The Constitution recognizes the guarantees of autonomy and independence in the robes, as magistrates must not have any hierarchical subjection, just as they must not be conditioned by interests or by the will of other powers.
The President of the Republic sets yet another milestone in the age-old conflict between judges and politics in a speech addressed to the new recruits of the world of Justice, the ordinary trainee magistrates hired in 2025. Institutional stage for them, the Hall of the Cuirassiers of the Quirinale, where Sergio Mattarella intervened clearly to defend the independence of the judiciary and with equal clarity to remind the young magistrates that in the exercise of their functions they must always show "impartiality, sobriety and confidentiality".
Above all, pay close attention when using social media and avoid inappropriate comments. "Otherwise there would be a risk of undermining the credibility of the judiciary," he added. Since the referendum on Justice, rejected by the Italians, the political blows against part of the judiciary have never stopped: just remember, and this is just one of the examples, the recent statement by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni against the Milan investigating judge Tiziana Landoni who released Youssef Siher from prison, initially indicated as the instigator of the looting of 17 October.
"I will say it bluntly: I consider the decision of the Milan investigating judge not to validate the arrest of Youssef Siher to be shameful", the prime minister said immediately. However, the intervention of the head of state, as well as president of the Superior Council of the Judiciary, was well-rounded. Lots of advice and a warning to young people: you can no longer ignore the use of social media and the devastating power of this tool on public opinion.
"Communication, including through social media, is a particularly delicate issue. The availability of new tools - with new methods and new effects both in terms of speed and the breadth of the audience of recipients - requires - underlined Mattarella - urgent reflections, not so much to impose bans but to define ethical rules relating to the methods of their exercise, as well as to avoid the risk that their improper use could compromise the prestige of the judicial function".
The president's objective is to increase the awareness of a new class of judges: they must understand that their work necessarily requires greater prudence than in the past and that simple comments on politics on social media are no longer private. There are several recent examples of magistrates ending up on the grill for harsh judgments against politics. "Serious respect for professional ethics and sobriety in individual conduct, even in different forms of communication, are part of fundamental principles and certainly fall within the scope of the motivation that led to making this demanding professional choice", insisted Mattarella.
Then, of course, there has always been a fundamental point: one's opinions must remain outside of sentences. "The application of the rules of law - he underlined in front of the Minister of Justice Carlo Nordio and the vice-president of the CSM Fabio Pinelli - is linked to jurisprudential interpretation in the light of the constitutional provisions and supranational conventions, which does not allow for questionable subjective readings. The quality of the jurisdiction is a mandatory duty for the judiciary, on the respect of which the relationship of indispensable trust that the country must be able to have in the administration of justice is based". The young magistrates will have food for thought.
