Italy's Berlusconi sex trial gets underway

ROME, April 5 (Xinhua) -- The trial over Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's sex scandal will begin Wednesday, but a top aide said Berlusconi would not appear in court.

Nor will television cameras, as Italian Attorney General Laura Bertole Viale and State Prosecutor Manilio Minale agreed to reverse a previous ruling that would have allowed state broadcaster RAI to film the trial. They said the ruling was changed to prevent the hearing from becoming a "circus."

But it seems impossible to prevent that. Protesters and supporters have both said they would gather in front of the Milan courthouse, where the trial will start at 9:30 a.m. (0730 GMT) Wednesday.

Hundreds of journalists have been reporting on every micro development from the case ever since it was announced in February. And the witness list includes American movie star George Clooney and his showgirl girlfriend, Elisabetta Canalis.

Berlusconi is charged with paying for sex with a minor, a then-17-year-old cabaret dancer called Karima el-Mahroug, known by her nickname "Ruby the Heart Stealer."

The leader is also charged with abusing his position as prime minister to cover up his connection with el-Mahroug by pressuring police to release her from custody after she was detained over separate theft allegations.

The trial seems to be a kind of drama compared to the two other Berlusconi trials, where he faces much more technical charges including tax evasion and bribery.

According to Cabinet Undersecretary Gianni Letta, Berlusconi's closest aide, the prime minister will not be present for Wednesday's opening hearing, which is expected to focus mostly on procedural matters.

There is a chance that the trial could be aborted before it really gets under way. Italian lawmakers started debate Tuesday on a measure that could slow or even halt the proceedings.

They will decide whether the Milan court is the appropriate venue for the hearing, with Berlusconi's lawyers arguing that he should be tried before a special minister's tribunal given that the abuse of power charges relate to Berlusconi's position as prime minister.

However, the Constitutional Court ruled in March that the Milan court had the authority to handle the case.

But if parliament contradicts that ruling, the Constitutional Court would be forced to rule again and confirm the tribunal members.

Regardless of the parliamentary vote, Wednesday's hearing will take place. But if legislators vote against the court's authority, it means the trial could be halted in the future.

Berlusconi, a billionaire media tycoon who controls three of Italy's seven national television networks, denied wrongdoing in the case involving el-Mahroug as well as the others and insisted that he is a victim of the corrupt Italian judiciary.

As the cases approached, his ruling coalition fractured and his popularity dropped to nearly a historical low, but at least so far, his grip on power does not seem at risk.

Since he entered public life in 1994, Berlusconi has faced at least 17 official criminal and civil allegations.


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Italy: 33 Women ‘Too Much’ for Berlusconi

In an interview just weeks before his trial on charges he paid for sex with a minor and tried to hide it, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, 74, left, argued that prosecutors’ claims that 33 women had prostituted themselves at his parties were untrue. “Even though I am a little mischievous,” he said, “33 girls in two months seems like too much even for a 30-year-old.” The interview, with La Repubblica, was a newsworthy event itself given that it is a leftist newspaper that has pushed for his resignation and that he has avoided talking with all but a few loyalist publications.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/17/world/europe/17briefs-ART-Berlusconi.html?_r=1

Berlo's gifts to Ruby: Rolexes, £12k necklace

LONDON: Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's 24 gifts worth almost £200,000 given to the teenage dancer at the centre of the underage prostitution charge against him have emerged.

Berlusconi, 74, is said to have given Karima El-Mahroug , better known as Ruby the Heart Stealer, two Rolex watches, one of which was worth £42,000, a £15,000 fur stole and the promise of an Audi R8. He is said to have also given her a £12,600 diamond necklace.

"The person who gave me the necklace is Silvio Berlusconi whom I met twice at Arcore ," she said, referring to his villa outside Milan. El-Mahroug also revealed when questioned by prosecutors that Berlusconi had given her a red and black Valentino dress encrusted with Swarovski pearls, as a gift on Valentine's Day 2010 to mark "our first meeting" .

The list of gifts included Versace shoes, a Dolce and Gabbana Swarovksi crystal designer watch, and diamond bracelets, pendants , rings and earrings from brands like Bulgari and Tiffany.

