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1. Source of the legal provision[1]

Article 604-bis of the Italian Criminal Code [Testo del Regio Decreto 19 ottobre 1930, n. 1398] Available in the original language via: Altalex; <https://www.altalex.com/documents/codici-altalex/2014/10/30/codice-penale>.  

2. Legal provision in English

Article 604-bis. Propaganda and incitement to commit crime for discrimination on racial, ethnic and religious grounds[2] Unless the fact constitutes a more serious offence:
  1. a) whoever disseminates ideas based on racial superiority or racial/ethnic hatred, or incites to commit/commits discrimination acts on racial, ethnic, national or religious grounds shall be punished with imprisonment up to one year and six months or with a fine up to 6,000 euro;
  2. b) whoever, in any way, incites to commit/commits violence or acts of provocation of violence on racial, ethnic, national or religious grounds shall be punished with imprisonment from six months to four years;
Any organization, association, movement or group which, in any way, incites to discrimination or violence on racial, ethnic, national or religious grounds shall be prohibited. Whoever participates in said organizations, associations, movements or groups or supports their activities shall, by the mere fact of participating or supporting, be punished with imprisonment from six months to four years. Whoever promotes or directs said organizations, associations, movements or groups shall, for that reason alone, be punished with imprisonment from one to six years. The punishment shall be from two to six years’ imprisonment if the propaganda or the instigation and incitement – committed in such a way that a real danger of dissemination arises – are fully or partially based on the denial, gross trivialization or condoning of the Holocaust, or the crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes set out in Articles 6, 7 and 8 of the Statute of the International Criminal Court.  

3. Legal provision in the original language

Articolo 604-bis. Propaganda e istigazione a delinquere per motivi di discriminazione razziale etnica e religiosa Salvo che il fatto costituisca più grave reato, è punito:
  1. a) con la reclusione fino ad un anno e sei mesi o con la multa fino a 6.000 euro chi propaganda idee fondate sulla superiorità o sull’odio razziale o etnico, ovvero istiga a commettere o commette atti di discriminazione per motivi razziali, etnici, nazionali o religiosi;
  2. b) con la reclusione da sei mesi a quattro anni chi, in qualsiasi modo, istiga a commettere o commette violenza o atti di provocazione alla violenza per motivi razziali, etnici, nazionali o religiosi.
È vietata ogni organizzazione, associazione, movimento o gruppo avente tra i propri scopi l’incitamento alla discriminazione o alla violenza per motivi razziali, etnici, nazionali o religiosi. Chi partecipa a tali organizzazioni, associazioni, movimenti o gruppi, o presta assistenza alla loro attività, è punito, per il solo fatto della partecipazione o dell’assistenza, con la reclusione da sei mesi a quattro anni. Coloro che promuovono o dirigono tali organizzazioni, associazioni, movimenti o gruppi sono puniti, per ciò solo, con la reclusione da uno a sei anni. Si applica la pena della reclusione da due a sei anni se la propaganda ovvero l’istigazione e l’incitamento, commessi in modo che derivi concreto pericolo di diffusione, si fondano in tutto o in parte sulla negazione, sulla minimizzazione in modo grave o sull’apologia della Shoah o dei crimini di genocidio, dei crimini contro l’umanità e dei crimini di guerra, come definiti dagli articoli 6, 7 e 8 dello statuto della Corte penale internazionale.  

4. Key points

  • Holocaust denial is not a distinct criminal offense under Italian law, but is considered an aggravating factor in offenses related to propaganda and incitement to crimes driven by racial, ethnic, or religious discrimination.
  • The possible penalty is imprisonment for two to six years.
  • To qualify as an aggravating factor, it must involve a real risk of the statement being disseminated.
  • The relevant provision is not limited to Holocaust denial, its trivialisation, or its condoning, but also includes other crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes, provided they meet the relevant criteria from the Rome Statute.
 

