Coming polls holding up marines’ trial, says Italian President

December 23, 2013 12:06 am | Updated November 17, 2021 01:50 am IST - Rome:

Italian President Giorgio Napolitano has said that the trial of two marines in India over the killing of two Indian fishermen has run into “difficulty” because of the upcoming general elections in India.

“Sometimes it seems that we are the only nation where elections can create problems. [But] they also create trouble in India,” Mr. Napolitano told marines Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone during a long-distance video conference.

“A (fast-track) trial had been proposed to us, a proper and swift trial, which has now encountered difficulty because we are near the Indian elections,” the President was quoted as saying by Italian news agency ANSA.

Ahead of Christmas, he also tried to comfort the marines, telling them that the entire country was with them.

Mr. Latorre and Mr. Girone allegedly shot dead two Indian fishermen off the Kerala coast in February last year, sparking diplomatic tensions between India and Italy.

The marines, deployed on board Italian-flagged oil tanker MT Enrica Lexie, say they mistook the fishermen for pirates. They are now staying in the Italian embassy in New Delhi awaiting trial.

Rome wants to try the marines in Italy, claiming the incident took place in international waters. However, New Delhi says it has the right to try the Italian naval personnel as the victims were Indian on board an Indian fishing boat.

The investigation stalled in recent months over testimony from four witnesses — fellow Italian marines thought to have seen what happened the night when two of their comrades allegedly killed the fishermen. India wanted to question the four in India. However, Italy said that was unnecessary because Indian investigators could come to Italy or question the four through video conference.

The problem was overcome in November, when Indian investigators interrogated the witnesses through video conference in the Indian embassy in Rome.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.