Decision of the Regional Administrative Court for Lazio No. 66 of 15 December 2011-12 January 2012

The Regional Administrative Court for Lazio annulled the decision of the Ministry of Interiors to prohibit the access by journalists to the immigration centres in relation to the “state of emergency” declared by the President of the Council of Ministers through decree of 12 February 2011, as a consequence of the extraordinary immigration flux from North African countries. For the Court the decision was taken in breach of the freedom of expression, which is guaranteed by the Italian Constitution (Article 21), the ECHR (Article 10) and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU (Article 11). Freedom of expression includes freedom of the press, and the right of every person to receive information on facts of social importance.