Emma Bonino: Five Decades of Struggle for Civil Rights and European Integration
A portrait of Emma Bonino, who has dedicated her half-century political career to the defense of human rights, gender equality, and European affairs.
Tunzale Melikova1 min read
Emma Bonino began her political path in 1974, when abortion was illegal in Italy. A trip to an underground clinic in Florence to terminate an unplanned pregnancy prompted her to take active steps. A year later, she voluntarily turned herself in to the police, turning a personal act into a public challenge to the system, which attracted media attention and contributed to the public campaign that led to the legalization of abortion in 1978.
This arrest brought Bonino into parliament from the Radical Party—a small but influential group fighting for civil rights. Possessing a direct character and advocating for social justice and gender equality, she knowingly courted controversy to advance her initiatives both in Italy and beyond.
Over her dynamic career spanning five decades, Bonino has been repeatedly elected to the Italian and European parliaments. In Rome's executive branch, she served as minister of foreign affairs and minister for European affairs, and also worked as a high-ranking European commissioner in Brussels.
"I have fought for rights all my life, warning people to defend them because they are not permanent," Bonino stated in an interview with the state broadcaster Rai in 2024.
Source: scmp.com
