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Bereta_Eder
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Tried for corruption charges IIRC.
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Lawrence of Arabia
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of the Gulag Archipelago
Apr 2001
time: 06:13
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it has to do with the sale of SME, a state owned italian agricultural company. It was supposed to be sold to Carlo de Benedetti, but it didnt work. Investigators found payments by All Iberian to a Mr. Squillantte, owner of a panamian company, through the roundabout ways (including several stops in swiss bank accounts in Geneva.)
Berlusconi and Previti (in whos bank account that money, around $400,000 USD stayed for one day) were charged with bribery of Squillante, and Verde, both magistrates in the Italian justice system, who then ruled against the acquisition of SME by Beneditti.
Previt, Pacifco (another guy), and Squillante were sentenced to 11 years in jail. Berlusconi was tried separately because he was at the time prime minister, and at the same time, he was the prosecutor AND the defendant (civil co-plaintiff, because of govt position, and defendant as the individual. go figure.) The state's attourney general told the court that the defendant (berlusconi) owed the co-plaintiff (ALSO berlusconi) the sum of 1 million euros for damages, because of 'damages incurred to the prime ministers image due to the affaire' this started in 1985. the payments occured in 1991, the ivnestigation started in 1994, they were charged in 1999 (when he was PM) and these people were sentenced in 2003.
Then there was the business of TV. Berlusconi's company's main profits came from TV at the time, wher ehe had a near monopoly. At the time, national TV was nationalized, and private companies could only operate locally. Berlusconi got around this by buying all the rights to american movies/soaps, shows etc, and then selling them to local television companies, and then making them broadcast them all at the same time. In 1984, the itlian courts shut down three stations because this was against the law, in a roundabout way of course.
The head of the sociast ruling party at the time, Bettino Craxi, intervened on berlusconis behalf, and got the rulings overturned.
so, to prevent him, the individual from being persectued, he rammed through a bill which prevents the state from taking judicial action against him.
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Lancer
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Oregon Coast, USA! or Bohol, Philippines!
Apr 1999
time: 05:13
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I'm sure you're familiar with the saying about el Duce. He was a dictator but at least he made the trains run on time...
Not that Burluwhatever is a dictator, I really don't nhow enough either way.
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20-04-2005 19:02
Who am I kidding? 
Wow.
i think
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