Mitterrand doctrine
Encyclopedia
The Mitterrand doctrine ("Doctrine Mitterrand") was a policy established in 1985 by French president François Mitterrand
concerning Italian far-left terrorists
who fled to France: those convicted for violent acts in Italy, but excluding "active, actual, bloody terrorism" during the "Years of Lead" would not be extradited
to Italy. Mitterrand based this oral promise, which was upheld until the 2000s by France, on the alleged non-conformity of Italian legislation with European standards.
The French president opposed aspects of the anti-terrorist laws
passed in Italy during the 1970s and 1980s, which created the status of "collaboratore di giustizia" ("collaborators with justice", known commonly, as pentito
.) This was similar to the "crown witness" legislation in the UK or the Witness Protection Program in the United States, in which people charged with crimes are allowed to become witnesses for the state and possibly to receive reduced sentences and protection.
Italian legislation also provided that, if a defendant was able to conduct his defence via his lawyers, trials held in absentia
did not need to be repeated if he were eventually apprehended. The Italian in absentia procedure was upheld by the European Court of Human Rights
(ECHR).
The Mitterrand doctrine was effectively repealed in 2002, under the government of Jean-Pierre Raffarin
, when Paolo Persichetti was extradited from France.
on February 1, 1985. Mitterrand excluded from this protection those who had committed "active, actual, bloody terrorism". On April 21, 1985, at the 65th Congress of the Human Rights League (LDH), he declared that Italian criminals who had broken with their violent past and had fled to France would be protected from extradition to Italy:
This policy statement was followed by French justice when it came to the extradition of far-left Italian terrorists or activists. According to a 2007 article by the Corriere della Sera
, Mitterrand was convinced by the Abbé Pierre
to protect these persons. According to Cesare Battisti
's lawyers, Mitterrand had given his word in consultation with the Italian Premier, Bettino Craxi
.
, which was approved by the Raffarin Government. The Cesare Battisti case, in particular, has provoked debate about the interpretation of doctrine Mitterrand.
Opponents of the doctrine point out that what a president can say during his tenure is not a source of law, and that this doctrine therefore has no legal value. Proponents point out that it was nevertheless consistently applied till 2002, and consider that the former president had committed the Republic through his words.
His supporters (intellectuals like Fred Vargas
or Bernard-Henri Levy
, organizations such as the Greens
, the League of Human Rights, France Libertés, Attac-France, etc.) along with some personalities of the Socialist Party
(PS), are opposed to non-compliance by the right in power with the Mitterrand doctrine.
This aspect of French policy has been strongly criticized by the Italian Association of Victims of Terrorism (Associazione Italiana Vittime del Terrorismo ) who in 2008 expressed particular
The President Jacques Chirac
said he would not oppose the extradition of persons wanted by the Italian courts.
finally ruled against the French procedure in absentia, often used as a touchstone to consider the Italian procedure as in fault. In a ruling, which breaks down to the root of the French institute, the ECHR decided that the so-called process of purgation in the absence - namely the new trial following the arrest of the fugitive - is only a mere procedural device. So the new process can not be comparable to a guarantee for the prisoner, given that in France under Article 630 of the Code of Criminal Procedure
The Mitterrand doctrine ("Doctrine Mitterrand") was a policy established in 1985 by French president François Mitterrand
concerning Italian far-left terrorists
who fled to France: those convicted for violent acts in Italy, but excluding "active, actual, bloody terrorism" during the "Years of Lead" would not be extradited
to Italy. Mitterrand based this oral promise, which was upheld until the 2000s by France, on the alleged non-conformity of Italian legislation with European standards.
The French president opposed aspects of the anti-terrorist laws
passed in Italy during the 1970s and 1980s, which created the status of "collaboratore di giustizia" ("collaborators with justice", known commonly, as pentito
.) This was similar to the "crown witness" legislation in the UK or the Witness Protection Program in the United States, in which people charged with crimes are allowed to become witnesses for the state and possibly to receive reduced sentences and protection.
Italian legislation also provided that, if a defendant was able to conduct his defence via his lawyers, trials held in absentia
did not need to be repeated if he were eventually apprehended. The Italian in absentia procedure was upheld by the European Court of Human Rights
(ECHR).
The Mitterrand doctrine was effectively repealed in 2002, under the government of Jean-Pierre Raffarin
, when Paolo Persichetti was extradited from France.
on February 1, 1985. Mitterrand excluded from this protection those who had committed "active, actual, bloody terrorism". On April 21, 1985, at the 65th Congress of the Human Rights League (LDH), he declared that Italian criminals who had broken with their violent past and had fled to France would be protected from extradition to Italy:
This policy statement was followed by French justice when it came to the extradition of far-left Italian terrorists or activists. According to a 2007 article by the Corriere della Sera
, Mitterrand was convinced by the Abbé Pierre
to protect these persons. Abbé Pierre, il frate ribelle che scelse gli emarginati, Corriere della Sera
, January 23, 2007 According to Cesare Battisti
's lawyers, Mitterrand had given his word in consultation with the Italian Premier, Bettino Craxi
. See DROITS ACQUIS DROITS DENIES, on Parole donnée
, which was approved by the Raffarin Government. The Cesare Battisti case, in particular, has provoked debate about the interpretation of doctrine Mitterrand.