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Italian prime minister to stand trial in sex case

A judge on Tuesday ordered Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to stand trial on charges that he paid for sex with a 17-year-old girl, then abused his authority by trying to get her released from custody after police picked her up on suspicion of stealing.

It was a major setback for the 74-year-old premier, whose personal entanglements have for months overshadowed the business of governing Italy. Berlusconi denies any wrongdoing and blames a plot by left-wing judges and his political foes to force him from office.

Whether he will lose his job as prime minister remains unclear. Despite a nonstop stream of scandals surrounding both his business dealings and personal life, Berlusconi has managed to stay in power owing to a fragmented opposition, the loyalty of his proteges in parliament and his control of most of Italy's commercial television.

Members of Berlusconi's People of Freedom party came to his defense Tuesday.

"The Italian judiciary, through a risible investigation, is trying to overturn the democratic order," said Maurizio Lupi, party deputy leader. "The (judicial) offensive against the prime minister has no precedent either in Italy or in the world."

But opposition leaders called for Berlusconi's resignation and immediate elections.

"Berlusconi should defend himself before the (court) as do all citizens who have nothing to hide," said Anna Finocchiaro, leader of the Democratic Party in the Senate. "But for his sake and that of the nation's dignity he should first resign."

The judge, Cristina Di Censo, acting on hundreds of pages of documents submitted by prosecutors, ruled that there was sufficient evidence to skip a preliminary hearing and proceed directly to trial, to begin April 6.

Berlusconi's business practices are already the subject of three other court proceedings. This will be the first to center on his personal behavior.

A self-made billionaire-turned-politician, he will not be required to appear in court himself, leaving his team of lawyers to combat charges that he paid to have sex with Karima El Mahroug, a teenage dancer who used the stage name Ruby Rubacuori, or Ruby "Heart-stealer."

While the age of consent is 14 and prostitution in general is not illegal in Italy, paying for sex with a minor is considered a crime.

Mahroug, who has since turned 18, regularly attended Berlusconi's notorious private parties, which guests have described in media interviews and in wiretapped conversations as full of prostitutes. The "bunga bunga" parties routinely featured stripteases and erotic games, attendees said.

Both Berlusconi and Mahroug deny they had sex. But Mahroug has said Berlusconi gave her jewelry and about $9,500 in cash.

Prosecutors allege that when Mahroug was arrested in Milan last May on suspicion of theft in an unrelated incident, Berlusconi's office applied undue pressure on the police to release her from custody, claiming that she was a relative of then-Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and that her detention could cause a diplomatic confrontation.

Prosecutors accuse Berlusconi of intervening in order to prevent his and Mahroug's relationship from coming to light. Berlusconi says he stepped in merely out of compassion for a young woman in a tough spot.

His lawyers say that prosecutors in Milan have no jurisdiction over a case involving the prime minister. Berlusconi's defense team is also expected to argue that Mahroug is older than her official documents state.

The decision Tuesday came down two days after hundreds of thousands of women staged protests against Berlusconi in cities across Italy. They accused him of degrading women and reinforcing the sexism prevalent in Italian society.

After the decision was released, one of Berlusconi's attorneys, Piero Longo, said: "We expected nothing different" - apparently alluding to the fact that the judge, Di Censo, is a woman. The three judges who will hear the trial are all women.

Berlusconi denies that he insults women's dignity. He has said that, on the contrary, he tries to make women feel special and that loving women is preferable to being gay.


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http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/02/16/2065642/italian-prime-minister-to-stand.html#ixzz1E6DJ4mA8

Rallies across Italy protest Berlusconi's sex scandal

Milan, Italy (CNN) -- Thousands of Italians took to the streets in some 200 cities across the country Sunday in protest of Prime Minister's Silvio Berlusconi's alleged behavior toward women.

The largest gathering was in Rome, where organizers said 100,000 people gathered, under the slogan, "If not now, when?" In Milan, organizers estimated that 60,000 people gathered. Protests also took place outside Italy, including marches in Tokyo and Geneva.

Sunday's demonstrations were the biggest anti-Berlusconi rallies since the most recent sex scandal broke in January, when Milan prosecutors said they were investigating whether the prime minister abused his power by helping an underaged woman, who he had allegedly paid for sex, get out of jail on a theft charge.

