Prison conditions meet minimum international standards, and the Government permits visits by human rights monitors. The law prohibits arbitrary arrest, detention, or exile, and the Government observes these prohibitions. The law provides for an independent judiciary, and the Government respects this provision in practice. The judicial system delegates some of its authority to Italian magistrates, both in criminal and in civil cases. Cases of minor importance are handled by a local conciliation judge.
Appeals go, in the first instance, to an Italian judge residing in Italy.
The judiciary provides citizens with a fair and efficient process. There were no reports of political prisoners. The law prohibits such practices. Government authorities respect these prohibitions, and violations are subject to effective legal sanction. The law provides for freedom of speech and of the press, and the Government respects these rights in practice.