Opponents of the doctrine point out that what a president can say during his tenure is not a source of law, and that this doctrine therefore has no legal value. Proponents point out that it was nevertheless consistently applied till 2002, and consider that the former president had committed the Republic through his words.
His supporters (intellectuals like Fred Vargas
or Bernard-Henri Levy
, organizations such as the Greens
, the League of Human Rights, France Libertés, Attac-France, etc.) along with some personalities of the Socialist Party
(PS), are opposed to non-compliance by the right in power with the Mitterrand doctrine.
This aspect of French policy has been strongly criticized by the Italian Association of Victims of Terrorism (Associazione Italiana Vittime del Terrorismo ) who in 2008 expressed particular
The President Jacques Chirac
said he would not oppose the extradition of persons wanted by the Italian courts.
finally ruled against the French procedure in absentia, often used as a touchstone to consider the Italian procedure as in fault. In a ruling, which breaks down to the root of the French institute, the ECHR decided that the so-called process of purgation in the absence - namely the new trial following the arrest of the fugitive - is only a mere procedural device. So the new process can not be comparable to a guarantee for the prisoner, given that in France under Article 630 of the Code of Criminal Procedure
The Mitterrand doctrine ("Doctrine Mitterrand") was a policy established in 1985 by French president François Mitterrand
concerning Italian far-left terrorists
who fled to France: those convicted for violent acts in Italy, but excluding "active, actual, bloody terrorism" during the "Years of Lead" would not be extradited
to Italy. Mitterrand based this oral promise, which was upheld until the 2000s by France, on the alleged non-conformity of Italian legislation with European standards.
The French president opposed aspects of the anti-terrorist laws
passed in Italy during the 1970s and 1980s, which created the status of "collaboratore di giustizia" ("collaborators with justice", known commonly, as pentito
.) This was similar to the "crown witness" legislation in the UK or the Witness Protection Program in the United States, in which people charged with crimes are allowed to become witnesses for the state and possibly to receive reduced sentences and protection.
Italian legislation also provided that, if a defendant was able to conduct his defence via his lawyers, trials held in absentia
did not need to be repeated if he were eventually apprehended. The Italian in absentia procedure was upheld by the European Court of Human Rights
(ECHR).
The Mitterrand doctrine was effectively repealed in 2002, under the government of Jean-Pierre Raffarin
, when Paolo Persichetti was extradited from France.
on February 1, 1985. Mitterrand excluded from this protection those who had committed "active, actual, bloody terrorism". On April 21, 1985, at the 65th Congress of the Human Rights League (LDH), he declared that Italian criminals who had broken with their violent past and had fled to France would be protected from extradition to Italy:
This policy statement was followed by French justice when it came to the extradition of far-left Italian terrorists or activists. According to a 2007 article by the Corriere della Sera
, Mitterrand was convinced by the Abbé Pierre
to protect these persons. Abbé Pierre, il frate ribelle che scelse gli emarginati, Corriere della Sera
, January 23, 2007 According to Cesare Battisti
's lawyers, Mitterrand had given his word in consultation with the Italian Premier, Bettino Craxi
. See DROITS ACQUIS DROITS DENIES, on Parole donnée
, which was approved by the Raffarin Government. The Cesare Battisti case, in particular, has provoked debate about the interpretation of doctrine Mitterrand.
Opponents of the doctrine point out that what a president can say during his tenure is not a source of law, and that this doctrine therefore has no legal value. Proponents point out that it was nevertheless consistently applied till 2002, and consider that the former president had committed the Republic through his words.
His supporters (intellectuals like Fred Vargas
or Bernard-Henri Levy
, organizations such as the Greens
, the League of Human Rights, France Libertés, Attac-France, etc.) along with some personalities of the Socialist Party
(PS), are opposed to non-compliance by the right in power with the Mitterrand doctrine.
This aspect of French policy has been strongly criticized by the Italian Association of Victims of Terrorism (Associazione Italiana Vittime del Terrorismo ) who in 2008 expressed particular
The President Jacques Chirac
said he would not oppose the extradition of persons wanted by the Italian courts.
finally ruled against the French procedure in absentia, often used as a touchstone to consider the Italian procedure as in fault. In a ruling, which breaks down to the root of the French institute, the ECHR decided that the so-called process of purgation in the absence - namely the new trial following the arrest of the fugitive - is only a mere procedural device. So the new process can not be comparable to a guarantee for the prisoner, given that in France under Article 630 of the Code of Criminal Procedureart. 630 c.p.p. Fr.:Aucun avocat, aucun avoué ne peut se présenter pour l'accusé contumax. Toutefois, si l'accusé est dans l'impossibilité absolue de déférer à l'injonction contenue dans l'ordonnance prévue par l'article 627-21, ses parents ou ses amis peuvent proposer son excuse.
