- my favourite- on one occasion, which I think is not enough, asked if it was better for Magistrates to occupy themselves of fiddly political goings on- or the garbage stinking in the streets… and why the hell hasn’t anyone put the handcuffs on those who have for so long refused to send out the lorries to collect the rubbish… is that or not more criminal in all effects!!!
A reminder to the Italian Magistrates:
Collecting the rubbish in Naples!
Administration of what is correct or proper, morally or legally right;
Fairness
The reason why Mastella has this week resigned as Minister of Justice is because his wife, Sandra, has been accused of extortion and has been confined to home arrest. Being the President of a Region she is accused of having favored candidates for key positions in that Region. Suspicion of ‘illicit activities,’ as it was stated, is also addressed at the ex-Minister. As one sees, nothing really terrible has occurred. Favours in the world of politics is a day-to-day occurrence and in some states it is even legal- for example lobbing.
Of course, some rules and regulations must be maintained and I certainly don’t want to see Italy at the same point as when I first came here in the eighties when it was impossible to get a job in a school if you didn’t know anyone in the Christian Democratic (D.C) Party- that’s why I joined the socialists!
And talking about socialists- the leader at the time was Bettino Craxi who died in exile eight years ago yesterday. Before leaving Britain, so as not to lose touch with the English language I had enrolled in a Playwright correspondence course and the tutor gave me a piece of advice which at the time I found odd since he told me to send the play I had written to the different television stations in Italy. Apart from the fact that no TV editor would have accept anything which was not written in the same language as that of the country (not knowing much Italian, I wrote only in English), the stupidity was that there were no TV stations to send it to except the state TV and that had only two channels!!!
If now there exist umpteen of TV stations it is thanks to Craxi, who as the then Prime Minister of this country he “favoured” Berlusconi (the guy who walks on water- remember) and allowed him to set up his three TV stations and which within a few years, opened the way to many other independent channels.
I was not in Italy during the 90s when they showered Craxi with tomatoes and rotten eggs which caused him to go into exile so as not to face being sent to prison in Italy for having “favoured” some instead of others. What Italian law calls “bribes” other countries call “lobbing” and every politician has used those methods then, now and they will do so in the future- unfortunately, Craxi must have rubbed someone up the wrong way and he paid for everyone else! I suppose now, it’s Mastella’s turn to pay for everyone else!!!
I think the best way to end this squalid idea on Justice in Italy is in Mastella’s own words who said he was resigning in solidarity with his wife but there is the Minister of the Environment who has filled us up with rubbish but is remaining!!!
One newscaster- my favourite- on one occasion, which I think is not enough, asked if it was better for Magistrates to occupy themselves of fiddly political goings on- or the garbage stinking in the streets… and why the hell hasn’t anyone put the handcuffs on those who have for so long refused to send out the lorries to collect the rubbish… is that or not more criminal in all effects!!!
A reminder to the Italian Magistrates:
Justice is:
Administration of what is correct or proper, morally or legally right;
Administration of what is correct or proper, morally or legally right;
Fairness
Collecting the rubbish in Naples!
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