Too much truth too little truth..... Genoa 2001 G8 trials continue.

international | crime and justice | news report Wednesday October 12, 2005 14:32 by -

Some 45 police and medical staff are going on trial today accused of mistreating protesters that had been arrested and held at a camp near Genoa.
this is the "Bolzaneto torture trial".

On Friday, 28 officers will appear in court over a raid at a school which protesters were using as a dormitory.

this is the follow up to the beginning of the court proceedings on April 6th 2005 which saw police first testify on May 4th
http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=69680

These cases focus more on the Diaz school incidents than Guiliani, but the whole thing comes together and indeed all these investigations and trials are concurrent now which heightens their contemporary political effect.

Today thus marks "the next stage".

Today's news :-
english
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4332954.stm
italian
http://www.unita.it/index.asp?SEZIONE_COD=HP&TOPIC_TIPO=&TOPIC_ID=45092

Coverage from IMC italy
http://italy.indymedia.org/features/genova/
http://italy.indymedia.org/features/genova/#1248
page of collated background info for this round of cases.
http://italy.indymedia.org/news/2002/04/14126.php

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Little background:-
The trial and thus the courtroom Q&A relating to the death of Carlo Guiliani at the G8 protests in Genoa Italy began on April 6th 2005. As of yet no-one has been charged with his murder or manslaughter or homocide or death.

The police took the stand as state witnesses:-

http://www.unita.it/index.asp?SEZIONE_COD=HP&TOPIC_TIPO=&TOPIC_ID=42403

Mario Placanica, the then police officer who shot Guilliani was dismissed from the force on the 13th of April this year, the police officer who accompanied him that day, the 20th of July 2001, Dario Raffone took the stand yesterday, and will continue to give evidence today.

In the dock were 25 people accused of provoking damage and endangering lives.

here is a special entitled "amnesia - too little truth too much truth" from Rome TV-
http://redazione.romaone.it/4Daction/Web_RubricaNuova?ID=65665&doc=si
http://www.contattoradio.info/dettaglio_news.asp?Id=1091

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Here is the feature complied by Indymedia Genoa-
http://italy.indymedia.org/features/genova/

But now, these processes have come to an important stage.

The preliminary investigations against the 29 cops and officials that are charged with the abuses committed in the Diaz school on july 21, 2001 started on june 26 and has run to today.

Police officers have been charged with violence, defamation and perjury. The judge for the preliminary audiences has decided that this will proceed into a real court trial, and only in this case will there be a verdict.

(((that is the process beginning today)))

The victims can have an active role in the audience through the demand of payment of the damages. This is an option not only for the victims but also any of their relatives who can take the role of plaintiff, even if they were not in the Diaz school at that fatal moment.


The Genoa Legal Forum is coordinating the legal action and has offered lawyers for who had need any assistance. further info at http://www.veritagiustizia.it

This page contains links to much of the pick-up

http://italy.indymedia.org/news/2002/04/14126.php

Previous cases (through May to September saw 25 charged with destruction and looting. The main proof against them is a dvd, created by mixing images from various traffic control cameras, bank surveillance footage, police cameras, as well from cameras owned by demonstrators. According to the defense, these images have been cut and remixed together, to negatively impress the jury.

The Genoa G8 days was one of the most documented political events, whether through video, photos, written articles or audio recordings. Indymedia was in Genoa. THe history of Genoa, our history, has just entered another key stage.

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The Genoa Legal forum has created and is still working on a vast archive of documents which includes audio and video footage, images and texts. This archive must be digitized and updated with all the new information coming from the trials. Indymedia Italy has decided to fully dedicate itself to offering a real tool through this archive, which would also become a systematic denunciation of the violence coming from those in power.

From June till October we will be in Genoa again. Four people will be working non-stop on the G8 archive with the objective of producing a real working tool that will also aid all legal work and which at the same time will be an archive of historical collective memory.

Along with those 4 people, dozens of activists will be contributing from their homes, helping those in Genoa and updating the Genoa Dossier on italy.indymedia.org

We have decided to launch a finance campaign in order to cover the expenses (technical needs, research materials) of the people who will be working in Genoa. This is the first time we are organizing such a campaign and we need everyone's help.

Please, donate to:

Conto don antonio balletto
Banca carige sede centrale
c/c 61359/80
Abi 6175
Cab 1400

swift code CRGEITGG040
Iban IT45 H061 7501 4000 0000 6135 980
for (*it's needed*): sottoscrizione da devolvere alla campagna internazionale indymedia per il genova legal forum
(in support to international indymedia campaign for genoa legal forum)
http://italy.indymedia.org/news/2004/06/576371.php

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For more info there are (I believe) a few copies of the movie "Berlusconi's Mousetrap" knocking around in Ireland, here is one of the times it was shown at TCD-
http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=61950

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This remains the worst incident in the immediate modern history of European protests. Many people have watched the video footage of the last moments of the life of the 23year old, Carlo Giuliani, and form opinions based on that. They do not however ask how the situation had escalated to that point before hand, and what preventative or professional action ought to have been taken by the security forces in Genoa that year to avoid such bloodshed.

Those same security forces are now going to answer those questions.

I'll write nothing more than neither of those men, Mario Placanica or Carlo Guiliani ought have been in that square under those circumstances that day, it has long been apparant that a decision to provoke full scale rioting was made on the side of the Italian state and the result was a death.

& death even in Italy begets a process of justice and questions, and answers, and amnesia.

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You can also read / see round-up info here :-
http://www.globalproject.info/art-340.html