شخصية اليوم أحدث الأخبار

Vatican courts to try cardinals and bishops, granted by Pope

Princess Tarfa

Pope Francis granted the Vatican's civilian courts the authority to prosecute cardinals and bishops on Friday, ending a long-held right for senior church officials.

Until now, cardinals and bishops guilty of serious crimes may only be tried before a supreme court of three cardinals, who were assisted by two or more lay judges.

However from now on, they will be prosecuted by the Vatican's daily criminal court system, which will be further staffed by lay judges instead of ordained priests. This will be implemented under the new regime, which will take effect on May 1.

The reform is motivated by the "overriding need" to "ensure the freedom of all church members, and their equal integrity and status, beyond privileges that go back to previous times," according to Francis in a "Motu Proprio" decree.

Any jury prosecution of a cardinal or bishop would also require a direct approval from the Pope. The law was revealed at that moment, when it was uncertain if Vatican authorities were preparing a lawsuit against a former high-ranking Vatican official, Italian Cardinal Angelo Becciu.

After being accused of draining off humanitarian funds to support his siblings, Pope Francis immediately sacked Becciu as director of the Vatican's sainthoods department in September.

Becciu has maintained his innocence as of now and has not been convicted of any crime. But prosecutors further revealed that in January they requested a misappropriation trial for a woman who did an advisory job for him.

Visual Archive

Saudi Arabia made the biggest sacrifices to strengthen the oil market: Energy Minister

Women account for 35% of the 200,000 new labor-force entrants

The meeting of the Central Hajj Committee is presided by Prince Khaled

Mohamed Bin Zayed's grandsons attended the inauguration ceremony of Egypt's ‘3 July base’

Sheikh Abdullah Bin Salem unveils the second edition of the 'Jewels of Emirates' exhibition at the Expo Centre Sharjah

Princess Reema confirms that Vision 2030 has increased opportunities for women

The Crown Prince unveiled a nationwide transportation and logistics strategy

The UAE is constantly fine-tuning its economic model and strategic initiatives: VP

Sharjah Ruler emphasizes, that children should be nurtured with pure culture

Al-Qasabi calls for toll-free phone numbers to handle customer complaints

Sheikh Mohammed announces the start of the 100-day countdown to Expo 2020 Dubai

According to Sheikha Latifa, the cultural and creative industry is an essential element of Dubai's future plans

Dubai Digital Authority is established by Sheikh Mohammed

Father is the family's pillar and provider of security,' Sheikh Sultan explains

Ebrahim Raisi won Iran's elections easily

Milkha Singh, India's 'Flying Sikh,' dies of coronavirus at the age of 91

Minister of State for Foreign Trade, to discuss new business models with Pakistan

Sheikh Mohammed applauds Emirates Airlines’ contribution to Dubai's economic success

Al-Qasabi: Saudi Arabia aims to become Egypt’s top trading partner

Rupert Murdoch, the media tycoon, has slashed the worth of his newspaper, 'The Sun,' to zero