, the first trial in absentia is held without the presence of lawyers, in explicit violation of the right to defense enshrined in Article 6, paragraph 3 letter c) http://www.studiperlapace.it/documentazione/europconv.htmlConvenzione Europea dei diritti dell'uomo e delle libertà fondamentali - Studi per la Pace the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECtHR: Krombach v. France, application no. 29731/96) European Court of Human Rights: Krombach v. France. Following this ruling, France partly amended its default procedure by the March 9, 2004 "Perben II" Act http://www.lexinter.net/lois4/loi_du_9_mars_2004_perben_ii.htmLOI DU 9 MARS 2004 PERBEN II, untenable for European standards on human rights. The current procedure in the absence is defined as "par défaut" and allows for the defense by a lawyer See: Art 156 in: http://www.lexinter.net/lois4/chapitre_iv_jugement.htm .
In 2002, France extradited Paolo Persichetti, an ex-member of the Red Brigades
(BR) who was teaching sociology at university, in breach of the Mitterrand doctrine. However, in 1998, Bordeaux
's appeal court had judged that Sergio Tornaghi could not be extradited to Italy, on the grounds that Italian procedure would not organise a second trial after the first trial in absentia. The extraditions in the 2000s involved not only members of the Red Brigades, but also other leftist activists who had fled to France and were being sought by Italian justice. These included Antonio Negri
, who eventually chose to return to Italy and surrender to Italian authorities.
In 2004, French judicial officials authorized the extradition of Cesare Battisti. In 2005 the Conseil d'État confirmed the extradition, marking the end of the Mitterrand doctrine.
Commenting on this doctrine Gilles Martinet, an old socialist intellectual and former Ambassador
in Italy wrote, in the preface to a book dedicated to the Cesare Battisti case : "Not being able to make a revolution in our country, we continue to dream of it elsewhere. It continues to exist the need to prove ourselves that we are always on the left and that we have not departed from the ideal" Guillaume Perrault,Génération Battisti: ils ne voulaient pas savoir, Plon, 2005 ISBN 978-2-259-20325-8 .
The list of Italians who have benefited from the Mitterrand doctrine include: Toni Negri, Cesare Battisti, Paolo Persichetti, Sergio Tornaghi, Oreste Scalzone
, Marina Petrella
. In addition:
Simonetta Giorgieri and Carla Vendetti, suspected of contacts with the new Red Brigades
, may also still be in France. http://www.ilmattino.it/articolo_app.php?id=23988&sez=HOME_NELMONDO&npl=&desc_sez= Il Mattino.
, Paolo Persichetti, Oreste Scalzone
, news articles, etc.) Battisti se livre à la justice médiatique, Le Figaro
Berlusconi, Chirac : deux hommes intègres face à Battisti, Le Grand Soir
Cesare Battisti : l’État français aux ordres de Berlusconi, Politis
, February 19, 2004 Le fugitif raconte sa cavale dans un livre, La République des lettres
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
concerning Italian far-left terrorists
Red Brigades
The Red Brigades was a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organisation, based in Italy, which was responsible for numerous violent incidents, assassinations, and robberies during the so-called "Years of Lead"...
who fled to France: those convicted for violent acts in Italy, but excluding "active, actual, bloody terrorism" during the "Years of Lead" would not be extradited
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
to Italy. Mitterrand based this oral promise, which was upheld until the 2000s by France, on the alleged non-conformity of Italian legislation with European standards.
The French president opposed aspects of the anti-terrorist laws
Anti-terrorism legislation
Anti-terrorism legislation designs various types of laws passed in the aim of fighting terrorism. They usually, if not always, follow specific bombings or assassinations...
passed in Italy during the 1970s and 1980s, which created the status of "collaboratore di giustizia" ("collaborators with justice", known commonly, as pentito
Pentito
Pentito designates people in Italy who, formerly part of criminal or terrorist organizations, following their arrests decide to "repent" and collaborate with the judicial system to help investigations...
.) This was similar to the "crown witness" legislation in the UK or the Witness Protection Program in the United States, in which people charged with crimes are allowed to become witnesses for the state and possibly to receive reduced sentences and protection.
Italian legislation also provided that, if a defendant was able to conduct his defence via his lawyers, trials held in absentia
In absentia
In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In...
did not need to be repeated if he were eventually apprehended. The Italian in absentia procedure was upheld by the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
(ECHR).
The Mitterrand doctrine was effectively repealed in 2002, under the government of Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Jean-Pierre Raffarin is a French conservative politician and senator for Vienne.Jean-Pierre Raffarin served as the Prime Minister of France from 6 May 2002 to 31 May 2005, resigning after France's rejection of the referendum on the European Union draft constitution. However, after Raffarin...
, when Paolo Persichetti was extradited from France.
