The investigation of the Sardinian Union is "serious and thorough", is based on true facts and correctly exposed: with these reasons the judge for the preliminary investigations Ermengarda Ferrarese swept away the accusations of defamation presented by the leaders of Moby, Vincenzo and Achille Onorato, linked to an article about the attempted sale of two ships by a broker in Vietnam. These were the Dada and Bithia ferries, used for the Sardinian routes: on that occasion it was ascertained that the first was owned by a company based in Malta. Prominent news, signed by the editor-in-chief Mauro Pili, in a delicate moment for the company: in those days, in November 2020, the Neapolitan shipowner's lawyers asked for another two months to present the proposed arrangement with the bankruptcy court of Milan.

Cards

The rights of the press and criticism were fully recognized: on the other hand there was the "concern that, in the face of a substantial debt exposure, non-" crystalline "financial transactions could be carried out given the coexistence of Maltese companies (and related fiscal systems) », writes the investigating judge of Cagliari in the filing of the proceeding for defamation. Among other things, the perplexities were also shared by the Milanese prosecutor, which in relation to those movements hypothesized the crime of bankruptcy "if Moby were to go bankrupt or were declared insolvent." The judge ruled that Pili, defended by lawyers Stefano Ballero and Maurizio Scarparo, carried out "a serious and thorough journalistic investigation into a fact that assumes such a high social interest and importance that prevails over the other two assumptions of the truth of the fact and of the continence of exposition, moreover respected in the article ".

The judgment

The journalist "proceeded to a serious, diligent and thorough research, despite the complex corporate group and the intricate social mixes make the task particularly difficult." The facts, in essence, are "true" and the right to report and criticism have materialized "in the manifestation of an opinion and an evaluative judgment that cannot be censored for lack of objectivity unless an inconsistent disproportionate interference is asserted in the right to free expression of the press ". The article is not "a personal attack damaging the moral dignity of the Honored people", but according to Ermengarda Ferrarese it is "addressed to the managerial choices and the possible implications on the recovery of the substantial credits claimed against them, a fact of primary importance for Sardinian citizens" .

Mauro Pili expresses satisfaction «because the judge recognized the punctual and correct work of our newspaper. Very often we want to stop the press with reckless actions like this: the repeated complaints of Onorato so far have led to dismissals or acquittals ».

Michele Ruffi

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