Criticism vs. Slander or Libel While the right to fairly criticize people or entities and publicly share information is one of the hallmarks of personal freedom, it is illegal in most places to malign the reputation of another through false information.
Venice is one of the most important tourist destinations in the world for its celebrated art and architecture. The city has an average of 50,000 tourists a day (2007 estimate). In 2006, it was the world's 28th most internationally visited city, with 2.927 million international arrivals that year.
The Italian city of Venice (pictured) is renowned for its floods that can bring it to a standstill. A group of people sit at a table in a flooded St Mark's Square in Venice in 2012. Individual blocks of the flood defence system, pictured from inside the lagoon, are fully raised.