Joseph Muscat To Be Called As Witness In Trial Against Former Italian Minister’s Blocking Of Migrants In 2019
Former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has been included in a list of witnesses of a criminal trial in Italy in which its former Home Affairs Minister Matteo Salivini has been charged with kidnapping and abuse of office.
Salvini is the leader of Italy’s far right League Party, and was charged with kidnapping and abuse of office when in August 2019, he used his position of Home Affairs Minister to block 147 rescued migrants from being disembarked in Italy.
The migrants were held in dire conditions for six days before they were eventually freed following an order by Italy’s prosecutor’s office.
Salvini is facing up to 15 years in prison and maintains that the decision to hold the migrants was taken by the Italian government as a whole.
According to Italian media reports, Muscat – who was Malta’s Prime Minister at the time -is one of 26 witnesses. Malta found itself in a number of disputes with Italy between 2018 and 2019 as a result of Italy’s policy of refusing entry to any NGO vessels at the time, many of which would attempt to disembark in Malta instead.
When contacted by the Times of Malta on Sunday, Muscat said he had so far not been summoned to testify.
Actor Richard Gere, who had boarded the vessel on which the migrants were detained, prior to its arrival in Italy, has also been called as a witness.
Italy’s Senate voted last year to strip Salvini of his parliamentary immunity, allowing the trial to take place. Earlier this year, a similar case against Salivini stemming from his time as Home Affairs Minister was thrown out by a Catania court.
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