Italian journalists will face trial for Vatileaks II despite court plea to have case dismissed

An Italian journalist said that he has done nothing that is illegal in Italian law and that the trial against him was “Kafka-esque” as a Vatican trial of five people involved in the Vatileaks II saga opened on Tuesday.

The tribunal of four judges denied attempts to have the cases against journalists Emiliano Fittipaldi and Gianluigi Nuzzi dismissed despite appeals by media watchdog groups, including the Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders and the OSCE.

The pair recently published books about the waste and mismanagement in the Vatican administration, which were based in part by confidential documents obtained from the Vatican.

Alongside them in the courtroom were Mgr Lucio Vallejo Balda, his secretary Nicola Maio and Francesca Chaouqui, a financial public relations expert. Mgr Balda and Chaouqui both served on a commission set up in 2013 by Pope Francis tasked with overhauling Vatican finances.

The hearing was held in the intimate courtroom of the Vatican's criminal tribunal, decorated with a photo of Pope Francis facing the defendants and a crucifix behind the bench.

 

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After the charges were read out, Fittipaldi asked to approach the bench and read out a statement to the four judges, saying he decided to show up out of respect for the court even though in Italy he would never have been accused of the charges he faces, much less put on trial.

He noted that he's not accused of publishing anything false or defamatory, merely news — "an activity that is protected and guaranteed by the Italian constitution, by the European Convention on Human Rights and by the Universal Declaration on Human Rights."

Fittipaldi's book Avarice, and Nuzzi's book Merchants in the Temple, both published earlier this month, detail waste and mismanagement in the Vatican administration, the greed of some cardinals and bishops and the resistance Pope Francis is facing in trying to clean it up.

Both books were based on documents produced by a reform commission Francis appointed to get a handle on the Vatican's financial holdings and propose reforms so that more money could be given to the poor.

Francesca Chaouqui leaves the Vatican court on Tuesday (PA)

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The three Vatican employees are accused of forming a criminal organisation and procuring and leaking confidential documents. Nuzzi and Fittipaldi are accused of publishing those documents and of "soliciting and exercising pressure, above all on Vallejo Balda, to obtain the documents and other reserved news", according to Vatican prosecutors.

In his statement, Fittipaldi said the accusations against him were so vague that he couldn't defend himself against them, noting that prosecutors haven't even spelled out which documents he's alleged to have obtained illicitly.

His lawyer, Lucia Musso, issued a formal motion to dismiss the charges against him on those grounds.

Contesting Fittipaldi's motion, Assistant Prosecutor Roberto Zannotti said freedom of the press wasn't on trial but rather the "illicit behaviour" of the journalists in obtaining the information.

After 45 minutes of deliberation, the president of the tribunal, Judge Giuseppe Della Torre, rejected Fittipaldi's motion. The trial resumes Monday with testimony from the defendants.

 

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THE VATILEAKS SAGA...

Three former Vatican officials and two journalists to face trial over Vatileaks

Vatileaks II author refuses to appear before Vatican prosecutors - Christopher Lamb

Pope readying Catholic Church for the 'change of an era'  - Christopher Lamb

Vatican financial reforms still on track, says lay expert

Leaking Vatican will not deter me from my reforms says Pope

Something old, something new ... nothing borrowed - Christopher Lamb

Vatican PR arrested by police protests innocence on Facebook - Sean Smith

Pursuit of power behind Vati-leaks II saga - Christopher Lamb

Two Vatican officials arrested for leaked financial documents - Sean Smith

 

The two journalists have described the trial as "Kafka-esque" given that they only saw the court file a few hours before trial began. Nuzzi said he only met his lawyer on Tuesday morning for the first time. The five were indicted Friday.

"In Italy, we're slow with justice, but here maybe we're a bit too quick," Nuzzi quipped to reporters during a break in the hearing.

The two reporters face up to eight years in prison if convicted. Since Fittipaldi and Nuzzi are Italian citizens, any sentence would presumably involve an extradition request. Both have said they believed no Italian judge would extradite them given the free speech protections journalists enjoy in Italy.

The journalists deny the pressure accusation but acknowledge that they, like all journalists, obtained information and published it. Chaouqui has denied wrongdoing and was allowed to avoid detention after she cooperated with investigators. Vallejo Balda, who is in Vatican detention, and Maio haven't responded publicly to the accusations.

Vallejo Balda told reporters he was doing "very well" and felt "protected" inside the Vatican cell. As the secretary of the reform commission, he made some enemies in seeking to get a handle on the true value of the Vatican's financial holdings.

The Vatican in 2013 criminalised the leaking of confidential information and publishing news from that information after Nuzzi wrote a blockbuster book detailing the corruption, intrigue and petty turf battles that bedevil parts of the Vatican.

Additional reporting by the Press Association