Establishment of the doctrine
Mitterrand defined his doctrine during a speech at the Palais des sports in RennesRennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
on February 1, 1985. Mitterrand excluded from this protection those who had committed "active, actual, bloody terrorism". On April 21, 1985, at the 65th Congress of the Human Rights League (LDH), he declared that Italian criminals who had broken with their violent past and had fled to France would be protected from extradition to Italy:
"Italian refugees (...) who took part in terrorist action before 1981 (...) have broken links with the infernal machine in which they participated, have begun a second phase of their lives, have integrated into French society (...) I told the Italian government that they were safe from any sanction by the means of extradition".
This policy statement was followed by French justice when it came to the extradition of far-left Italian terrorists or activists. According to a 2007 article by the Corriere della Sera
Corriere della Sera
The Corriere della Sera is an Italian daily newspaper, published in Milan.It is among the oldest and most reputable Italian newspapers. Its main rivals are Rome's La Repubblica and Turin's La Stampa.- History :...
, Mitterrand was convinced by the Abbé Pierre
Abbé Pierre
LAbbé Pierre, was a French Catholic priest, member of the Resistance during World War II, and deputy of the Popular Republican Movement . He founded in 1949 the Emmaus movement, which has the goal of helping poor and homeless people and refugees...
to protect these persons. According to Cesare Battisti
Cesare Battisti
Cesare Battisti was an Italian politician who became a prominent Irrendentist at the start of the First World War.-Biography:...
's lawyers, Mitterrand had given his word in consultation with the Italian Premier, Bettino Craxi
Bettino Craxi
Benedetto Craxi was an Italian politician, head of the Italian Socialist Party from 1976 to 1993, the first socialist President of the Council of Ministers of Italy from 1983 to 1987.-Political career:...
.
The doctrine in the 1985-2002 period
This commitment has long taken the place of general policy of extradition of activists and Italian terrorists. But it is no longer in force since the extradition of Paolo Persichetti in 2002, former member of the Red BrigadesRed Brigades
The Red Brigades was a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organisation, based in Italy, which was responsible for numerous violent incidents, assassinations, and robberies during the so-called "Years of Lead"...
, which was approved by the Raffarin Government. The Cesare Battisti case, in particular, has provoked debate about the interpretation of doctrine Mitterrand.
Opponents of the doctrine point out that what a president can say during his tenure is not a source of law, and that this doctrine therefore has no legal value. Proponents point out that it was nevertheless consistently applied till 2002, and consider that the former president had committed the Republic through his words.
His supporters (intellectuals like Fred Vargas
Fred Vargas
Fred Vargas is the pseudonym of the French historian, archaeologist and writer Frédérique Audoin-Rouzeau . Her crime fiction policiers have won three International Dagger Awards from the Crime Writers Association, for three successive novels: in 2006, 2008 and 2009. She is the first author to...
or Bernard-Henri Levy
Bernard-Henri Lévy
Bernard-Henri Lévy is a French public intellectual, philosopher and journalist. Often referred to today, in France, simply as BHL, he was one of the leaders of the "Nouveaux Philosophes" movement in 1976.-Early life:...
, organizations such as the Greens
The Greens (France)
The Greens were a Green political party to the centre-left of the political spectrum in France. They had officially been in existence since 1984, but their spiritual roots could be traced as far back as René Dumont’s candidacy for the presidency in 1974...
, the League of Human Rights, France Libertés, Attac-France, etc.) along with some personalities of the Socialist Party
Socialist Party (France)
The Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
(PS), are opposed to non-compliance by the right in power with the Mitterrand doctrine.
This aspect of French policy has been strongly criticized by the Italian Association of Victims of Terrorism (Associazione Italiana Vittime del Terrorismo ) who in 2008 expressed particular
The President Jacques Chirac
Jacques Chirac
Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...
said he would not oppose the extradition of persons wanted by the Italian courts.
End of the doctrine
The Mitterrand doctrine was based on a supposed superiority of French law and its alleged greater adherence to European standards and principles concerning the protection of human rights. This vision entered in crisis, from a legal viewpoint, when the European Court of Human RightsEuropean Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
finally ruled against the French procedure in absentia, often used as a touchstone to consider the Italian procedure as in fault. In a ruling, which breaks down to the root of the French institute, the ECHR decided that the so-called process of purgation in the absence - namely the new trial following the arrest of the fugitive - is only a mere procedural device. So the new process can not be comparable to a guarantee for the prisoner, given that in France under Article 630 of the Code of Criminal Procedure
The Mitterrand doctrine ("Doctrine Mitterrand") was a policy established in 1985 by French president François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
concerning Italian far-left terrorists
Red Brigades
The Red Brigades was a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organisation, based in Italy, which was responsible for numerous violent incidents, assassinations, and robberies during the so-called "Years of Lead"...
who fled to France: those convicted for violent acts in Italy, but excluding "active, actual, bloody terrorism" during the "Years of Lead" would not be extradited
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
to Italy. Mitterrand based this oral promise, which was upheld until the 2000s by France, on the alleged non-conformity of Italian legislation with European standards.
