THERE WAS a time in Italian public life when the Monday Trialwas a TV football chat show which analysed the soccer action from the previous weekend. Nowadays, the Monday Trialinvolves a rather more serious matter – namely, an appearance in court by prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.
For the third time in a month, Mr Berlusconi yesterday chose to attend one of the four ongoing trials in Milan in which he stands accused, respectively, of fraud, bribery, perjury, abuse of office and exploitation of underage prostitution. By now these court appearances are beginning to follow a precise script with the prime minister’s presence prompting an impromptu pavement press conference, complete with an attack on the judiciary and bickering between Mr Berlusconi’s supporters and opponents.
So it was on this occasion, with Mr Berlusconi telling reporters before entering court: “Certainly, there’s something wrong in a democracy in which the head of government spends hours in court at a time when there are all these important international developments which require my presence . . . 24 times, the Milan judges have brought me to trial with unfounded accusations . . . this is a subversive project to eliminate from political life the very person who is in political life because the people have chosen him in democratic elections.”
Having denounced the judiciary, Mr Berlusconi then went into court where, by all accounts, he behaved like a model “defendant”. The prime minister even availed of his right to make a “spontaneous declaration” to the court, in which he explained the complex mechanisms involving intermediaries in the purchase of international TV and film rights.
In this trial, the so-called Mediatrade trial, Mr Berlusconi is accused of “fiscal fraud”, in that Mediatrade allegedly acquired US movie rights at inflated prices via offshore accounts in order to evade taxes and create a slush fund.
The script for the Monday Trial usually involves a bit of bother outside the court. This occasion was no exception when leftist politician Davide Piccardo, a candidate at forthcoming elections in Milan, challenged Mr Berlusconi only to find himself noisily attacked by the prime minister’s supporters.
Mr Berlusconi also used the occasion to make two political points. He appeared to downplay threats from Col Muammar Gadafy, while also guaranteeing his government would have no problem in a vote on the Libyan crisis despite tensions on the issue with partner the Northern League.
The trial comes two weeks before local elections which will test the accuracy of opinion polls that suggest that the ruling centre-right has been badly damaged by the cases. Milan, the prime minister’s home city, will be one of the most closely watched contests. (Additional reporting: Reuters)