5. Background

Article 604-bis was introduced in 2018.[3] It criminalises, under certain circumstances, the denial, minimization or apology of the Holocaust, other crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes. Prior to this provision, in 1993, the “Mancino Law” [Legge Mancino], in its art. 3, had banned incitement to racial hatred and the propaganda of ideas based on racial or ethnic superiority.[4] The Law n. 115 of 16 June 2016[5] amended other laws concerning racist issues (Law n. 654/13 October 1975, art. 3[6]), and implemented the EU Council Framework Decision 2008/913/JHA was introduced.[7]  

6. Application

While not yet applied to a case concerning Holocaust denial, the Article 604-bis was used in a case concerning hate speech against the Roma, which was later found to be compatible with the ECHR by the Italian Court of Cassation (Sentence of 22 July, n. 32862/2019).[8]  

7. Controversies

In 2018, Lorenzo Fontana, Minister of Family, proposed the abolition of the Mancino Law, an initiative which would also have had repercussions for the offence of denialism, on the basis of freedom of speech concerns, but this was not supported by other government coalition partners.[9] In a decision of 2024, the Italian Supreme Court found that the so-called Roman salute was not a crime, unless it presents a concrete risk of the return of the fascist party, or had a clear incentive of sparking violence, thus linking it to the Article 604-bis.[10] Although not directly linking it to the questions of the Holocaust, this particular decision needs to be read in close connection to the approval or denialism of Nazi crimes. Concerning the culture of memory, it is also important to note the efforts done with the approval (2023) of the construction of the Holocaust Museum in Rome.[11] Symbolically, the museum is planned to be built near the Villa Torlonia, a place that served as the residence of fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.  

8. Further reading

  • P. Bartrop, Grimm, ‘Italy’, The Holocaust: Country by Country, Bloomsbury, 2024, pp. 155-163.
  • BATTINI, M., The Missing Italian Nuremberg: Cultural Amnesia and Postwar Politics, Palgrave, 2007.
  • CAROLI, Paolo, Transitional Justice in Italy and the Crimes of Fascism and Nazism. Routledge 2022.
  • SAPORITO, Paolo, “Cultural memory against institutionalised amnesia: the Togliatti amnesty and Antonioni’s I vinti”, Modern Italy, vol. 23, n. 3, 2018, pp. 299-313. DOI: 10.1017/mit.2018.18
[1] The authors of the Compendium would like to thank Gianfranco Ferraro (Open University of Portugal) for his guidance through Italian law. [2] Translation adapted from: <https://legislationline.org/taxonomy/term/23690>. [3] Law Decree available here: <https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/eli/id/2018/03/22/18G00046/sg>. [4] Decree-Law No. 122 of 26 April 1993 converted into Law No. 205 of 25 June 1993 – the so-called Mancino Law: <https://www.normattiva.it/uri-res/N2Ls?urn:nir:stato:legge:1993;205>. [5] <https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/eli/id/2016/06/28/16G00124/sg>. [6] Legge 13 ottobre 1975, n. 654: <https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/eli/id/1975/12/23/075U0654/sg>. [7] Legge 20 novembre 2017, n. 167: <https://www.normattiva.it/uri-res/N2Ls?urn:nir:stato:legge:2017;167~art5>. About these 2016 and 2017 laws, vide <https://temi.camera.it/leg17/post/OCD25-278.html?tema=temi/nuovi_reati_d>. [8] Altalex, ‘Politico offende i rom? É reato diffusione dell’odio razziale’: <https://www.altalex.com/documents/news/2019/08/14/politico-offende-rom-reato-diffusione-odio>. [9] RaiNews, ‘Razzismo, Fontana: è arma ideologica, abroghiamo la ‘Legge Mancino’: <https://www.rainews.it/archivio-rainews/articoli/razzismo-ministro-fontana-arma-ideologica-abroghiamo-legge-mancino-1f4e6606-9a11-4a73-be9b-3e6ce7ceca46.html>. [10] Reuters. ‘Ambiguous Italian court ruling on fascist salute delights extreme right’: <https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ambiguous-italian-court-ruling-fascist-salute-delights-extreme-right-2024-01-19>. [11] ANSA. ‘Via libera al Museo della Shoah a Roma, atteso da 20 anni’: <https://www.ansa.it/sito/notizie/politica/2023/03/16/ok-del-cdm-al-museo-della-shoah-a-roma-_767a59d0-c89b-4b56-8940-a56933c2ea25.html>.
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