Author:
Publication: The Guardian
Date: April 25, 2001
A paralysed university professor
is running for political office in a bid to overturn the Italian ban on
stem cell research, writes Rory Carroll
The Vatican's most dangerous foe
in Italy right now is paralysed, locked in a wheelchair, unable to speak
and likely to die prematurely. His name is Luca Coscioni and he is hurling
his own mortality into an anguished debate about using human embryos to
research incurable diseases.
Mr Coscioni, 33, is running for
parliament on a Radical party ticket in the hope of reversing Italy's ban
on stem cell research. Win or lose, he has made it a campaign issue in
the general election. He will raise the stakes tomorrow by lowering his
intake of painkillers until the May 13 poll.
Vatican bullying has cowed mainstream
political parties into a consensus which denies hope to millions of ill
people, says Mr Coscioni.
He suffers from amiotrophic lateral
sclerosis, the same disease which afflicts the physicist Stephen Hawking.
He can move only one finger and speaks through a computerised synthesiser.
He believes he has a chance of being cured if scientists are allowed to
experiment on embryos left over from assisted fertility treatment, which
are destined for destruction.
"The Vatican is free to believe
that it is to fair throw those embryos in the rubbish rather than use them
for research that the next five or 10 years could save the lives of millions
of people. It is the government's and parliament's duty to avoid such moral
blackmail," the candidate told Italy Daily.
His own life story is central to
the campaign. A keen marathon runner, six years ago his legs went stiff
during training. A doctor handed him the diagnosis in a sealed envelope.
Many sufferers die within five years,
though Mr Hawking has survived 33 years. In addition to surviving, Mr Coscioni,
an economics lecturer at the University of Viterbo, would like to get better.
Only his wife and mother can understand
him when he makes the herculean effort to speak without the synthesiser.
"I make people uncomfortable because
I do not want to be a human case but a politician." Some 438 international
scientists, including 47 Nobel laureates, have endorsed his candidacy.
Italians who suffer diseases such
as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, spinal muscular atrophy, leukemia and diabetes
could benefit if the mainstream parties' conspiracy of silence was smashed,
he says.
Tests on rodents suggest stem cells
could be used to regenerate damaged body parts. Also known as therapeutic
cloning, the research is legal in Britain and the United States.
Pope John Paul II's condemnation
encouraged Italy's centre-left government and centre-right opposition to
block the research. In a tight election, no one wants to take on the Catholic
church. Except the Radicals.
A high profile belies their small
size. Mavericks, they are past masters at grabbing attention with Gandhi-style
passive resistance and publicity stunts which taunt the Pope and claim
the moral high ground.
The Radicals fought successfully
in the 1970s to legalise divorce and abortion; unsuccessfully in the 1980s
to legalise soft drugs.
Mr Coscioni stands a reasonable
chance of winning a seat in the senate, Italy's upper house. Anecdotal
evidence suggests an impact at street level. Public recognition is high
and people are talking about him.
The candidate has been a regular
guest on chat shows but not regular enough for his party leader, Emma Bonino.
The former European commissioner will start a thirst and hunger strike
tomorrow to demand more airtime.
