Luca Coscioni

Luca Coscioni (Italian pronunciation / i?) (Born 16 July 1967 Orvieto, † February 20, 2006 ) was an Italian politician of the Radical Party, which advocated freedom in the field of genetic research. He was the founder of the Associazione Luca Coscioni which he was president from 2001 to 2006. His political commitment was affected by the disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, where he eventually died.

Life

Coscioni studied economics and was a lecturer in environmental economics at the University of Viterbo. He was also interested in politics and was elected to the municipal council of his home town of Orvieto. After he fell ill in 1995 while preparing to participate in the New York City Marathon in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, he gave up his public offices, but returned after four years in politics. He was a candidate on the lists of the ultra-liberal Radical Party in local and regional elections. In 2000 Coscioni was elected to the Coordinating Board of the party and was its chairman in 2001. Starting this year, he was dependent on a voice synthesizer to make himself understood. He has appeared as leading candidate of the Lista Bonino to the Italian parliamentary elections. After the election had failed to parliament, he founded in 2002 the entering for the freedom of scientific research organization Associazione Luca Coscioni. She was heavily involved in 2004 in the later failed referendum against the Italian Law No. 40, which limits the research in the field of stem cells.

Was Coscionis concerns shaped by the disease, especially the freedom of research, particularly in the fields of therapeutic cloning and gene therapy. In Italy, by a debate on these issues has been set in motion, which are liberal opinions in sharp contrast to the morality of the Catholic Church.