ROME
ilvio Berlusconi, former Italian prime minister and head of the main coalition partner in the current government, has stated he was absolutely innocent on being found guilty of paying for prostitution and will resist to 7 years prison sentence.
Berlusconi stated upon being punished in “bunga bunga” cases and said, "My intention is to stand up to this cruelty because I'm absolutely innocent. I never will give up my struggle to make Italy an independent and fair country.
He said the decision was not only a 'black page' of fair, but also an insult to Italians, who have faith in their duties and added the decision was taken to 'delete' him and his party liberal-conservative PDL party from Italian politics.
Berlusconi was found guilty of paying for prostitution with an underage prostitute, nightclub dancer Karima El Mahroug and provided her release from the police office, being banned from public office for life at Milan court.
The verdict was read out by the panel of three judges at the end of his trial in Milan lasting more than two years and focusing on “bunga bunga” parties where the prosecution argued the former premier had an organised prostitution network at his service.
However, Berlusconi had always denied the charges and was certain to appeal against the verdict.
In Italy, such sentences are only enforced once they are made definitive – a process that can take years.
