Party pardon

Betty Henderson

ITALY’S former Prime Minister

Silvio Berlusconi has been cleared of allegations that he bribed witnesses in a previous trial into his infamous ‘Bunga Bunga’ parties. A Milan court cleared the 86­year­old billionaire on Wednesday, February 15, putting an end to the case which has overshadowed his reputation for the last decade.

The former trial accused Berlusconi of paying a 17­yearold Moroccan nightclub dancer for sex at one of his ‘Bunga Bunga’ parties. Speculation began during and after the trial that the politician had paid off 28 people to give false testimonies about the events at his infamous gatherings. Some women deny any wrongdoing at the parties, while others said orgies took place and female guests dressed as nuns to give erotic dances. Berlusconi has always denied charges describing it as a smear campaign. been cruelly caught up in the conflict and over 5.9 million people have been internally displaced.

There has also been catastrophic damage to civilian infrastructure, including hospitals and schools.

And now? It has been a year since Russian forces rolled into Ukraine and there does not appear to be any real signs of a way out of this terrible conflict.

Neither Ukraine nor Russia, Zelensky or Putin appear primed for an outright military victory, and progress at the negotiating table is highly improbable.