The Committee to Protect Journalists has called on the Vatican to drop charges against Italian journalists Gianluigi Nuzzi and Emiliano Fittipaldi. The journalists are due to face a trial Tuesday over claims they pressured a source to “obtain and publish confidential information” in their respective books alleging corruption, according to a statement by the Vatican.

“We call on the Vatican to drop all charges against Gianluigi Nuzzi and Emiliano Fittipaldi,” CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova said. “Journalists should be allowed to carry out their role as watchdog and investigate alleged wrongdoing without fear of repercussions.”

Nuzzi and Fittipaldi, who are on trial alongside three former Vatican officials, face up to eight years in prison if convicted, according to reports. Nuzzi’s book, Merchants in the Temple, and Fittipaldi’s book, Avarice, both published this month, claim financial mismanagement and corruption in the Vatican, according to press reports. The books are based on leaked documents, reports said. Pope Francis approved a law criminalizing the leaking of privileged information in July 2013, according to The Associated Press.

Emiliano Fittipaldi, author of “Avarice” and Gianluigi Nuzzi, author of “Merchants in the Temple,” were both formally summons to the Vatican for questioning.

Nuzzi ignored the summons, as Vatican law does not guarantee his right to publish news in the public interest while protecting his sources. He accused Pope Francis of presiding over inquisition-style proceedings.

Emiliano Fittipaldi, however, went in for questioning – curious, he said to find out what the charges against him were. Prosecutors told him that if the Vatican tribunal charges and finds him guilty, he’ll face the stiffest sentence, from four to eight years in prison.

Fittipaldi says he refused to answer the Vatican’s questions and believes prosecutors will likely shelve the case, especially given Italy guarantees freedom of the press and will not likely extradite him.

[Newsnet Desk based on media reports]

  Pope Francis, Vatican