Italy’s association of magistrates (ANM) issued a sharp rebuke on Thursday after Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggested recent court decisions related to migration showed a coordinated effort to undermine her government’s authority.
Speaking earlier this week, Meloni said she saw a “design” behind several recent rulings, linking them to her administration’s proposed judicial reform that would formally separate the career paths of judges and prosecutors.
In response, the ANM’s Central Executive Council issued a firm statement rejecting any suggestion of political motives. “Magistrates do not do politics,” the ANM said. “They do their job every day despite insults, intimidation and a constant campaign of delegitimisation that damages the very foundations of our democratic State.”
The statement stressed that the judiciary would continue to operate with “deep respect for its constitutional mandate” and reminded the government of the principles of the separation of powers. “There is no design against the executive; to say so is to fail to understand the functioning of the separation of powers of the State,” the council said.
The latest tensions come as the government faces several legal roadblocks over its migration policies. A controversial plan to process asylum seekers in centres located in Albania, agreed between Rome and Tirana, has yet to move forward due to legal challenges.
Court of Ministers wants proceedings against three cabinet ministers
This week, the court of ministers asked parliament to authorise legal proceedings against three senior members of the Meloni cabinet – Justice Minister Carlo Nordio, Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, and Cabinet Secretary Alfredo Mantovano – over the release earlier this year of a Libyan general wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes.
While it is unlikely the case will proceed, Meloni’s coalition holds a solid majority in both chambers, the request has further fuelled political controversy over the government’s approach to law and migration.
Opposition leader Elly Schlein of the centre-left Democratic Party (PD) accused Meloni of undermining judicial independence. In an interview with Domani newspaper on Thursday, Schlein said, “Insinuating that judges act not to uphold the law but for a political agenda is subversive.”
Meloni’s comments come as her government prepares to push forward with its judicial reform package, which has already sparked concern among magistrates and constitutional scholars.
The debate touches on core issues of Italian democracy: the balance between state powers, the independence of the judiciary, and the rule of law in politically sensitive cases — particularly on migration, where tensions between humanitarian obligations and state control remain unresolved.
