Berlusconi says Battisti case won’t damage Brazil ties

A row over the extradition of a former left-wing militant will not damage Rome’s relations with Brazil, according to Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

The Italian leader spoke out after meeting the son of one of Cesare Battisti’s victims, who was himself crippled in the shootout in which his father died.

Berlusconi said ties between the two nations were still solid but that he hoped Brazil would change its mind and hand the convicted murderer over. Last week, Berlusconi expressed bitterness and regret at the then Brazilian President Lula’s decision not to do so, on his last day in office.

Battisti was found guilty of ordering the shooting by far-left militants which changed Alberto Torregiani’s life forever and left him in a wheelchair. Torregiani joined nationwide protests across Italy, demanding Battisti’s extradition.

On the run from Italy since 1981, Battisti spent years in France and was arrested in Brazil in 2007. He is still in prison there and Rome is taking legal action to try to prevent his liberation.

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