On Tuesday the 15th of Feburary, the Italian constitutional court (Consulta) ruled that the requested referendum on euthanasia would be inadmissible. The Luca Coscioni Association, promoter of this future referendum, had collected one million and 200 thousand signatures, much more than the 500.000 signatures needed. However, this referendum cannot be rewarded as valid by the Italian state.
The Consulta considered the referendum question inadmissible because, following the repeal, even if partial, of the rule on the murder of the consenting party, to which the question was aimed, the minimum constitutionally necessary protection of human life, in general, and with particular reference to weak and vulnerable people, would not be preserved.
Marco Cappato of the Luca Coscioni association reacted: “This is bad news for democracy. We will continue with other instruments. As with Piergiorgio Welby and Dj Fabo. We will go ahead with civil disobedience, we will make appeals”. Then he clarified: “Legal euthanasia against clandestine euthanasia”.
Italy