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Journalist Ordered to Pay Damages for Mocking Italian PM’s Height

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An Italian journalist, Giulia Cortese, has been ordered to pay Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni €5,000 (£4,210) in damages for social media posts mocking Meloni’s height. A judge ruled that two tweets by Cortese, who also received a suspended fine of €1,200, were defamatory and constituted “body shaming.”

The incident began in October 2021 when Meloni’s far-right Brothers of Italy party was in opposition. Cortese posted a doctored image on X (formerly Twitter) showing Meloni with a framed photo of fascist dictator Benito Mussolini in the background. Meloni condemned the image as extremely serious and announced legal action. Cortese deleted the image, admitting it was fake but accused Meloni of creating a “media pillory” against her. She called Meloni a “little woman” and later tweeted, “You don’t scare me, Giorgia Meloni. After all, you’re only 1.2m [3ft 9in] tall. I can’t even see you.” Meloni’s actual height is reported as 1.63m (5ft 3in) in Italian media.

Cortese was cleared of any wrongdoing for posting the doctored image but was convicted for the subsequent tweets. She has the option to appeal but hasn’t decided yet. Meloni’s lawyer stated that any awarded money would be donated to charity.

Cortese reacted to the verdict on X, criticizing the Italian government for its stance on freedom of expression and journalistic dissent. She compared the situation to Hungary under Viktor Orbán, expressing concern for independent journalists and opinion leaders in Italy. Cortese added that while she is proud to be Italian, the country deserves better than its current government.

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Giorgia Meloni: Italy’s new PM takes aim at migrant boats in debut speech

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Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s new far-right leader, emphasised her goal to stop migrant boats from crossing the Mediterranean in her first speech to MPs. She reiterated her campaign promise to stop boats leaving North Africa for Italy, saying, “We must end illicit departures and human trafficking.”

Italy has always served as a hub for unauthorised immigrants travelling to Europe. This year, more than 77,000 people have attempted the extremely risky crossing into Italy, placing stress on nearby communities. The Brothers of Italy party is led by Ms. Meloni, 45, who was elected as leader of a right-wing alliance.

She addressed the lower house of parliament, “We do not seek in any way to dispute the right to asylum for individuals escaping wars and persecutions. In terms of immigration, what we want to accomplish is make it impossible for people traffickers to choose who gets into Italy.

She referred to herself as a “underdog” and acknowledged the responsibility of becoming the first female leader of her nation while paying thanks to the many Italian women who had come before her in “breaking this ultimate glass ceiling.”

She was greeted with a standing ovation and cries of “Giorgia, Giorgia”.

Even though the Meloni government was only sworn in on Saturday, it has already reverted to a stance taken in 2018–19 by one of its parties, the far-right League.

Matteo Piantedosi, the new interior minister, threatened to restrict ports to two rescue boats carrying hundreds of migrants just before the prime minister spoke, claiming that the Ocean Viking and Humanity1 were breaking the law.

Mr. Piantedosi was instrumental in the prior policy that forbade migrant-carrying rescue boats from arriving in Italian ports. That ultimately led to the League’s leader, Matteo Salvini, facing charges of kidnapping and obstructing the arrival of the rescue vessel Open Arms transporting 147 migrants in Sicily in 2019.

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Mario Darghi to vow as the Italian Prime Minister

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Mr Draghi, the ex-chief of the European Central Bank, has named his bureau after gathering the Italian president.

He has gotten the help of practically all the fundamental ideological groups, following the breakdown of the past organization a month ago. It was tossed into disorder in the midst of a column over how to spend EU Covid recuperation funds.

Italy is yet fighting with the pandemic and is likewise confronting its most exceedingly awful monetary emergency in many years. The nation has recorded in excess of 93,000 deaths, the 6th most elevated death toll in the world.

After getting the help of the biggest gathering in parliament, the Five Star Movement, Mr Draghi presently has backing across the wide political range. It implies he will have a huge enough dominant part to push through his agenda.

“Mario Draghi was the Italian who saved Europe, and I think now he is the European who can save Italy,” said former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. The previous prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, resigned in January after his group lost help for its alliance government over designs for spending EU recuperation money.

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