What Emma Bonino taught our Radio Radicale

The passing of Emma Bonino represents a great loss, not only on a personal level, but also and above all on a political level. Emma was not merely the woman who fought for women’s rights and for human rights, for the principle of freedom, always and in all circumstances; she was the one who embodied the possibility that the demand for rights could actually be realised. She was not just that: she was a politician, a woman who also embodied the idea that our personal lives have public significance – that is, they serve as an example to everyone. Because when Emma told young women: ‘Go and claim what is rightfully yours’, she was not merely urging them not to adopt a submissive, passive or otherwise expectant attitude: she was also urging the younger generations to be aware that rights are never secured for ever; they are not set in stone. Rights, once acquired, must be protected and preserved. This is what might be called ‘the maintenance of democracy’: an indispensable task that we have forgotten, as the events of recent years – in the era in which we live – amply demonstrate.

It is not so much the attack on democracy represented by the rise in Saxony-Anhalt of the far-right neo-Nazis – or, in any case, of forces with tendencies that are certainly out of step with history – as the fact that we, as contemporaries, failed to realise that we needed to be vigilant and safeguard the rights we had won. This is a message for future generations which I hope, as editor of Radio Radicale, to be able to convey, not least through our archive, which contains countless accounts of Emma Bonino’s commitment to this cause. We must continue to bear in mind that rights, once won, must be kept alive. And Emma Bonino was a truly great champion of this cause, as well as a formidable fighter. At this time of profound sadness and grief, I wish to reflect on the debt I owe Emma Bonino in my personal and professional life, and in the person I have become as a journalist: I am infinitely grateful to her for the experiences she enabled me to have, accompanying her on her travels, her international missions, and her global campaigns. One of the most significant campaigns I had the privilege of covering alongside her was the effort against female genital mutilation, though there are many other initiatives that could be cited. I believe that until the very end, Emma Bonino wished to convey just how crucial it is to pass the torch to future generations.