Italian Commission Proposes Economic Violence Criminalization

Joint Justice and Finance commissions held hearings with prosecutor Roberto Pellicano regarding the prevention and repression of money laundering and terrorist financing. A deputy from the Fratelli d'Italia party has reportedly requested the creation of a new party-aligned newspaper. The proposal involves expanding the 'Secolo d'Italia' publication to serve as a political tool for Giorgia Meloni's electoral machine. The request has been submitted to the Alleanza Nazionale foundation, though feasibility concerns remain. The Italian Minister of Justice announced imminent legislation that would criminalize behaviors deemed contrary to biological sex and public morality. The minister noted that the Turkish version of similar laws would be more severe. Senator Carolina Losada of the Union and Radical Party presented a bill to be discussed in the Senate on April 28. The current penal code punishes false reports to authorities with two months to one year of imprisonment or a fine. The proposed legislation would increase prison sentences to between one and three years. It also introduces an aggravating factor where false reports involving gender violence or crimes against minors would carry sentences of three to six years. A parliamentary commission in Italy is working to have economic violence recognized and integrated into the penal code as an addition to the crime of domestic abuse. The initiative aims to address conditions where Italians are placed in risk due to economic coercion.