Those who complain about their free speech rights in America only need to travel to another country to find out just how bad things are.
According to Breitbart, an Italian journalist was just charged by the Vatican Court for "defamation" against Pope Francis and for "divulging confidential documents."
The journalist, Marco Felipe Perfetti, is a well-known conservative journalist who authors a blog called Silere Non Possum ("I cannot be silent").
Perfetti, in a statement after he was charged, insisted that the charges were an obvious attempt at "intimidation."
Perfetti explained that his blog writings have "annoyed" the Vatican, while blasting the country for the lack of a free press. The editors of his site posted a statement saying as much.
"It is no secret that within the Vatican City State there is no protection of freedom of the press and the activity of Silere non possum has annoyed and continues to annoy those who have always acted to the detriment of this State and for their own personal interests," the blog site's editors wrote.
Vatican Court Charges Italian Journalist Critical of Pope Francis with ‘Defamation’ https://t.co/V3izA2K25E via @BreitbartNews
— Thomas D. Williams, PhD (@tdwilliamsrome) April 13, 2024
Breitbart noted that the site that hosts the blog said the Vatican "initiated criminal proceedings against Marco Felipe Perfetti by communicating the charges to the press rather than to the interested party."
Notably, Perfetti explained that the blog site is managed by an Italian citizen in the Italian Republic. He doesn't believe the Vatican has the authority to issue such charges.
Breitbart noted:
Perfetti himself is a Roman lawyer with “many connections” within Vatican walls, the article stated, yet he has not yet received any official notification of the judicial process against him even though the hearing was to begin this week.
American-based Catholic news site The Pillar Catholic responded to the charges filed against Perfetti, insisting that the Italian journalist was charged for simply "doing journalism.
The Catholic news site doubled down, writing that convicting Perfetti for "disrespecting the pope and exposing dysfunction and scandal in the Diocese of Rome" is about "the worst possible countersign the Church could send in an era supposedly committed to transparency and accountability."
The Vatican has a dark history of going after journalists critical of the pope.
Only time will tell if the charges stick, but now the entire world is aware of what the Vatican will do to protect its affairs, and it's not pretty.
