Emma Bonino, Italian Abortion and Divorce Rights Leader, Dies at 78
Bonino led campaigns that helped legalize abortion and divorce in Italy and later served as a European Commissioner in Brussels.
- Emma Bonino, the Italian rights campaigner and founder of the +Europa party, died on Friday at age 78, her party announced. A prominent civil rights advocate, Bonino led campaigns that legalized abortion and divorce in Roman Catholic Italy.
- Bonino rose to prominence through the Radical Party, founded by mentor Marco Pannella, by promoting civil disobedience. In 1974, she turned her clandestine abortion into a public act of defiance, fueling the legalization of abortion in Italy in 1978.
- Appointed to the European Commission in 1994, Bonino became a colorful presence in Brussels, overseeing fisheries and humanitarian dossiers. She rejected gender categorization, stating, "I do not want and I do not think that we women are a category."
- Pope Francis made an unusual visit to Bonino's home in November 2024 following an acute health scare, underscoring her high standing despite ideological differences. She was hospitalized on Monday and moved out of intensive care Thursday before her death.
- Bonino founded the +Europa party in 2017 to promote European integration, though it won only two seats in the 2022 national polls. She told state broadcaster Rai in 2024, "I have been fighting for rights all my life, warning people to defend them, because they don't last forever.
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Emma Bonino, leader of abortion and divorce battles that changed Italy, dies at 78
Emma Bonino, who rose to political prominence as a leader of campaigns by the Radical Party that legalized abortion and divorce in the 1970s in heavily Roman Catholic Italy, against the objections of the Vatican, has died.
As a champion of women's rights Emma Bonino gained fame in the 1970s. Later, the Italian rose to the highest office. Now Bonino died at the age of 78.
An indispensable figure in Italian political life and tireless activist for women's rights, Emma Bonino died at the age of 78 The Italian woman Emma Bonino, figure of feminism and one
Italian 'historical radical' Emma Bonino has died at the age of 78. The politician and activist was one of the most influential champions of women's rights in Italy. She played a central role in the legalization of abortion in the 1970s. Her current political party, Più Europa, announced her passing on social media. "Today we lose not only our leader, but also one of the most astute, courageous, and free figures in the political history of our …
TVA Nouvelles
LaProvence.comThe Italian woman Emma Bonino, a figure of feminism and one of the most popular political figures in her country, died at the age of 78.
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