Italy announced new security measures on Tuesday aimed at tackling the kind of violent protests that caused damage to Milan ‘s central shopping district when weekend rioters, many of them minors, looted stores and set fire to property.
A government decree calls for the deployment of an additional 500 soldiers to Milan through the end of the year, requiring parents to pay for damage caused by minors and making it easier to prosecute minors over 14.
“This is a phenomenon that we must address seriously, also to prevent those images from becoming a model for others to imitate. That until now was up to a judge to determine. A government decree calls for the deployment of an additional 500 soldiers to Milan through the end of the year, requiring parents to pay for damage caused by minors and making it easier to prosecute minors over 14. The decree, which must be converted to law by parliament within 60 days, also automatically presumes that anyone over age 14 is capable of understanding their own actions, unless proven otherwise.
In a video posted on social media, Premier Giorgia Meloni said the presence of so many young rioters was “painful and frightening. “Young people … came to the square to smash things, steal and film themselves doing it,” Meloni said. Protesters will be responsible for paying for property damage, with parents liable for damage caused by minors, Meloni said. Meloni also said the government would add new beds to detention facilities and judges to the juvenile justice system.
