Italy – Updates about the Scripta Manent trial

For the date of July 1, 2020, the first appeal hearing of “Scripta Manent” trial has been established at the bunker hall of “Le Vallette” prison in Turin. The dates set for the appeal hearings are as follows: 1, 8, 10, 15, 17, 22, 24, 29 July; 9, 11, 16 September.

In spite of the pandemic, the Court of Turin is among those that have guaranteed the holding of “important” trials, and with inmates, already scheduled for this summer. So presumably this date remains confirmed.

The comrades are accused of article 270 bis (subversive association with the purpose of terrorism or subversion of the democratic order) and for various anti-militarist actions, against the CPRs (Centri di permanenza per il rimpatrio, “Repatriation detention centres”, formerly known as CIEs, i.e. prisons for migrants), in solidarity with imprisoned anarchists, against barracks, headquarters and men of the institutions claimed by FAI and FAI/FRI (Federazione Anarchica Informale/Fronte Rivoluzionario Internazionale), from 2003 to date. The accused currently imprisoned will be in videoconference, as in all the last hearings of the first degree.

In fact, during the period of the preliminary hearings, there was still no law requiring videoconferencing. Subsequently, at the beginning of the first degree, the law that provided for it was passed, which granted a year of time to prisons and courts to adapt, imposing, in that year, videoconferencing only on the defendants accused of being at the top of the “associations”. After one year, videoconferencing was applied to everyone as planned.

During the hearing on February 11, 2019, in the bunker hall of the Turin prison, a large group of comrades expressed their warm solidarity with the anarchists on trial. The prosecutor, Roberto Sparagna, was unable to take the floor to present his indictment. After several slogans and the reading of the text below, the Court interrupted the hearing. The courtroom was evicted through the intervention of the riot police.

Consistent with the strategy employed by the investigators to date, aimed at isolating the prisoners and undermining the support expressed to them, pursuing the various manifestations of closeness and solidarity, following the presence in the courtroom in February 2019 the Turin police headquarters issued about sixty “fogli di via” (prohibition to reside or to go to a specific municipality or area) from the city and seven accusations for interruption of public office and outrage.

It remains important to continue to show our solidarity with the defendants.

«Twenty years of the history of anarchism are being accused here.
We are not accused, but this is our history and our revolutionary path.
And it is precisely to this path that the practices on trial today belong.
We are all involved and the executioners of the State cannot define or understand our ideas and our lives.
Solidarity with anarchist and revolutionary prisoners!
Not a step backwards, Always Heads Up.
“Firmly and uncompromisingly towards our goal”.
For Anarchy!».

SOLIDARITY AND STRENGTH TO THE COMRADES PRISONERS OF SOCIAL WAR!
FREEDOM FOR ANNA, MARCO, ALFREDO, NICOLA AND SANDRO!