Berlusconi faces a year of picking rubbish: Disgraced former Italian PM chooses community service over house arrest
- The 77-year-old can avoid four-year sentence for tax fraud due to his age
- If his plea is accepted he will have to clean up and cut grass in public parks
By NICK PISA PUBLISHED: 00:12 GMT, 7 October 2013 | UPDATED: 00:15 GMT, 7 October 2013
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, 77, can avoid his four-year sentence for tax fraud because of his age
Disgraced former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi is to opt for 12 months community service as his punishment instead of house arrest, his lawyer has confirmed.It means the ultimate humiliation for billionaire media tycoon Berlusconi, 77, who will have to join other convicts in carrying out menial tasks such as cutting the grass in public parks, painting sheltered accommodation or picking up litter.
Because of his age he cannot carry out the four-year prison sentence he was given for tax fraud - later reduced to a year - and he has the option of serving the punishment under house arrest or as community service.Berlusconi’s lawyer Francesco Coppi said: 'We will make the official request by the end of this week - although the verdict is completely unfair.
'We are gathering together the material we need to present our request for community service to the judicial authorities.‘We will also be indicating the type and level of work that can be undertaken given the age of the person in question.’His legal team will also request that the community service be carried out in Rome and not his home town of Milan.
A tribunal in Milan was supposed to have ruled on his exact punishment but because of technical reasons until decision will not be announced until Christmas meaning he will have another few weeks as a ‘free man.’Berlusconi was convicted last year and the verdict and sentence was confirmed by Italy’s Supreme Court in the summer.
It came after a turbulent few months for the former politician who was also found guilty of having sex with an underage prostitute at his infamous bunga bunga parties.He was sentenced to seven years in jail for that offence and for abuse of office for trying to cover up the crime but he still has two levels of appeal before the conviction and eventual punishment is confirmed.
Several charity groups and religious organisations have asked for Berlusconi to carry out his community service punishment with them so that he can ‘see how the other half live’. Father Antonio Mazzi, a Catholic priest who runs a charity called Exodus for drug addicts in Milan said: 'I would love to have Berlusconi working with me, so he could work hard for his redemption. 'I would love to get him up in the morning and tell him to make his bed.‘He should do something humiliating or some other manual work like cleaning toilets.
Humiliation: Last week the billionaire media tycoon was humiliated after trying to stage a failed coup
'I don’t think he should be working with some of the prostitutes we deal with - they would probably make him their hero. 'He needs to find his soul before he can be allowed to mix with society again.‘I think he needs to spend some time on his own as well, reflecting and looking inside. 'He needs to take away the mask he is hiding behind and which has helped him dupe Italians. 'I’m sure he can be saved but he needs to get his hands dirty, maybe by picking tomatoes but far from people who worship him.'
Following the end of his premiership he was found guilty of sex with an underage girl in a bunga bunga party
Last week, Berlusconi was also humiliated after he tried to orchestrate a rebellion within the ruling coalition government by ordering his MP’s to pull out but they refused and so a planned confidence vote was not needed. On Friday, a Senate committee recommended that the former cruise ship crooner be expelled from parliament due to his tax fraud verdict - the first conclusive conviction he has had after 20 years of trials.The decision will have to be confirmed by a full Senate hearing to establish if he should be kicked out and that will take place later this month.
