Italian elite braced as Calvi trial begins

[CHIMO]

THE opening of the Roberto Calvi murder trial in Rome last Thursday was more of a media spectacle than a productive first step in a judicial process that could open a fascinating insight into a turbulent period of Italy’s recent history.

Only the family’s tenacity managed to get the case reopened, a second inquest opting for an open verdict a year later, and they were finally rewarded last week when five people went on trial for his murder in a fortified courtroom in Rome’s maximum security Rebibbia Prison.

Chief among the defendants is Carboni, a Sardinian businessman and former real estate partner of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who helped to organise Calvi’s final journey and accompanied him to London. Speaking before the start of the trial, Carboni said he welcomed the opportunity to clear his name and, if necessary, clarify the responsibilities of others. “If the Vatican has a responsibility I don’t think it is for carrying out illegal activities in collusion with Calvi, but for having used the instruments that Calvi had to combat communist activity in Eastern Europe and Latin America,” Carboni said.

An examination of the Vatican’s role in the prosecution of the cold war could also provide an intriguing theme for the court as judge and jurors contemplate what Tescaroli describes as a “dark and unsettling” period in Italy’s history.

http://www.sundayherald.com/52182