In a judgment handed down on December 19, 2024, “Grande Oriente d'Italia v. Italy” (No.29550/17), the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry on the phenomenon of mafias and other criminal associations had violated the privacy of a Masonic lodge by conducting a search in Calabria and Sicily to obtain the list of its members.
The ECHR considered that there were not enough safeguards around this parliamentary commission of inquiry, and therefore put the protection of Freemasons' privacy above the fight against mafia infiltration into circles of power and influence.
Is this assessment legitimate, given the seriousness of the Mafia's influence in Italy? Is the secrecy of mere membership of a Masonic lodge legitimate? How did the ECHR judge previous cases concerning Italian Freemasonry?
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