The Federal Chamber of Buenos Aires today reopened proceedings for insults Javier Milei brought against the journalist Julia Mengoliniwho said the president was in love with his sister and spoke of “incest.”
With the signature of Pablo Bertuzzithe chamber annulled the trial judge’s dismissal of Mengolini Sebastian Casanellowhich understood two months ago that the demonstrations in question were “related to matters of public interest” and that freedom of expression should take precedence.
Bertuzzi argued the opposite today. Recalling that Mengolini had said that Milei was “in love” with his sister and that he had alluded to alleged incest, he said: “It is easy to see that such manifestations are far from being part of matters of public interest related to the presidential function.”
Bertuzzi claimed: “There is no debate about the value of debates of this type, in which a comprehensive examination of the candidates’ abilities from different facets is proposed, but it cannot be allowed, on the basis of this premise, to enter a field of extreme intimacy – related to the sexuality/genitality of the private relationships of the subject in question – under the pretext of stimulating collective discussions with a view to strengthening the democratic system.”
On May 3, 2023, when Milei was a presidential candidate, Mengolini said on the program “Duro de tame” on the C5N channel that Milei is “a man who lives with 8 dogs and is in love with his sister.” He explained that “he himself says that he is in love with his sister all the time” and that he had announced that she would be “the first lady” if he became president. “And that’s not right,” Mengolini said. “When you go to the CBC and study anthropology, there’s one of the little things they teach you. And that is that in every time, in every culture, in every place in human history, there is only one thing that remains a taboo, and that is the taboo of incest.”
Mengolini said this two and a half years ago, but Milei filed his complaint against the journalist on July 1 this year, after Mengolini announced that he would initiate criminal proceedings against him for “incitement to hatred and collective violence” and for “threats of coercion.” She reported that she was subjected to harassment and threats on the networks and that hate messages were reproduced and amplified by the President.
Mengolini could now appeal to the Federal Court of Cassation to overturn this Bertuzzi ruling. If he fails to do so, he will have to face trial before the court in Casanello. In this case, the prognosis would not be good for them, since the Chamber has already stated that in their opinion it is not a matter related to “public interest” that is decisive for the resolution of this case.
Article 110 of the Penal Code imposes a fine of 1,500 to 20,000 pesos for anyone who “intentionally discredits or brings into disrepute a particular natural person,” but stipulates: “In no case shall statements relating to matters of public interest or lacking forcefulness constitute an offense of insult. Qualifications defamatory of honor shall not constitute an offense of insult if they relate to a matter of public interest.”
The Chamber’s decision was signed only by Bertuzzi, since the rule states that the judges of the Federal Chamber “act alone” in certain exceptional cases; This also includes crimes of “private conduct” (which are only prosecuted if there is an impulse from the alleged victim), such as the crime of defamation.
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