The French president opposed aspects of the anti-terrorist laws
Anti-terrorism legislation
Anti-terrorism legislation designs various types of laws passed in the aim of fighting terrorism. They usually, if not always, follow specific bombings or assassinations...
passed in Italy during the 1970s and 1980s, which created the status of "collaboratore di giustizia" ("collaborators with justice", known commonly, as pentito
Pentito
Pentito designates people in Italy who, formerly part of criminal or terrorist organizations, following their arrests decide to "repent" and collaborate with the judicial system to help investigations...
.) This was similar to the "crown witness" legislation in the UK or the Witness Protection Program in the United States, in which people charged with crimes are allowed to become witnesses for the state and possibly to receive reduced sentences and protection.
Italian legislation also provided that, if a defendant was able to conduct his defence via his lawyers, trials held in absentia
In absentia
In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In...
did not need to be repeated if he were eventually apprehended. The Italian in absentia procedure was upheld by the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
(ECHR).
The Mitterrand doctrine was effectively repealed in 2002, under the government of Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Jean-Pierre Raffarin is a French conservative politician and senator for Vienne.Jean-Pierre Raffarin served as the Prime Minister of France from 6 May 2002 to 31 May 2005, resigning after France's rejection of the referendum on the European Union draft constitution. However, after Raffarin...
, when Paolo Persichetti was extradited from France.
Establishment of the doctrine
Mitterrand defined his doctrine during a speech at the Palais des sports in RennesRennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
on February 1, 1985. Mitterrand excluded from this protection those who had committed "active, actual, bloody terrorism". On April 21, 1985, at the 65th Congress of the Human Rights League (LDH), he declared that Italian criminals who had broken with their violent past and had fled to France would be protected from extradition to Italy:
"Italian refugees (...) who took part in terrorist action before 1981 (...) have broken links with the infernal machine in which they participated, have begun a second phase of their lives, have integrated into French society (...) I told the Italian government that they were safe from any sanction by the means of extradition".Les réfugiés italiens (...) qui ont participé à l'action terroriste avant 1981 (...) ont rompu avec la machine infernale dans laquelle ils s'étaient engagés, ont abordé une deuxième phase de leur propre vie, se sont inséré dans la société française (...). J'ai dit au gouvernement italien qu'ils étaient à l'abri de toute sanction par voie d'extradition (...).
This policy statement was followed by French justice when it came to the extradition of far-left Italian terrorists or activists. According to a 2007 article by the Corriere della Sera
Corriere della Sera
The Corriere della Sera is an Italian daily newspaper, published in Milan.It is among the oldest and most reputable Italian newspapers. Its main rivals are Rome's La Repubblica and Turin's La Stampa.- History :...
, Mitterrand was convinced by the Abbé Pierre
Abbé Pierre
LAbbé Pierre, was a French Catholic priest, member of the Resistance during World War II, and deputy of the Popular Republican Movement . He founded in 1949 the Emmaus movement, which has the goal of helping poor and homeless people and refugees...
to protect these persons. Abbé Pierre, il frate ribelle che scelse gli emarginati, Corriere della Sera
Corriere della Sera
The Corriere della Sera is an Italian daily newspaper, published in Milan.It is among the oldest and most reputable Italian newspapers. Its main rivals are Rome's La Repubblica and Turin's La Stampa.- History :...
, January 23, 2007 According to Cesare Battisti
Cesare Battisti
Cesare Battisti was an Italian politician who became a prominent Irrendentist at the start of the First World War.-Biography:...
's lawyers, Mitterrand had given his word in consultation with the Italian Premier, Bettino Craxi
Bettino Craxi
Benedetto Craxi was an Italian politician, head of the Italian Socialist Party from 1976 to 1993, the first socialist President of the Council of Ministers of Italy from 1983 to 1987.-Political career:...
. See DROITS ACQUIS DROITS DENIES, on Parole donnée
The doctrine in the 1985-2002 period
This commitment has long taken the place of general policy of extradition of activists and Italian terrorists. But it is no longer in force since the extradition of Paolo Persichetti in 2002, former member of the Red BrigadesRed Brigades
The Red Brigades was a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organisation, based in Italy, which was responsible for numerous violent incidents, assassinations, and robberies during the so-called "Years of Lead"...
, which was approved by the Raffarin Government. The Cesare Battisti case, in particular, has provoked debate about the interpretation of doctrine Mitterrand.
Opponents of the doctrine point out that what a president can say during his tenure is not a source of law, and that this doctrine therefore has no legal value. Proponents point out that it was nevertheless consistently applied till 2002, and consider that the former president had committed the Republic through his words.
His supporters (intellectuals like Fred Vargas
Fred Vargas
Fred Vargas is the pseudonym of the French historian, archaeologist and writer Frédérique Audoin-Rouzeau . Her crime fiction policiers have won three International Dagger Awards from the Crime Writers Association, for three successive novels: in 2006, 2008 and 2009. She is the first author to...
or Bernard-Henri Levy
Bernard-Henri Lévy
Bernard-Henri Lévy is a French public intellectual, philosopher and journalist. Often referred to today, in France, simply as BHL, he was one of the leaders of the "Nouveaux Philosophes" movement in 1976.-Early life:...
