Secret services to be reformed

2007-08-01 21:22

Rome - The Italian Senate approved on Wednesday a package of reforms to the country's scandal-plagued secret services under which the prime minister and parliament will have more oversight powers.

The head of government will henceforth have "the political direction and co-ordination" of the civilian and military secret service branches.

Scandals within the military branch, SISMI, led the centre-left government of Romano Prime Minister to sack its director, General Nicolo Pollari, last November.

Pollari and his former deputy Marco Mancini are on trial in Milan for the CIA-led abduction of an Egyptian imam in the northern city in 2003.

Another SISMI agent, Pio Pompa, was found in possession of files on magistrates, journalists and political figures. He was accused of keeping tabs on supposed opponents to then Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

Under the reforms, the prime minister will name the agencies' directors with the power to fire them, and may name a minister to an intelligence portfolio.

At the same time parliamentary watchdog committee will be given more teeth, notably the power - if all 10 members agree - to lift state secrecy when it is evoked by a person under investigation by the panel.

Judicial or banking secrecy will no longer be allowed as bars to testimony.

The committee, to be led by a member of the opposition, will also have oversight of the spending of the intelligence services and access to the offices of the two agencies.

The reform explicitly bars killing or harming the health of others, while leaving the door open to the commission of illegal acts, to be authorised on a case-by-case basis.

It also bars illegal acts committed against the headquarters of political parties, unions or professional journalists.

"This reform opens an important chapter in the history of the Italian secret services," said Claudio Scajola, who heads the parliamentary committee and served as interior minister under Berlusconi.

Both agencies are to be renamed, with SISDE to become the Interior Information and Security Agency (AISI) and SISMI the Exterior Information and Security Agency (AISE).

- AFP