Normalization of the exception: issues and controversies of the Italian counter-hooliganism legislation

Abstract

Since 1989, the year which witnessed the first Italian football-spectator anti-violence law (Law n.401/1989) approved by the Italian Parliament, football-spectator violence has been tackled by the Italian Government using emergency legislation, tens of ministerial directives and various rulings of sporting bodies. This paper aims to explain the development of the legislation employing, at the same time as an interpretational framework, Giorgio Agamben's1 State of Exception theory. Following Agamben's analytical framework, this paper asserts that the developments of the Italian counter-hooliganism legislation is based on a strategy of controlling biopolitical risk which not only challenges the civil liberties of Italian football fans but also constructs the same football fans as ‘ideal suspects’.2

Notes

¹ Agamben, State of Exception.

² Agamben, ‘No to Biopolitical Tattooing’.

³ Cf. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/9086046.stm

⁴ Agamben, Homo Sacer; State of Exception.

⁵ Huysmans, ‘Jargon of Exception’.

⁶ Cf. Mariottini, D. Ultraviolenza, Storie Di Sangue Del Tifo Italiano; Papa, A., and G. Panico. Storia Sociale Del Calcio in Italia; Galeano, E. Splendori e Miserie Del Gioco Del Calcio.

⁷ The DL, before becoming effective, must be formally approved by the President of the Republic.

⁸ Testa, UltraS; Testa and Armstrong, Football, Fascism and Fandom; ‘Purity and Danger’; ‘Words and Actions’.

⁹ Arpidone, ‘Le Misure Antiviolenza Negli Stadi in Italia e in Inghilterra’.

¹⁰ ‘Esplode La Follia Degli Ultras Sospesa Torino-Milan’, la Repubblica, 22 February 2003. www.repubblica.it/online/calcio2002_partite_a/torinomilan/torinomilan/torinomilan.html (accessed July 4, 2010).

¹¹ ‘Calcio. Incidenti Di Avellino, Morto Tifoso Del Napoli. Totti: Passa La Voglia Di Giocare. Vertice Sicurezza Al Viminale’, RAI News, 22 September 2003. http://www.rainews24.rai.it/it/news.php?newsid=41506 (accessed March 6, 2010).

¹² Nazzaro, ‘Normativa Antiviolenza Negli Stadi’.

¹³ The ONMS was established in 1999 and institutionalized by law in 2005. It is composed of the representatives of sport institutions and police forces with the right to vote and to notify public security authorities of their assessments about public disorder for decisions to be made; Cf. Testa and Armstrong, ‘Purity and Danger’, 226; Cf. http://osservatoriosport.interno.it/allegati/leggi/Normativa%20italiana/DECRETI/istituzione_e_compiti_osservatorio.pdf.

¹⁴ ‘Stadi Sicuri: La Mappa Completa Città Regione Per Regione’, Il Sole24ore, 9 August 2007. http://www.ilsole24ore.com/art/SoleOnLine4/Speciali/2007/sicurezza-stadi/pezzo-sicurezza-stadi.shtml?uuid%C2%BC3f5a0262-44ee-11dc-9829-00000e25108c (accessed June 7, 2010).

¹⁵ The measure originally should have expired on 30 June 2007; Cf. DL 30 June n.115/2005 converted with modifications into Law 17 August n.168/2005.

¹⁶ P. Calabró, ‘La Risposta Delle Istituzioni Dello Stato e Quella Del Calcio Alla Violenza Negli Stadi’, 2012. http://www.altalex.com/index.php?idnot=36665 (accessed July 4, 2012).

¹⁷ Ibid

¹⁸ Cf. http://interno.it/mininterno/export/sites/default/it/sezioni/servizi/legislazione/sicurezza/0965_2010_11_12_DL12112010n187.html

¹⁹ Agamben, Homo Sacer, 90.

²⁰ Douglas, ‘Disappearing Citizenship’.

²¹ Ibid

²² Agamben, Homo Sacer.

²³ Bell, ‘Shooting of Jean Charles De Menezes’.

²⁴ A. Robinson, ‘In Theory Giorgio Agamben: The State and the Concentration Camp’, Ceasefire Magazine, 7 January 2011. http://ceasefiremagazine.co.uk/in-theory-giorgio-agamben-the-state-and-the-concentration-camp/ (accessed June 4, 2011).

²⁵ Humphreys, ‘Legalizing Lawlessness’.

²⁶ Cf. http://generation-online.org/p/fpagambenschmitt.htm

²⁷ Agamben, State of Exception, 29.

²⁸ Delisle, ‘“Special” Measures in the North of Ireland’.

²⁹ Agamben, ‘No to Biopolitical Tattooing’.

³⁰ Ibid

³¹ Ibid 7.

