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(Vatican Radio) A Spanish priest and an Italian lay woman at the heart of the so-called Vatileaks 2 trial have been given jail sentences for leaking confidential documents, while two journalists also on trial were cleared by the Vatican court on Thursday.Msgr. Lucio Angel Vallejo Balda was sentenced to eighteen months in prison, while Francesca Immacolata Chaouqui, who has a three-week old son, was given a suspended ten months sentence.The two Italian journalists, Gianluigi Nuzzi and Emiliano Fittipaldi, who wrote best-selling books based on the leaked documents last year, were cleared by the court on the grounds that the Vatican judiciary has no jurisdiction over them.A fifth defendant, Nicola Maio, an assistant to Vallejo, was found innocent at the end of the eight-month trial.
(Vatican Radio) Germany's Parliament has passed a law that will make it easier for victims of rape and other sex crimes to file criminal complaints even if they did not fight back, clarifying that "no means no".Thursday's vote was partly sparked by a recent nationwide outcry over sexual assaults that happened in the western city of Cologne during New Year's Eve celebrations. Listen to the report by Stefan Bos: Legislation to tackle sex crimes more seriously was passed by an overwhelming majority in the Bundestag, Germany's parliament in the capital Berlin. German law previously required victims to show that they physically resisted attack before charges for rape and other sexual assaults could be brought. Women's rights campaigners argued that Germany's failure to recognize the principle of "no means no" was one of the main reasons for low reporting and conviction rates for rape in the country.The new law classifies groping as ...
(Vatican Radio) Hundreds of desperate housewives in Venezuela have marched across the Border into Venezuela in search of food to feed their families. Their gesture may appear insignificant but it is a stark example of desperation and defiance, as Venezuela`s economic crisis worsens still further.Listen to the report by James Blears: It was supposed to be bridge too far, but NOT for determined and resourceful Venezuelan housewives faced with empty refridgerators and hungry families. Clad in white, they crossed the bridge linking the city of Urena with Cucuta in neighboring Colombia. The Border has been closed for almost a year to combat the smuggling of subsidised Venezuelan goods into Colombia. But the Venezuelan National Guard were no match for determined angry and insistent housewives. Many Venzuelans quietly cross over the meandering frontier for precisely the same reason, but this was a "While for Right" action, right out...
(Vatican Radio) Father Federico Lombardi, Director of the Vatican Press Office, briefed journalists after the reading of the verdicts in the so-called ‘Vatileaks 2’ trial.Father Lombardi explained that the trial had to take place because a Law was promulgated in 2013 specifically to contrast the illegal leaking of documents and information.The proceedings, he continued, had to go ahead in order to give tangible evidence of the firm decision within the Holy See to put an end to all tensions and controversial discussions surrounding internal Vatican matters that too often – in recent times - have stemmed from the leaking of confidential information to the media and have resulted in ambiguous and negative contexts. “To be able to understand and evaluate the diverse aspects of this situation”, the right thing to do – Lombardi said - was to courageously tackle the issue and understand which was the effective responsibility of the journalists not...
Vatican City, Jul 7, 2016 / 10:50 am (CNA/EWTN News).- After an eight-month trial weighing the guilt of five individuals in the leaking and disseminating of confidential financial documents, the Vatican has reached a verdict, sentencing a Vatican official and a laywoman for the crime.The defendants in question were Spanish Msgr. Lucio Angel Vallejo Balda, Italian PR woman Francesca Chaouqui, Nicola Maio (Vallejo’s secretary), and journalists Gianluigi Nuzzi and Emiliano Fittipaldi.On July 7, Msgr. Vallejo was found guilty of leaking the documents and sentenced to 18 months in prison. However, since he has already been in prison for 8 months, his sentence could be cut to 10 months.After his initial arrest Nov. 2, 2015, he was transferred to the Vatican’s Collegio dei Penitenzieri, a residence run by Conventional Franciscans, on house arrest. However, after violating the terms, he was moved back to the cells of the Vatican Gendarme, before eventually returning to the Colle...
IMAGE: CNS photo/Karen Callaway, Catholic New WorldBy Cindy WoodenVATICAN CITY (CNS) -- PopeFrancis has named Chicago Archbishop Blase J. Cupich a member of theCongregation for Bishops, the office that advises the pope on the nomination ofbishops around the world.Archbishop Cupich, 67, takesthe place left vacant by U.S. Cardinal William J. Levada, who turned 80 inmid-June and automatically ceded his membership.The congregation is led byCanadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, its prefect. Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl ofWashington also serves as a member.In a statement from Chicago,Archbishop Cupich said: "I am humbled by the Holy Father's trust andconfidence in me. While my primary responsibility remains here in theArchdiocese of Chicago, I look forward to joining other members of theCongregation for Bishops to serve the pope and the church in thisministry."Nuncios,or Vatican ambassadors, around the world conduct the initial search for priestssuitable for the office of bishop and forward their ...
IMAGE: CNS/Paul HaringBy Junno Arocho EstevesVATICAN CITY (CNS) -- A Vatican court, citing freedom of thepress, acquitted two journalists who published confidential documents whiletheir source, a Spanish monsignor, was sentenced to 18 months behind bars. Judge Giuseppe Della Torre, head of the tribunal of the Vatican City State, delivered hisruling July 7, declaring that the court had no legitimate jurisdiction overGianluigi Nuzzi and Emiliano Fittipaldi. The court foundMsgr. Lucio Vallejo Balda, secretary of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairsof the Holy See, and Francesca Chaouqui, a member of the former PontificalCommission for Reference on the Economic-Administrative Structure of the HolySee, guilty of having roles in the leaking of confidential documents aboutVatican finances.Finding the Spanishmonsignor guilty of actually stealing and passing on secret documents, thecourt sentenced him to serve jail time. The judges determined that Chaouqui'srole was one of encouraging th...
WASHINGTON (AP) -- America's warm, wild and costly weather broke another record with the hottest June, federal meteorologists say. And if that's not enough, they calculated that 2016 is flirting with the U.S. record for most billion-dollar weather disasters....
SAN DIEGO (AP) -- Basic training for Navy SEALs is designed to be a grueling process to find the U.S. military's strongest fighters and turn them into an elite force able to dive into the world's deadliest places....
VATICAN CITY (AP) -- A Vatican court declared Thursday it had no jurisdiction to prosecute two journalists who wrote books based in part on confidential documents exposing greed, mismanagement and corruption in the Holy See, ending a trial that drew scorn from media rights groups....
