Emma Bonino, a prominent Italian politician and advocate for abortion rights and humanitarian causes, has died at the age of 78. Her political party, +Europa, confirmed her death. Born on March 9, 1948, in Bra, near Turin, Bonino grew up on a farm. Her early political engagement began after she underwent an illegal abortion at the age of 26, which inspired her to co-found the Information Center for Sterilization and Abortion in 1975. She later became a member of the Italian parliament for the Radical Party in 1976, a group known for challenging the influence of the Catholic Church on Italian society. Her efforts contributed to the legalization of abortion in Italy in 1978, a major victory for reproductive rights. Over the course of more than five decades, Bonino remained a central figure in Italian and European politics, championing human rights and progressive policies. She served as a European commissioner under Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, where she played a key role in shaping the EU's consumer protection policy and establishing the European Commission Humanitarian Office. She also held several ministerial roles in Italian center-left governments, including foreign minister, trade minister, and EU affairs minister. In 2017, she became the leader of +Europa, a liberal and European federalist party she founded ahead of the 2018 Italian general election. In 1999, she led a political list named after her, Lista Bonino, in the European elections, which became Italy’s fourth-largest political force at the time. Bonino was also a co-founder of Hands Off Cain, an international organization that campaigns against the death penalty. She was deeply involved in advocating for women’s rights in the Arab world, spending significant time in Cairo from 2001 onward and becoming fluent in Arabic. Despite not marrying, she maintained close ties with her family in Piedmont. In 2015, she announced she had been diagnosed with lung cancer but continued her political work. Later that year, she declared her cancer was in complete remission, and in 2023, she appeared on a television interview stating she had been healed. Despite their differing views on ethical and social issues, Bonino and Pope Francis developed a deep personal friendship. In November 2024, the Pope visited Bonino at her home in Rome, bringing her a bouquet of roses and chocolates. Bonino is survived by her siblings, Domenica and Giovanni, and their children.