, organizations such as the Greens
The Greens (France)
The Greens were a Green political party to the centre-left of the political spectrum in France. They had officially been in existence since 1984, but their spiritual roots could be traced as far back as René Dumont’s candidacy for the presidency in 1974...
, the League of Human Rights, France Libertés, Attac-France, etc.) along with some personalities of the Socialist Party
Socialist Party (France)
The Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
(PS), are opposed to non-compliance by the right in power with the Mitterrand doctrine.
This aspect of French policy has been strongly criticized by the Italian Association of Victims of Terrorism (Associazione Italiana Vittime del Terrorismo ) who in 2008 expressed particular
The President Jacques Chirac
Jacques Chirac
Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...
said he would not oppose the extradition of persons wanted by the Italian courts.
End of the doctrine
The Mitterrand doctrine was based on a supposed superiority of French law and its alleged greater adherence to European standards and principles concerning the protection of human rights. This vision entered in crisis, from a legal viewpoint, when the European Court of Human RightsEuropean Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
finally ruled against the French procedure in absentia, often used as a touchstone to consider the Italian procedure as in fault. In a ruling, which breaks down to the root of the French institute, the ECHR decided that the so-called process of purgation in the absence - namely the new trial following the arrest of the fugitive - is only a mere procedural device. So the new process can not be comparable to a guarantee for the prisoner, given that in France under Article 630 of the Code of Criminal Procedure
The Mitterrand doctrine ("Doctrine Mitterrand") was a policy established in 1985 by French president François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
concerning Italian far-left terrorists
Red Brigades
The Red Brigades was a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organisation, based in Italy, which was responsible for numerous violent incidents, assassinations, and robberies during the so-called "Years of Lead"...
who fled to France: those convicted for violent acts in Italy, but excluding "active, actual, bloody terrorism" during the "Years of Lead" would not be extradited
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
to Italy. Mitterrand based this oral promise, which was upheld until the 2000s by France, on the alleged non-conformity of Italian legislation with European standards.
The French president opposed aspects of the anti-terrorist laws
Anti-terrorism legislation
Anti-terrorism legislation designs various types of laws passed in the aim of fighting terrorism. They usually, if not always, follow specific bombings or assassinations...
passed in Italy during the 1970s and 1980s, which created the status of "collaboratore di giustizia" ("collaborators with justice", known commonly, as pentito
Pentito
Pentito designates people in Italy who, formerly part of criminal or terrorist organizations, following their arrests decide to "repent" and collaborate with the judicial system to help investigations...
.) This was similar to the "crown witness" legislation in the UK or the Witness Protection Program in the United States, in which people charged with crimes are allowed to become witnesses for the state and possibly to receive reduced sentences and protection.
Italian legislation also provided that, if a defendant was able to conduct his defence via his lawyers, trials held in absentia
In absentia
In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In...
did not need to be repeated if he were eventually apprehended. The Italian in absentia procedure was upheld by the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
(ECHR).
The Mitterrand doctrine was effectively repealed in 2002, under the government of Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Jean-Pierre Raffarin is a French conservative politician and senator for Vienne.Jean-Pierre Raffarin served as the Prime Minister of France from 6 May 2002 to 31 May 2005, resigning after France's rejection of the referendum on the European Union draft constitution. However, after Raffarin...
, when Paolo Persichetti was extradited from France.
Establishment of the doctrine
Mitterrand defined his doctrine during a speech at the Palais des sports in RennesRennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
on February 1, 1985. Mitterrand excluded from this protection those who had committed "active, actual, bloody terrorism". On April 21, 1985, at the 65th Congress of the Human Rights League (LDH), he declared that Italian criminals who had broken with their violent past and had fled to France would be protected from extradition to Italy:
"Italian refugees (...) who took part in terrorist action before 1981 (...) have broken links with the infernal machine in which they participated, have begun a second phase of their lives, have integrated into French society (...) I told the Italian government that they were safe from any sanction by the means of extradition".Les réfugiés italiens (...) qui ont participé à l'action terroriste avant 1981 (...) ont rompu avec la machine infernale dans laquelle ils s'étaient engagés, ont abordé une deuxième phase de leur propre vie, se sont inséré dans la société française (...). J'ai dit au gouvernement italien qu'ils étaient à l'abri de toute sanction par voie d'extradition (...).
This policy statement was followed by French justice when it came to the extradition of far-left Italian terrorists or activists. According to a 2007 article by the Corriere della Sera
Corriere della Sera
The Corriere della Sera is an Italian daily newspaper, published in Milan.It is among the oldest and most reputable Italian newspapers. Its main rivals are Rome's La Repubblica and Turin's La Stampa.- History :...
