Emma Bonino dies aged 78, ending an era in Italian politics

Rome— Emma Bonino, one of Italy's most influential politicians and an internationally respected champion of civil liberties and human rights, died in Rome on Thursday following a long illness. She was 78. 

The announcement was made by +Europa, the liberal pro European party she co founded, in a brief message that read: “Emma has left us, but she will never leave us.” Bonino had been battling serious respiratory complications in recent days after being admitted to Rome's Santo Spirito Hospital, where her condition had initially been described as delicate but stable. 

Born in Bra, in the northern region of Piedmont, on 9 March 1948, Bonino became one of the defining figures of modern Italian politics through more than fifty years of public service. A leading member of Marco Pannella's Radical Party, she dedicated her career to defending individual freedoms, secularism, democracy and European integration. 

She first rose to national prominence in the 1970s during the campaign to legalise abortion. After publicly admitting to having undergone an illegal abortion, she deliberately handed herself over to police in an act of civil disobedience that became a turning point in Italy's debate on women's rights. Her activism helped pave the way for the 1978 law that legalised abortion and cemented her place in the country's feminist movement. 

Bonino went on to serve repeatedly in both the Italian and European parliaments before becoming European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid from 1995 to 1999. During her time in Brussels she strengthened the European Union's humanitarian response to international crises and earned a reputation as one of Europe's most committed advocates for conflict victims and vulnerable populations. 

Her ministerial career included serving as Italy's Minister for International Trade and European Policies under Romano Prodi, followed by her appointment as Foreign Minister in Enrico Letta's government between 2013 and 2014. Throughout those roles she promoted multilateral diplomacy, closer European cooperation and the protection of human rights in international affairs. 

Beyond institutional politics, Bonino became known worldwide for campaigns against the death penalty, female genital mutilation, hunger and discrimination. She travelled extensively to conflict zones, defended the rights of refugees and migrants, and remained a vocal supporter of Afghan women's freedoms after being briefly detained by the Taliban while documenting human rights abuses. 

In 2015 she revealed that she had been diagnosed with lung cancer, a battle she faced publicly with characteristic determination. Although her health became increasingly fragile in later years, she continued participating in Italy's political debate, speaking forcefully on democracy, migration, foreign policy and the future of the European Union. In 2024 she received a widely noted visit from Pope Francis, despite their longstanding differences on several ethical issues, reflecting the mutual respect they shared for humanitarian causes. 

Tributes have begun arriving from across Italy's political spectrum and from European leaders, many describing Bonino as a courageous, principled and uncompromising public servant whose influence extended well beyond party politics. 

Emma Bonino leaves no children, but she leaves a profound political legacy. For generations of Italians she embodied the belief that civil rights, European values and the rule of law were causes worth defending with conviction, making her one of the most enduring and consequential voices in Italy's republican history. 

PS