Italiaanse persvrijheid en rol Berlusconi leidt tot verhit debat in Europees Parlement (en)
MEPs sitting in plenary on Wednesday (21 October) voted against a handful of resolutions on press freedom in Italy, some by only the narrowest of margins.
A joint motion put forward by the Socialist, Green and Liberal groups condemning censorship in Italy was beaten by three votes, with 335 voting in favor, 338 against and 13 abstaining.
The motion had called on the EU assembly to "denounce pressure and intimidation against Italian and European newspapers by the Italian government".
A counter-motion put forward by the centre-right conservative and eurosceptic groups was also rejected by 322 votes to 297, with 25 abstentions.
Their motion claimed that ''there is no threat to the free press in Italy'', adding that the European Parliament was not the place to discuss national issues.
The parliamentary vote came a day after a newly published press freedom index by NGO Reporters Without Borders saw Italy drop five places to 49 out of 175, the third lowest state in the European Union after recent entrants Bulgaria and Romania.
"Silvio Berlusconi's harassment of the media, mafia violence against journalists who expose its activity and a bill that would drastically curb the media's ability to publish official phone tap transcripts explain why Italy fell for the second year running," said the report referring to the Italian prime minister.
MEP Joseph Daul, chairman of the centre-right EPP group who earlier failed to have the debate cancelled, heralded parliament's decision.
"The EPP group has won a battle today to reaffirm that the European Parliament is not the appropriate place to discuss national issues, nor to make a case against any government of a European Union member state", he said.
The Frenchman said his group, which contains large numbers of MEPs from Silvio Berlusconi's People of Freedom party, would now move quickly to hold a more general debate on press freedom.
Disappointment
Wednesday's result will disappoint many in Europe who are critical of the Italian premier's stranglehold on national media and his attempts to stifle recent criticism of his personal life.
The parliamentary debate on Italian press freedom earlier this month proved to be heated, with regular outbursts from MEPs and several walkouts.
Mr Berlusconi initiated a string of lawsuits over the summer against European newspapers that reported on his lavish weekend parties in his villa on the island of Sardinia that counted a number of call-girls among the invited guests.
Critics of his excessive control over the media point to the Italian leader's ownership of the three biggest commercial television stations in Italy, as well as his large influence over state television.
He also owns a newspaper with his family, a major news magazine Panorama, a large publishing house and an advertising agency.
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