, Mitterrand was convinced by the Abbé Pierre
Abbé Pierre
LAbbé Pierre, was a French Catholic priest, member of the Resistance during World War II, and deputy of the Popular Republican Movement . He founded in 1949 the Emmaus movement, which has the goal of helping poor and homeless people and refugees...
to protect these persons. Abbé Pierre, il frate ribelle che scelse gli emarginati, Corriere della Sera
Corriere della Sera
The Corriere della Sera is an Italian daily newspaper, published in Milan.It is among the oldest and most reputable Italian newspapers. Its main rivals are Rome's La Repubblica and Turin's La Stampa.- History :...
, January 23, 2007 According to Cesare Battisti
Cesare Battisti
Cesare Battisti was an Italian politician who became a prominent Irrendentist at the start of the First World War.-Biography:...
's lawyers, Mitterrand had given his word in consultation with the Italian Premier, Bettino Craxi
Bettino Craxi
Benedetto Craxi was an Italian politician, head of the Italian Socialist Party from 1976 to 1993, the first socialist President of the Council of Ministers of Italy from 1983 to 1987.-Political career:...
. See DROITS ACQUIS DROITS DENIES, on Parole donnée
The doctrine in the 1985-2002 period
This commitment has long taken the place of general policy of extradition of activists and Italian terrorists. But it is no longer in force since the extradition of Paolo Persichetti in 2002, former member of the Red BrigadesRed Brigades
The Red Brigades was a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organisation, based in Italy, which was responsible for numerous violent incidents, assassinations, and robberies during the so-called "Years of Lead"...
, which was approved by the Raffarin Government. The Cesare Battisti case, in particular, has provoked debate about the interpretation of doctrine Mitterrand.
Opponents of the doctrine point out that what a president can say during his tenure is not a source of law, and that this doctrine therefore has no legal value. Proponents point out that it was nevertheless consistently applied till 2002, and consider that the former president had committed the Republic through his words.
His supporters (intellectuals like Fred Vargas
Fred Vargas
Fred Vargas is the pseudonym of the French historian, archaeologist and writer Frédérique Audoin-Rouzeau . Her crime fiction policiers have won three International Dagger Awards from the Crime Writers Association, for three successive novels: in 2006, 2008 and 2009. She is the first author to...
or Bernard-Henri Levy
Bernard-Henri Lévy
Bernard-Henri Lévy is a French public intellectual, philosopher and journalist. Often referred to today, in France, simply as BHL, he was one of the leaders of the "Nouveaux Philosophes" movement in 1976.-Early life:...
, organizations such as the Greens
The Greens (France)
The Greens were a Green political party to the centre-left of the political spectrum in France. They had officially been in existence since 1984, but their spiritual roots could be traced as far back as René Dumont’s candidacy for the presidency in 1974...
, the League of Human Rights, France Libertés, Attac-France, etc.) along with some personalities of the Socialist Party
Socialist Party (France)
The Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
(PS), are opposed to non-compliance by the right in power with the Mitterrand doctrine.
This aspect of French policy has been strongly criticized by the Italian Association of Victims of Terrorism (Associazione Italiana Vittime del Terrorismo ) who in 2008 expressed particular
The President Jacques Chirac
Jacques Chirac
Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...
said he would not oppose the extradition of persons wanted by the Italian courts.
End of the doctrine
The Mitterrand doctrine was based on a supposed superiority of French law and its alleged greater adherence to European standards and principles concerning the protection of human rights. This vision entered in crisis, from a legal viewpoint, when the European Court of Human RightsEuropean Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
finally ruled against the French procedure in absentia, often used as a touchstone to consider the Italian procedure as in fault. In a ruling, which breaks down to the root of the French institute, the ECHR decided that the so-called process of purgation in the absence - namely the new trial following the arrest of the fugitive - is only a mere procedural device. So the new process can not be comparable to a guarantee for the prisoner, given that in France under Article 630 of the Code of Criminal Procedureart. 630 c.p.p. Fr.:Aucun avocat, aucun avoué ne peut se présenter pour l'accusé contumax. Toutefois, si l'accusé est dans l'impossibilité absolue de déférer à l'injonction contenue dans l'ordonnance prévue par l'article 627-21, ses parents ou ses amis peuvent proposer son excuse.
, the first trial in absentia is held without the presence of lawyers, in explicit violation of the right to defense enshrined in Article 6, paragraph 3 letter c) http://www.studiperlapace.it/documentazione/europconv.htmlConvenzione Europea dei diritti dell'uomo e delle libertà fondamentali - Studi per la Pace the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECtHR: Krombach v. France, application no. 29731/96) European Court of Human Rights: Krombach v. France. Following this ruling, France partly amended its default procedure by the March 9, 2004 "Perben II" Act http://www.lexinter.net/lois4/loi_du_9_mars_2004_perben_ii.htmLOI DU 9 MARS 2004 PERBEN II, untenable for European standards on human rights. The current procedure in the absence is defined as "par défaut" and allows for the defense by a lawyer See: Art 156 in: http://www.lexinter.net/lois4/chapitre_iv_jugement.htm .
In 2002, France extradited Paolo Persichetti, an ex-member of the Red Brigades
Red Brigades
The Red Brigades was a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organisation, based in Italy, which was responsible for numerous violent incidents, assassinations, and robberies during the so-called "Years of Lead"...