³² Tsoukala, ‘Security Policies & Human Rights’; Pearson, ‘Qualifying for Europe?’.

³³ Garland, Culture of Control.

³⁴ Tsoukala, ‘Security Policies & Human Rights’; A. Tsoukala, Security, Risk and Human Rights: A Vanishing Relationship?', 2008. http://aei.pitt.edu/11744/1/1703.pdf (accessed August 23, 2010).

³⁵ Garland, Culture of Control; ‘Culture of High Crime Societies’.

³⁶ Owen, ‘Culture of Crime Control’.

³⁷ Ibid

³⁸ Rose, ‘Government and Control’.

³⁹ Tsoukala, ‘Security Policies & Human Rights’.

⁴⁰ Ibid 10.

⁴¹ Latini, Governare l'emergenza.

⁴² ‘Fini Richiama Berlusconi: Contrario all'abuso Dei Decreti’, Panorama, 2008. http://news.panorama.it/politica/Fini-richiama-Berlusconi-Contrario-all-abuso-dei-decreti (accessed July 3, 2010).

⁴³ ‘La Lettera Di Napolitano’, L' Unità, 22 February 2011. http://www.unita.it/italia/la-lettera-di-napolitano-1.273706 (accessed June 2, 2011).

⁴⁴ Cacciari and Giudici, Stadio Italia.

⁴⁵ ‘Violenza Negli Stadi Via Libera Al Decreto’, la Repubblica, 21 February 2003. http://www.repubblica.it/online/calcio2002_serie_a/decreto/decreto/decreto.html (accessed May 3, 2010).

⁴⁶ Sentas, ‘Counter-Terrorism Policing’.

⁴⁷ Ibid

⁴⁸ The Italian constitutional court (decision n.512/2002) defined the DASPO as a preventative measure so that it can be issued by the police even without trial and then withdrawn in case of acquittal.

⁴⁹ Bhuwania, ‘“Law” of the Police’.

⁵⁰ The issue becomes even more problematic when the Italian extreme lengthy judicial process is considered. The Italian judicial process was condemned by the Council of the European Union in 2009 which asked the Italian government to shorten the judicial process in order to safeguard the civil rights of the defendants; ‘Giustizia, l'Ue Condanna l'Italia: Processi Lunghi’, Il Giornale, 26 March 2009. http://www.ilgiornale.it/news/giustizia-lue-condanna-litalia-processi-lunghi.html (accessed March 4, 2010).

⁵¹ Cacciari and Giudici, Stadio Italia.

⁵² ‘Le Piazze Non Sono Come Gli Stadi i Costituzionalisti Bocciano Il Governo’, la Repubblica, 19 December 2010. http://www.repubblica.it/cronaca/2010/12/19/news/piazze_stadi-10377794/ (accessed July 8, 2011).

⁵³ Schmitt, Political Theology.

⁵⁴ The fan card deserves particular analysis than the one offered herein; further analyses should focus on the assessment of its efficacy in curbing violence and most importantly, its effects on the fans' privacy and civil rights. Cf. http://radicali.it/comunicati/tessera-tifoso-staderini-perduca-metodo-maroni-contro-legge.

⁵⁵ Cf. http://romatoday.it/sport/roma-lazio-2-1-coppa-italia.html.

⁵⁶ Stott et al., ‘Tackling Football Hooliganism’.

⁵⁷ ‘Increase in Young Football Hooligans, Say Police’, BBC (online), 2010. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11473191 (accessed June 5, 2011).

⁵⁸ ‘Football Fans in England and Wales Still Over-Policed’, BBC (online), 2010. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-10748960 (accessed July 4, 2011). This type of policing should not surprise as it is in line with the general policing model adopted in the UK (especially England), which stems from the government's counter-terrorist strategy criticized by several academics because it restricts of civil liberties and human rights; Cf. Moran, ‘Generating More Heat Than Light?’; Neyroud and Disley, ‘Technology and Policing’.

⁵⁹ ‘La Criminalità Dentro Gli Stadi e La Tessera Del Tifoso è Inutile, la Repubblica, 2011. http://ricerca.repubblica.it/repubblica/archivio/repubblica/2011/01/23/la-criminalita-dentro-gli-stadi-la-tessera.html (accessed April 5, 2011).

⁶⁰ Cf. http://www.senzasoste.it/tifo/leggi-contro-i-tifosi-ecco-il-risultato.

⁶¹ Mead, ‘Psychology of Punitive Justice’, 588.

⁶² Ibid 581.

⁶³ Baldwin, George Herbert Mead.

⁶⁴ Thornton et al., Best Practices of Youth Violence Prevention.

⁶⁵ Ibid; Aber et al., ‘Evaluation of the Resolving Conflict’.