ABSTRACT
Culturally 'different' subjects may act under cultural conditioning, which pertains to those values, but which works differently from the culture of the host legal system. Criminal law is not ideologically or culturally 'neutral' because it is and must be there to safeguard the bedrock values of the historically given society in which it is to operate, against materially identifiable conducts that cause actual damage to interests worth protecting. It bears noting that the issue of 'culturally motivated crimes' takes on special interest in the discourse on 'gender and migration'. The political and criminal principles contained in the Italian constitution are binding upon the criminal lawmaker. In fact, 'cultural diversity' may in some cases be expressed through behaviours incorporating values – ethical, religious, political and cultural in a broad sense – different from and even contrary to those of the locally majority culture.