(BR) who was teaching sociology at university, in breach of the Mitterrand doctrine. However, in 1998, Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
's appeal court had judged that Sergio Tornaghi could not be extradited to Italy, on the grounds that Italian procedure would not organise a second trial after the first trial in absentia. The extraditions in the 2000s involved not only members of the Red Brigades, but also other leftist activists who had fled to France and were being sought by Italian justice. These included Antonio Negri
Antonio Negri
Antonio Negri is an Italian Marxist sociologist and political philosopher.Negri is best-known for his co-authorship of Empire, and secondarily for his work on Spinoza. Born in Padua, he became a political philosophy professor in his hometown university...
, who eventually chose to return to Italy and surrender to Italian authorities.
In 2004, French judicial officials authorized the extradition of Cesare Battisti. In 2005 the Conseil d'État confirmed the extradition, marking the end of the Mitterrand doctrine.
Commenting on this doctrine Gilles Martinet, an old socialist intellectual and former Ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
in Italy wrote, in the preface to a book dedicated to the Cesare Battisti case : "Not being able to make a revolution in our country, we continue to dream of it elsewhere. It continues to exist the need to prove ourselves that we are always on the left and that we have not departed from the ideal" Guillaume Perrault,Génération Battisti: ils ne voulaient pas savoir, Plon, 2005 ISBN 978-2-259-20325-8 .
The list of Italians who have benefited from the Mitterrand doctrine include: Toni Negri, Cesare Battisti, Paolo Persichetti, Sergio Tornaghi, Oreste Scalzone
Oreste Scalzone
Oreste Scalzone is an Italian Marxist intellectual and one of the founders of the communist organization Potere Operaio....
, Marina Petrella
Marina Petrella
Marina Petrella is a former member of the terrorist Italian left wing group the Red Brigades.-Biography:A former school teacher in the middle of the 1970s she joined a terrorist group named the Brigate Rosse. Together with her husband, Luigi Novelli, she was arrested twice...
. In addition:
- Enrico Villimburgo and Roberta Cappelli, sentenced to life imprisonment for murder,
- Giovanni Alimonti and Maurizio di Marzio, sentenced respectively to 22 and 15 years for a series of attacks,
- Enzo Calvitti, sentenced to 21 for attempted murder,
- Vincent Spano, considered one of the leaders of the Organized Committees for the Liberation of the Proletariat,
- Massimo Carfora, who was sentenced to life imprisonment,
- Giovanni Vegliacasa, member of Prima LineaPrima LineaPrima Linea was an Italian Marxist-Leninist terrorist group of the 1970s. It was formed in 1976 by members of hard-line factions within the far left, extra-parliamentary organization Lotta Continua, which disbanded that year, together with members of Potere Operaio and of other far left groups...
, - Walter Grecchi, sentenced to 14 years for the murder of a police officer,
- Giorgio Pietrostefani, sentenced to 22 years in prison along with Sofri and Bompressi for the murder of prosecutor Calabresi.
Simonetta Giorgieri and Carla Vendetti, suspected of contacts with the new Red Brigades
Red Brigades
The Red Brigades was a Marxist-Leninist terrorist organisation, based in Italy, which was responsible for numerous violent incidents, assassinations, and robberies during the so-called "Years of Lead"...
, may also still be in France. http://www.ilmattino.it/articolo_app.php?id=23988&sez=HOME_NELMONDO&npl=&desc_sez= Il Mattino.
External links
La France, l’Italie face à la question des extraditions - Institut François Mitterrand Parole donnée (texts by Giorgio AgambenGiorgio Agamben
Giorgio Agamben is an Italian political philosopher best known for his work investigating the concepts of the state of exception and homo sacer....
, Paolo Persichetti, Oreste Scalzone
Oreste Scalzone
Oreste Scalzone is an Italian Marxist intellectual and one of the founders of the communist organization Potere Operaio....
, news articles, etc.) Battisti se livre à la justice médiatique, Le Figaro
Le Figaro
Le Figaro is a French daily newspaper founded in 1826 and published in Paris. It is one of three French newspapers of record, with Le Monde and Libération, and is the oldest newspaper in France. It is also the second-largest national newspaper in France after Le Parisien and before Le Monde, but...
Berlusconi, Chirac : deux hommes intègres face à Battisti, Le Grand Soir
Le Grand Soir
"Le grand soir" was the Belgian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005, performed in French by Nuno Resende.The song was performed in the semi-final, as Belgium had not finished in the top 10 in the 2004 Contest. On the night, it was performed eleventh, following Iceland's Selma with "If I Had...
Cesare Battisti : l’État français aux ordres de Berlusconi, Politis
Politis
Politis is a weekly left-wing "anti-capitaliste" French newspaper, founded in 1988.It is a founding member of ATTAC NGO, and Le Monde diplomatique has taken a 30% share in it.Circulation : about 17,000 .Price : 3€...
, February 19, 2004 Le fugitif raconte sa cavale dans un livre, La République des lettres