Deputy Premier and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini on Saturday reiterated the need for a judicial reform to separate judges’ and prosecutors’ career paths. His comments followed his Open Arms acquittal in Palermo on Friday.
“I wasn’t scared. It is a fair sentence that I was expecting,” Salvini said. “Yesterday, in court in Palermo, I saw a correct, fair, and healthy separation between those who judge and those who prosecute. But it’s not always the case. Therefore, now the separation of career paths and the possibility of prosecuting magistrates in civil courts for bad decisions made intentionally is fundamental.”
The League leader also criticised the cost of the trial. “The Open Arms trial cost millions of euros. The justice reform is even more urgent than yesterday. Surely, yesterday’s sentence will not put any more ministers in a difficult position,” he added.
Salvini said the verdict recognised he had fulfilled his duties as interior minister, despite the bitterness endured. “The acquittal recognises the fact that I fulfilled my duty and repays me for all the bitterness,” he told reporters in Rome.
When asked about returning as interior minister, Salvini said: “I am fine where I am, for now. What I did at the interior ministry was absolutely correct. If someone thought over the last few years, ‘You can’t return to the Viminale (interior ministry) because you are on trial, you are potentially a criminal’…this thing is over.”
Three-year trial
The Palermo court of first instance acquitted Salvini of charges of abduction and refusal to perform public acts for blocking 147 migrants rescued by the Spanish NGO Open Arms in August 2019. The three-judge panel ruled he had no case to answer, rejecting the prosecutors’ request for a six-year jail term. Prosecutors had argued Salvini exceeded his powers when national security was not at stake.
The trial, which began in September 2021 and involved 24 hearings, focused on Salvini’s closed-ports policy as interior minister. The NGO repeatedly requested a safe port for disembarkation, citing deteriorating conditions onboard. The stalemate ended on August 20, 2019, when the vessel was seized, and the migrants disembarked.
After the verdict, Premier Giorgia Meloni called the charges “unfounded” and pledged to continue fighting illegal immigration. Justice Minister Carlo Nordio, who is spearheading judicial reform, said: “Trials like this, based on nothing, slow down the administration. We must reflect on our imperfect system.”
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban also praised Salvini, stating, “Justice has been served.” Earlier, Elon Musk described the trial as “crazy,” tweeting that Salvini was prosecuted “for defending Italy.”
The opposition reacted cautiously to Salvini’s Open Arms acquittal. Giuseppe Conte, leader of the Five-Star Movement, said, “The sentence must be respected,” while Democratic Party leader Elly Schlein noted, “Sentences must always be respected, contrary to what the right does.”
