Del Ponte calls on Berlusconi to join fight against crime

Del Ponte wants greater judicial cooperation between Switzerland and Italy Keystone

Switzerland's Carla del Ponte, the United Nations' chief prosecutor, has called on the new Italian premier, Silvio Berlusconi, to ratify a 1998 cross-border judicial agreement between the two countries.

Her aim is to speed up judicial cooperation between Italy and Switzerland, especially over organised crime and the Mafia.

Del Ponte appealed to Berlusconi after making her annual pilgrimage to Palermo to mark the death of the anti-mafia judge Giovanni Falcone, who was killed by a car bomb in May 1992.

In an interview with the Italian newspaper, “Corriere della Sera”, del Ponte said: “I have read that Berlusconi has invoked the memory of Giovanni Falcone and has committed himself to carrying on his work against serious crime. Now, Berlusconi and his majority have the chance to turn his words into actions.”

“Three years have passed since the signing of the agreement [between Italy and Switzerland] and it is ridiculous that the Italian parliament has still not ratified it,” she added.

Del Ponte insisted that ratification of the judicial agreement would free up numerous stalled investigations, especially those regarding corruption and financial irregularities, where Italian magistrates are still awaiting answers from Switzerland.

Del Ponte’s comments are likely to cause quite a stir in Italy, since it was the billionaire media magnate’s Forza Italia party which blocked progress of the agreement through the Italian parliament back in 1998.

Berlusconi, who has himself been the subject of numerous judicial inquiries, is still under investigation by judges in Milan over matters relating to his Fininvest media empire. They are seeking information from Switzerland as part of their investigations.

swissinfo with agencies