Marco Pannella: a really strange politician for Italian standards

I have been listening to Radio Radicale since the summer of 1999, with a few periods of interruption. I managed to know quite well most ideas of a radical politician who is really particular in the Italian context: Marco Pannella. He would talk of "life of rights" as necessary for the "right to live", of the last 60 years as an unique "regime", opposed to any supposed second republic, and other stuff.

Anyway, I am sure Italy could be known quite well for Berlusconi's adventures, or even Bersani's opposition, not so much for Pannella's ideas. But the story of a man, a former MP, who is now 81 and who has not been eating anything (apart from taking 3 cappuccinos per day) since last 20 April must be kind of unique. The current initiative of the radical leader is aimed at making people be aware of the terrible conditions lived by people detained in Italian jails and, more generally, the continuous violations of rights committed by Italian institutions, against their own laws. Marco Pannella has also stopped drinking in the night between last Sunday and Monday. Today Italian TV began to show him and listened to what he had to say, but this is one among several similar initiatives that Pannella has undertaken in the last 30 or 40 years.

Now, I do not share some of Pannella's ideas, but the strenght of his efforts, and his particular way of giving concrete consistency to what he thinks about law and rights is just -let's say it- amazing. In Italian politics, with the Italian politicians we have, it is a form of wonder, I would say, of which it would be a crime not to be fully aware.

So, thanks to Marco Pannella.