Nordio on the crime of torture: “It is hateful, the government does not intend to repeal it”

“The crime of torture is a heinous crime and we have every intention of maintaining it. the government has no intention of repealing it. This was stated by Justice Minister Carlo Nordio, answering a question at question time, explaining that there are only technical issues that need to be remodulated.

The minister explained that there are in particular two “technical deficiencies” of the crime of torture that need to be addressed. The first is that while the New York Convention “restricts the conduct of torture to those characterized by specific malice”, i.e. implemented “to obtain a further result, in this case information, punish or discriminate”, “our legislator, opting for a criminal figure characterized by generic intent, has eliminated the distinctive fact of torture compared to other ill-treatments, making the risk of seeing the provision applied to cases of suffering caused during lawful police operations concrete”. The second technical shortcoming is that “the crime of the criminal figures of torture and inhuman and degrading ill-treatment, considered on an international level as distinct figures deserving of differentiated treatment, has merged into a single case”. “Subjecting the two offenses to the same sanctioning treatment is an unreasonable choice and not imposed by international constraints”. “These are technical issues but I can assure you, my word of honour, that the crime of torture will remain”, concluded the minister.

Crime of torture, Brothers of Italy brakes: “A proposal to open the debate”

Grace Longo

March 26, 2023

Ready the response of the oppositions. “Nordio’s response to the question time on the draft law by the Brothers of Italy to eliminate the crime of torture is worrying – says Alessandro Zan, Pd deputy -. He says the government doesn’t want to repeal it, but is open to changes. Either he misrepresents the political will of his own party, or he is in bad faith ».