Berlusconi immunity threatened

Opposition wants to strip away protection

By NICK VIVARELLI

ROME — Silvio Berlusconi’s year has had a somewhat inauspicious start. Momentum is gathering behind an opposition move to lift the immunity from prosecution that shields the Italo media mogul and premier from his legal woes.

A petition — signed by one million Italians — requesting a referendum to scrap controversial legislation presently making Berlusconi immune from prosecution has been submitted to Italy's highest court by opposition pol Antonio Di Pietro, who is a former anti-corruption magistrate and crusader.

The Rome court must now verify that proper procedures have been followed, before calling a national referendum on the controversial law passed in July by Berlusconi's conservative government that freezes any trials against the country's four top government officials while they are in power.

"The law is unconstitutional because it decides that these four citizens cannot be put on trial even if they killed their mothers," said Di Pietro as he arrived in court. The referendum is not expected to be set until 2010. Berlusconi's term as premier expires in 2013.

The current legislation suspends two trials in which Berlusconi is indicted, both centered around an alleged scheme to evade taxes on large volumes of TV rights to U.S. movies purchased by his Mediaset TV empire from Hollywood studios including Paramount.

Berlusconi, who claims he is innocent and a victim of a politicized judiciary, has stood eight trials over the years and has always either been acquitted or seen cases against him dismissed because the statute of limitations had expired.