The Supreme Court of Cassation, the 10 May at 19:30, issued a judgment that has been defined by many “historical” and that, in fact, could have devastating effects on the Italian blogosphere. More precisely, The Supreme Court has “canceled without court because the facts did not” permanently and thus fulfilled Carlo Ruta from offenses “libel” and “underground press”; offenses for which Ruta had been convicted in the first two sets of proceedings. Is thus linked to an end an affair, In my way of looking ridiculous and shameful that had lasted for eight years and had created a “monster” juridical. It is worth, dunque, to trace this history in its fundamental stages, to fully understand, if ever there was a need, as on occasion it legislates with too superficial not worrying about the consequences that may affect the community.
Carlo Ruta is a historic, Sicilian journalist and blogger, who ran a blog called “It happens in Sicily“; it was a site of news reporting, historical and civil, deployed openly and courageously against the Mafia. It happens that, at some time in our history, Become aware of a Magistrate offended by some of the writings on the blog has a lawsuit for defamation. The site obscures 7 December 2004 and so, of the blue, two thousand documents divided between literature civil, historical documentation, investigations of the Mafia, evidence, Chronicles, reports, are as “vanished” into thin. Then the process.
In primo grado il tribunale di Modica aveva ritenuto che il blog del saggista fosse una vera e proprio newspaper, and that, therefore, one side had to be considered "editorial product" as required by law nl. 62/2001, other, precisely because "the periodical press, should be registered with the competent court”. This judgment was clearly appealed, but unfortunately during the second degree of judgment Court of Appeals Catania confirmed everything, pace of the reasons of those who supported the absurdity of the whole affair and the dangers associated with it.
And so we arrive today, namely a few days ago, day of the pronouncement of judgment of acquittal for Carlo Ruta by the Court of Cassation, writes an end to this unfortunate affair. I blog, therefore, can not be regarded or treated as newspapers and therefore no obligation to register with the chancelleries of the competent courts for thousands of bloggers. Which, de facto, would discourage almost anyone from opening their own space, So much for Freedom of information and related rights of us all.
In recent days, moreover, many blogger friends had wanted to publish their thoughts about, such as a dear colleague and also very good writer Michele Barbera.
In this regard I want to share with you a piece of today's article Maximum Mantellini, very accurate and punctual as always:
The condemnation of Ruta, we wrote it very often, is the child of many fathers but one mother. A bad law written in 2001 during a center-left government, stubbornly supported by its speakers, the’on. Giuseppe Giulietti e l’on. Vannino Chiti at the time of the PDS parliamentary and “experts” communication of the deployment. In the face of determined opposition of tens of thousands of Internet users that Italian, with a petition organized by this newspaper, tried to persuade Parliament not to approve the definition of editorial product which would then lead to the conviction of Ruta and that is often invoked in court also recently (the last case is to PNBox) the law 62/2001 was ultimately approved by almost all year round with the exception of the Parliamentary Radicals.
More than ten years after the democratic futile protest Giulietti – Ironically – maintains a web site called Article 21which continues to address the problems of society. Giulietti and Chiti, drafters of that law which, are also responsible for one of the most significant waste of words of Italian Internet as, by virtue of their definition of editorial product, For many years most of the Italian blogs have been forced to add a sort of disclaimer like this:
Questo blog non rappresenta una testata giornalistica in quanto viene aggiornato senza alcuna periodicità. It can not therefore be considered an editorial product
Google now tells me that this phrase is repeated in its entirety on the web about Italian 2 million times. Two million sentences ridiculous and useless because of a poorly written law of the State.
It should be remembered that the judgment of acquittal to the Supreme Court of Ruta will not apply to any other. In other words, while having a weight (in the past, the Supreme Court had shown similar guidelines) does not protect from events like Pirandello's other inhabitants of the peninsula with the vice of the manifestation of his thought.
Perhaps that is why today Giulietti On, with only a decade late, issued a statement in announcing the next, not further defined “abrogate specific measures” preventing the recurrence of similar confusion between the right to freedom of expression and the rights of the publishing companies.
55thousand eleven years ago people said clearly to Mr. Giulietti and Mr. Chiti that article of the law was dangerous and was rewritten. Our highly skilled parliamentarians he rubbed, even leaving a clear personal discomfort to reveal this unexpected interference in their (in)competence on the things of the network. There is no doubt, then and now, that article of the law should be changed, as is shown quite clearly that, in a representative democracy matures, some of our representatives should abandon the halls of parliament to return to lend their active support in civil society from which they came.
Needless to say that this result is needed and you could arrive much sooner, would have sufficed just a little common sense. Ma of the rest, I wonder why I am not surprised at all; ultimately common sense and Italy are two concepts that we, very distant, but you know, Hope is the last to die, Also in Italy.
Via | Fulog
Via | Computer Point