Berlusconi has denied that he has ever paid anyone for sex. A string of sex scandals have dogged him.

The protests were organized by women's groups and publicized by internet. The turnout surprised the organizers, who didn't want the demonstrations to be political, though that's what they became.

One woman who came with her family to the Milan rally told CNN that she was "fed up with the way women are portrayed as objects in the Italian media. The way that young girls are glorified by their looks and youth and then what? I don't want my daughter to grow up thinking that that is the only way to be ... that the only thing that matters is to be pretty and show off their legs. ... We are more than that."

In Milan, demonstrators had banners that said, "Stop the merchandising of women," and "Berlusconi enough. You bring us shame."

Many of the speakers at the Milan rally criticized the way Berlusconi's sex scandal made Italy look, his behavior towards women and his promoting ex-show girls to high government positions.

Protesters said leaked evidence from the investigation show he has little respect for female dignity, the state-run ANSA news agency reported.

Wiretaps published in the media suggest he surrounded himself at parties at his home with starlets and other women hoping to use their looks to gain positions in politics or at Berlusconi's Mediaset TV empire, ANSA reported.

The investigation began in December, after Berlusconi called police in May, urging them to release Karima El Mahrough, nicknamed Ruby, from jail, where she was being held on theft charges.

Prosecutors say the activity took place from February until May 2010. Both El Mahrough, now 18, and Berlusconi have denied they ever had sex.

El Mahrough said she did not know Berlusconi well but that she did receive 7,000 euros (about $9,300) from him the first time they met, on Valentine's Day 2010, because a friend told Berlusconi she needed help.

The young woman's former roommate told investigators that El Mahrough confided to her that she did have a sexual relationship with the premier.

Berlusconi's party argued that he believed that Ruby was Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's niece and the phone call to the police station on her behalf was done to avoid a possible diplomatic crisis with Egypt.

The lower house of Italy's Parliament voted against allowing Milan prosecutors to search property belonging to Berlusconi as part of the investigation.

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http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/02/13/italy.berlusconi/?hpt=T2

News Analysis: Berlusconi's latest trial could decide his political fate

ROME, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Italian prosecutors on Wednesday filed a 782-page request making the case that Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is guilty of abusing the power of his high office and of paying for sex with a minor. Many in Italy say the outcome of the case may decide Berlusconi's political fate.

Berlusconi has faced at least 17 official criminal and civil allegations since he first entered Italian politics in 1994. But this time things could be different, as pollsters say the accusations are resonating with a weary Italian public, and the case appears to be well-constructed to make a conviction more likely.

The investigation got underway in December on allegations that the 74-year-old prime minister paid for sex with a Moroccan-born cabaret dancer named Karima el Mahrough, better known by her stage name "Ruby." She was 17 at the time.

Prosecutors also alleged that Berlusconi tried to use his influence to have el Mahrough released from prison, where she was held on charges of theft.

Berlusconi reportedly lied to police by claiming that el Mahrough was the niece of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and that they should release her in order to avoid a diplomatic crisis.

In Italy, the age of consent in regard to sexual relations is 14, and prostitution itself is not illegal.

But paying for sex with a minor, which in Italy refers to anyone under the age of 18, is a crime punishable by up to three years in jail. Both Berlusconi and el Mahrough deny sexual relations, though el Mahrough admits Berlusconi did give her money.

The abuse of power allegation is even more serious, carrying the penalty of up to 12 years behind bars.

The case has made frontpage stories in Italian newspapers ever since it became public, and pollsters have told Xinhua that many Italians worry the issue is distracting Berlusconi from his job as prime minister, at a time when the country is gripped by slow growth and rising unemployment.

Prosecutor Edmundo Bruti Liberati's office has requested a fast- track trial, a move that will limit the arguments on both sides, and also make it less likely that the statute of limitations will expire before a decision can be made.

Berlusconi has escaped prosecution several times in the past because of statute of limitations laws. The fast-track process also limits the kind of charges that can be made, which in this case means prosecutors have focused on the charges they think would be the easiest to prove in court.

Judge Cristina di Censo will now have three options: she can grant a fast-track trial; she can dismiss the request and demand a deeper investigation into whether any wrongdoing actually took place; or she can decide that her court does not have the jurisdiction.

