(Dieser Artikel ist auch in deutscher Sprache verfügbar)

The Italian Police, following a complaint from Clemente Mastella, the Minister of Justice, has asked for the closing down of blog Mastellatiodio.blogspot.com (translation - I hate you Mastella) which has been placing material on the Minister that he considers as defamatory. If found so, the blog authors might face penal consequences.

The site, which was opened in California, but is hosted on an Italian server, was considered by Mastella as neo-Nazi, as he said it during a TV transmission. He also stated that the blog was trying to show him as the bad character of the country and asked whether this was "good politics".

The authors of the blog have rejected these accusations considering that the contents of the comments posted on the blog have nothing to do with neo-Nazism or inciting to violence as the minister considers. "The title of our blog is clearly of symbolic nature".

They believe that censoring their blog would be "a severe and scandalous precedent for the democracy of this country. We are really curious to know what laws of the Italian Republic we have violated".

They also think that as compared to other blogs, like anti-Bush or anti-Blair blogs, their is a very innocent one. They appeal to their readers to defend the blog and create banners against its closing down.

The latest comments posted on the blog are mostly favourable to it, people showing their intention to support it and even place the information on other blogs in case it is shut down. There are some different opinions but it seems that the difference is not related to the effects that the action of shutting down the blog would have on the freedom of expression but rather to the different opinions that people have on the ministers' political actions.

Apparently the Police has already addressed Google for the shutting down of the anti-Mastella blog, but the blog is still available on the blogspot platform.

Mastella: close down that blog (only in Italian, 4.10.2007)
http://punto-informatico.it/p.aspx?i=2079987

Anti-Mastella blog close down asked (only in Italian, 3.10.2007)
http://www.corriere.it/politica/07_ottobre_03/mastella_blog_chiuso.sht...

Addio? (only in Italian, 3.10.2007)
http://mastellatiodio.blogspot.com/2007/10/addio_03.html