Interior Minister Angelino Alfano
said Monday that an Italian law against torture should be
revised by the Chamber of Representatives.
The Senate is expected to pass the law on Tuesday.
He said that changes were needed to "prevent any
misunderstanding concerning the legitimate use of force by the
police".
Men and woman in uniform, he added, "are doing an excellent
job, which must not be subject to curbs due to psychological
anxiety or operating concerns in complex situations".
The issue has been on the agenda since April last year,
when the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) condemned Italy
for police brutality in a July 2001 raid on anti-globalization
protestors at the Genoa G8.
The court condemned Italy not only for what happened to the
demonstrators during the infamous raid on the Diaz school, but
also because it said the country lacks appropriate legislation
to punish the crime of torture even though it ratified a UN
convention on torture in 1989.
Premier Matteo Renzi's government has pledged to fill this
vacuum.
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