A Milan court has explained why it
acquitted 23 far-right activists who were among an estimated
1,000 young people who gave the Roman salute during a
commemoration ceremony for a slain far-right student, finding
their gesture did not cross the boundary of commemoration into
the realm of spreading Fascist ideology, according to the
motivation of the ruling published on Monday.
The latter is a crime in post-World War II Italy.
In particular, the Milan court said that the commemoration held
on April 29 2019 in memory of Sergio Ramelli, a far-right Youth
Front militant killed by far-left militants in 1975, in which
some 1,000 people gave the fascist salute and the crowd replied
on the dead man's behalf with a roar - "present! present!
present!" as if delivering a roll call - had only the "specific
meaning of an homage and commemoration of a youth who was killed
for his political ideas".
The court on November 28 2024 fully acquitted the defendants of
allegedly "staging a Fascist demonstration", a charge based on
the Scelba law, which prohibits groups that pursue
anti-democratic aims, glorify the principles or leaders of
Fascism, or use violence in its service.
The ruling was one of the first in Milan since the supreme
Cassation Court in April 2024 established a set of guidelines
for judges to evaluate in specific cases the "concrete danger of
the reorganization of the Fascist party" determining a crime.
Prosecutors had requested prison terms of between two and four
months for the activists who are members of the far-right
movements Lealtà Azione, Forza Nuova and Casapound.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
