BUDAPEST. The alarm clock, today at dawn, this time was given by father Roberto with a ring. Ilaria Salis asked him yesterday to call her, uncertain about his punctuality “because for 15 months the screams of the police woke me up”. Then the journey to the courthouse in Budapest, where she arrived punctually at 8.30 in the morning. «I thank everyone for the support they have given me over these months, but now I can’t stop. I have to go to trial.”
Ilaria Salis in court in Budapest: “I cannot make statements”
These are the first words he releases to journalists. Then he shows up in the courtroom, his father Roberto is at his side. She complains to him about the electronic anklet: «It bothers me a little, it still vibrates. He does strange things.” Her relatives reassure her: “When you see Bálint – the Hungarian lawyer, ed – tell him”.
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In the photo, the anklet installed on Ilaria Salis after the house arrest was granted by the court
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Ilaria Salis under house arrest: greeting the officers, pizza, hugs. Her father: “she was born a second time”
by our correspondent Andrea Joly
To those who approach, she replies confidently: “I can’t speak.” But later she allows herself a detail about the night she just spent: “I practically couldn’t sleep.” She wears a smile, she is serene. She introduces herself to Avs MP Marco Grimaldi, who has arrived in Budapest to support her. She shakes hands with the Italian lawyer Eugenio Losco. She talks about a hard disk, from which she saw the videos of her, and she asks: “But now that I’ve seen them, do I have to return it to the police?”. The Hungarian lawyer, György Magyar, also arrives. She talks to Ilaria and her family, gets them to sign a paper, then asks for a photo with her partner Bálint Gyene. «How well he speaks Hungarian», she admits after a brief exchange in which Ilaria Salis acts as interpreter for her father.
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In the photo Ilaria Salis in court in Budapest with her Hungarian lawyer, György Magyar and partner Bálint Gyene (photo Andrea Joly)
Her mother Roberta warns her: “Everyone is listening”, but she reassures her. “I’m not saying anything bad.” She greets the guys from the Committee created for her: “If I say hello they can’t scold me.” And the sweetest moment of this appetizer of the hearing comes when she shakes hands with her mother, who reveals a surprise to her: “I brought strawberries, if you want.”
Then the hearing begins, his third here in Budapest and the first without shackles, where one of the victims of the attack of which Ilaria Salis is accused and two witnesses for the prosecution will be heard. The judge and József Sós describes the rules of the hearing. The Hungarian lawyer requests that it be updated «until all procedural documents have been translated into Italian. Not before November.” The judge rejects: «This date has been known for some time, the defense has had all the information for some time. And only today they ask for an adjournment: we will translate the testimonies, but there is no reason to adjourn today’s hearing. This is a decision that cannot be appealed.”
Then he reveals the address of the area where Ilaria Salis is under house arrest. The Salis family is furious: “He can’t!”. The Hungarian lawyer points it out, the judge orders the media not to write about it. «But in the meantime the damage has been done – they shout around the family – we are only watching worldwide…».
Roberto Salis: “Ilaria happy but exhausted, she has the signs of bedbugs on her”
The attacked one, Zóltan Tóth, speaks. «Do you recognize Ilaria Salis?», the judge asks him. “No”. And start telling: «I was going to work, a lady with blond hair asked me if I was taking part in the Nazi rally – she says – I replied no, I’m not taking part. But toWhen I was leaving the post office they attacked me with telescopic sticks, hitting me on the head. I saw many people but with their faces covered, I wouldn’t be able to recognize them». The family shouts again: «But the witnesses are there, they’re listening to everything, it’s a joke.” The attacked continues: «I thought I was dying. I tried to sit down and they hit me with the stinging spray. Then a colleague reached me and they called the police and emergency services.” Injuries? «Seven, three broken ribs. My head was bleeding a lot, but I didn’t lose consciousness.”
Salis case, father Roberto: “Ilaria must be transferred to Italy or to the embassy”
On his clothing – military boots, a brown bomber jacket – he admits: «I am proud to be Hungarian, and I am a member of the Hungarian archery club, where we safeguard the traditional values of the country. So I dress like this, I learned from the authorities that perhaps I was attacked for this.” Otherwise “I can’t explain why.” The story of these events “still makes me feel distressed”. Ilaria Salis’s Hungarian lawyer presses on, asking him how often he did that sport at the time: “Once a week”, he replies. And when did she start again? “One month after the attack.” The second medical examination, however, took place three months later. In Debrecen, three hours from Budapest. The lawyer insists on the details of his sporting activity “despite the fact that he suffers from a lot of pain”. Do you do other sports? «I go by bike, but I haven’t done it for many months. More than two”. And finally he explains the reasons for the questions: «he reports strong and constant pain months after the episode, but he plays sports. How does he explain it? It doesn’t seem logical to us.”
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Then the discussion dies. Videos of the attacks suffered by Zóltan Tóth are shown. The first reports the screams, from the cameras of a supermarket which, however, do not record the moment. The second, silent, shows the violence and the blood coming out of the head. The third, the dynamics of the chase towards the victim and the first shot taken from behind. The judge recalls how “the courtroom fell silent upon seeing these images”. The video of the attackers fleeing appears. The Hungarian lawyer does not comment: “We have no comments to make until the expert opinion.” The father denounces the judge’s tone: “It’s an inquisitorial trial, it’s Torquemada.”
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Photos of Ilaria Salis at the time of her arrest are projected. Black jacket, like shoes, gray trousers and hat. Quite the opposite of today: While staying focused, she wears a white striped t-shirt under a pink sweater, ripped gray jeans and white sneakers.
The proof of Ilaria Salis’ involvement, for the prosecution, is in the compatibility between the clothes worn by the girl seen in the videos – part of the group of attackers – and the mug shot clothes of Ilaria Salis at the time of the arrest.
After the videos, the two witnesses are interviewedBianka Bajnai and Krisztina Juhász. Neither of them recognizes Ilaria Salis. They tell their version. Both change it, compared to the previous one, revealing that they “heard a signal indicating the end of the aggression”. Bajnai, provoked by the defense lawyers, also adds that she “remembers better now than at the time”. At the end of the hearing, at 12.39 pm, the judge confirmed the house arrest in Hungary.
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Speak to The print the lawyer Losco: «The appeal ordered that all documents must be translated in November. The judge rejected the request, but they serve to adequately prepare the defense. Among these documents there was also the translation of the previous versions of the witnesses who were heard today. The court rejected the request because Ms. Salis has a translator available.” A “non-challengeable” provision was issued: this is a violation of the European directive. You have all seen the progress of the trial – he adds – It’s not like the ones we’re used to. He comments on the material in class; select the most relevant, the role of the prosecution seems to be carried out directly by the judge».
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Roberto Salis thunders: «Many things have happened and very serious ones. The trial continues without conditions. We experienced extraordinary protection for the victim. Instead, for the accused, her home address was clearly released – raise your tone – She is at risk and the other Italian citizens are at risk with her. The government should take immediate action. You must ensure that either she is brought to Italy immediately or she is transferred immediately to the embassy.” The Greens and Left Alliance will ask a parliamentary question.
The next appointment set by the Budapest Court it will be September 6th: a medical expert and two witnesses will be heard.
Leaving the court, Ilaria Salis throws a kiss to a friend, hugs her father, smiles at the applause given to her by the Italians who arrived in Budapest for her. AND then he leaves, towards the house where he has been under house arrest since yesterday. Waiting for the European Championships.
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