Berlusconi sex trial adjourned after brief preliminary procedures

A Milan court has completed preliminary matters in the sex trial of Italian premier Berlusconi and adjourned the trial until May 31. Berlusconi did not appear for the brief court session, which lasted only a few minutes.

The sex trial of Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi opened in a Milan court on Wednesday. The premier is charged with paying for sex with an underage Moroccan prostitute.

After briefly addressing preliminary matters, the presiding judge adjourned the trial until May 31.

Prosecutors also accuse Berlusconi of abusing the powers of his office by intervening on behalf of the prostitute, go-go dancer Karima El Mahroug, when she was briefly held by police on suspicion of theft. The move was allegedly aimed at covering up his liaison with her.

Neither Berlusconi nor El Mahroug appeared in the Milan court Wednesday.

The case against the media mogul suffered a setback on Tuesday when the Italian parliament narrowly voted in favor of challenging the jurisdiction of the court.

Berlusconi's supporters and lawyers say he should be tried by the Tribunal of Ministers, which deals with offenses committed by public officials in the execution of their duties.

The Italian Constitutional Court is now to rule on the matter; however, it could take several months before a verdict is delivered, meaning the hearing could go ahead Wednesday.

Small victory

Tuesday's vote nonetheless represents a victory for the embattled premier whose parliamentary majority has been eroded by a split last year in his People of Freedom party.

Opposition groups held protests in Rome and other cities ahead of the trial in Milan, chanting "shame, shame" following the vote in parliament.

"Parliament is still being used to solve the problems of a single person - Silvio Berlusconi - while in Italy there are so many problems left unsolved," said Gianfranco Mascia, a spokesman for the Purple People, a group that has organized a series of anti-Berlusconi protests in recent months.

Berlusconi is also facing court over allegations of fiscal fraud and breach of trust in his Mediaset business empire.

(Published by DW-World - April 6, 2011)