The debate on euthanasia reappears in Italy

The death of a patient suffering of muscular dystrophia in the days before Christmas reintroduced spectacularly the debate on euthanasia in Italy.

Piergiorgio Welby, 60, the patient had introduced an action in justice against the Italian government claiming “the right to die”. However, the Italian courts had claimed a legal void and referred the case to political authorities.

In Italy, of course, euthanasia is a crime, punished of six to fifteen years imprisonment. However, as elsewhere in Europe, pro-euthanasia militants are lobbying aggressively to obtain the legalization of euthanasia. Hence, unsurprisingly, the death of Welby became a political opportunity for the Radical Party of Emma Bonino, a party known for its commitment to all the most extreme causes, such as homosexual marriage, euthanasia, drugs legalization.

On the 20^th of December, the doctor of Welby took away the respirator which allowed Welby to live after giving him painkillers. Members of the Radical party were present at what was presented to the medias as an emotional farewell of Welby to his family – he died on a music of Bob Dylan was one of the involuntarily comical details released.

Strictly speaking, this is not a case of euthanasia, since there was no delivery of a lethal product. Taking advantage of the unclear situation in ethics and law in Italy, the physicians of Welby maintained that they had acted on the basis of the “right to refuse care” which is recognized by the Italian constitution.

However, the situation of Welby was not such, medically, that he was in imminent danger of death, had the respiratory assistance been maintained. Hence, the act posed by the physician of Welby was effectively a homicide, independently of the request of Welby.

The moral position was so clear, that the Catholic church decided to deny Welby religious funerals because the death had been “provoked”, hence causing the furor of several “progressive” Catholics.

Nevertheless, the debate on euthanasia has left traces either within the right or within the left. Whereas Silvio Berlusconi, the mediatic leader of Forza Italia opportunistically pronounced himself in favour or the “liberty of choice” of everyone in the matter, the composite nature of the left majority of Romano Prodi places the latter before a dilemma: while some as the ultra-active Radicals are favourable to a legalization of euthanasia, this would be a casus belli for some more moderate center-left members of the majority such as the left-wing Christian-democrats.