That last option is what Berlusconi's lawyers are fighting for, by claiming that the crimes are alleged to have taken place in Rome and Sardinia -- not in Milan, and that the Milan court does not have the authority to try a prime minister.

Di Censo said on Wednesday that she would make her decision by next Monday or Tuesday. If di Censo allows the fast-track hearing, it could get underway within a month, though Italian media reports said that it is more likely to start near mid-year.

Because of a decision by Italy's top court to strip away most protections in a controversial immunity law that would have prevented criminal investigations into Berlusconi and other top leaders, it is possible that Berlusconi will be required to appear in court on these latest charges.

If that really happens, it will be the first time that a sitting Italian prime minister is required to appear before a judge to answer accusations.


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Berlusconi fights back as sex trial looms

Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi stands accused by critics of "threatening the dignity of women.

ROME — Silvio Berlusconi still has plenty of political clout even as he braces for a bruising week in which judges are set to request he stand trial in a case involving a dancer known as "Ruby the Heart-Stealer".

The inquiry into Berlusconi's alleged liaisons with prostitutes -- denied by the prime minister -- was first reported last month and has dominated Italian newspapers since then, with lurid headlines and pictures of an array of women.

But away from the gossip pages, analysts say the Italian prime minister has the vital backing he needs in parliament and is by no means finished despite the end of his alliance with speaker of parliament Gianfranco Fini.

"The centre-right trenches are holding well, at least for the moment," said Massimo Franco, a columnist for the Corriere della Sera daily.

Berlusconi has pushed ahead with moves towards federalism -- a key demand from his last remaining major ally in government, the Northern League party.

And he has also outlined an ambitious plan to boost Italy's sluggish economic growth, which is due to be approved at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

On Thursday he scored something of a symbolic victory when parliament voted with a majority of 315 to reject a request from prosecutors to search the offices of his accountant as part of their sex scandal investigation.

It was his strongest majority since he broke with Fini last year.

"Berlusconi comes out stronger from the vote, in which the centre-right gave him full solidarity," said Marcello Sorgi, a columnist with La Stampa.

Stefano Folli, a columnist with business daily Il Sole 24 Ore, said: "There has been no defection and Berlusconi has kept full control of his side."

"The opposition has shown its weakness yet again," he said.

Franco said the Northern League, which has hinted at the possibility of early elections, "continues to prefer an axis with a prime minister in difficulty rather than with a pathologically weak and confused opposition."

While Berlusconi's approval ratings have fallen in recent weeks -- from 40 percent in December to 35 percent in January according to the latest poll -- the crucial alliance with the Northern League has held firm.

The poll released earlier this week also showed that Berlusconi's People of Freedom party (PDL) still has the highest approval level, at 29.5 percent, while the main opposition Democratic Party (PD) is at 25.5 percent.

The opposition, analysts said, appears to be counting on prosecutors in Milan and civil society protests to push Berlusconi out.

On Saturday, leading leftist intellectuals including Umberto Eco and Roberto Saviano, the author of a book on the Camorra crime syndicate, are due to take part in an anti-Berlusconi political meeting in Milan.

They have said they want to free Italy "from its corrupt and corrupting government, from attacks against the constitution and against prosecutors and from the threats to the dignity of women."

Women's groups are also planning a major rally in Rome on February 13.

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Guessing game over Silvio’s ‘steady woman’

LONDON: After Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi claimed that he could not have had sex with an underage prostitute as he is in a steady relationship, the guessing game is on as to who the mystery woman is. Berlusconi, 74, had claimed in a televised address that he has been seeing the mystery woman for nearly two years after his wife of 20 years, Veronica Lario, announced in April 2009 that she wanted a divorce.

His announcement triggered speculation as to who the mystery woman might be, with Italian media even suggesting half a dozen likely candidates, all of them young enough to be his granddaughters.

His claim comes as prosecutors sought permission to search the office of his accountant, in the hope that they will find proof that the prime minister kept a number of prostitutes in his various Milan residences.

Italian investigators lodged a formal request in parliament to raid the offices of Giuseppe Spinelli, which are currently protected by parliamentary immunity.

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