Are These Parents Loving or Heartless?

WHILE the issue of parental rights as to medical care of their children has arisen in different lands, one particular case merits your attention. It is that of Giuseppe and Consiglia Oneda, a couple from the small town of Sarroch, near Cagliari, which is a main city on the Italian island of Sardinia.

You may well know something of their sad experience, for it has been reported on around the world. This magazinea and the mass media in various countries have given it extensive coverage.

A Fatal Disease

The Onedas’ little girl Isabella suffered from dreadful thalassemia major, an inherited blood defect for which there is no known cure. It is a fatal disease. In some cases death can be delayed for a number of years by blood transfusions, but medical authorities admit that these are not a cure. Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine (1980 edition) observes: “Patients with [Beta] thalassemia major have a short life expectancy. It is unusual for a patient with the most severe form of the disease to survive into adulthood.” In serious cases, such as Isabella’s, death often occurs during the first two or three years. What would you do if your child were afflicted as was Isabella?

Though Giuseppe and Consiglia knew that Isabella’s death was inevitable, they regularly took her to a clinic in Cagliari. There she got periodic blood transfusions, which could give some temporary relief, but which also posed problems. Why? Because the transfusions bring on iron overload. Wintrobe’s Clinical Hematology (1981) says that ‘most patients with thalassemia major’ who are regularly transfused ‘die from complications of iron overload.’ This medical text admits that “many of the therapeutic strategies described are impractical for large scale application. The current cost of [the most effective one] for a single patient is approximately $5000 [U.S.] per year.”

Some doctors paint a rosy picture about the possibility of extended normal life for thalassemic children. This is not surprising, for who likes to admit hopelessness, especially a doctor whom the sick look to for hope. Yet we all know that some diseases are incurable. Mediterranean anemia (thalassemia major) must be classed among them. Thus, there may be conflicting opinions as to the best therapy and even as to the results of different treatments; yet no one has a true cure.

Nor can medical science guarantee that a child as seriously afflicted as young Isabella will survive many years even if given transfusion therapy. The statistics for thalassemia major reveal the stark reality, statistics that cannot be denied. Minerva Medica (72, 1981, pages 662-70) presented figures compiled by ISTAT (the Italian Central Institute of Statistics) showing that out of 147 children who died from this disease in 1976, 23.8 percent died within the first four years of life.

Why Call Loving Parents “Murderers”?

In the previous article we noted that one Italian couple gained a happier family life by studying the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses. Giuseppe and Consiglia Oneda had a similar experience, made more meaningful by learning of Jesus’ assurance that a person with God’s approval, “even though he dies, will come to life.” (John 11:25) Yes, doctors could not assure Isabella of reasonable health and life, but the Son of God could.

When, in the summer of 1979, the Onedas decided to become Jehovah’s Witnesses, they notified the doctors at the Second Pediatric Clinic of Cagliari that they would no longer allow Isabella to receive blood transfusions. They had learned from the Scriptures that God commanded the apostles and all loyal Christians to ‘abstain from blood.’ (Acts 15:28, 29; compare Genesis 9:3, 4.) Consequently, these doctors asked the Juvenile Court to intervene. The court directed that the parents should have their daughter transfused, and it charged the doctors in the case with the responsibility of taking the initiative in seeing that regular blood transfusions were administered.

During this period, while the Onedas consulted other doctors in a search for alternative treatments, their daughter was forcibly taken and given blood. Still, the disease took its destructive course; the condition of Isabella’s vital organs progressively worsened. In March 1980 the doctors no longer pursued the transfusion therapy; for some months they did not have Isabella brought in for transfusions. Why did they fail to carry out their court-directed obligation? That is a mystery that the authorities to this day have not attempted to solve.

During the following months, the Onedas did everything they could for their beloved daughter, procuring medicine that could be administered at home and, despite their limited finances, giving her the best food they could find. They, never giving up hope, even wrote to specialists in Germany, France and Switzerland.

At the end of June, Isabella’s condition suddenly worsened, possibly because of a bronchial infection that can be fatal to children suffering with thalassemia major. At this late point the police again came and brought Isabella to the clinic, where she died while a blood transfusion was being forced on her.

Can you imagine the sadness and the sense of loss the Onedas felt that July 2nd, even though they had known that their two-and-a-half-year-old child was fatally ill? But their sorrow was to receive another blow. About five o’clock on July 5, 1980, while the Onedas were at a friend’s house, two carabinieri arrested them. They just had time to leave their second child, three-month-old Ester, with friends.

They were taken to the local prison of Cagliari, called The Right Pathway (what irony!), one of the vilest in Italy. They were shut up in cells in different parts of the prison.

How Could They Be Convicted of Murder?

For 20 months this humble couple were kept locked up. Finally a trial was held, and on March 10, 1982, the Assizes Court of Cagliari issued its shocking verdict: It held that Giuseppe and Consiglia Oneda were guilty of deliberate murder. The sentence? Fourteen years in prison, more than what is given to many terrorists!

You can understand why that verdict caused a stir throughout Italy and was criticized by many legal experts. The case was appealed, but on December 13, 1982, the Cagliari Appeal Court of Assizes confirmed the previous verdict. All it did was reduce the sentence to nine years, claiming that the Onedas were given the benefit of extenuating circumstances since ‘they had acted on motives of particular moral value.’

The only chance left before the courts of human justice was an appeal to the Supreme Court of Cassation. On July 8, 1983, Giuseppe Oneda was released on parole because the three years of suffering in prison had dangerously undermined his health. But Consiglia was kept in prison.

The Supreme Court of Cassation

This court in Rome is the supreme organ of Italian justice. It judges questions of the correct application and interpretation of law, reexamining sentences issued by minor courts when these are appealed. If it determines that the law has not been observed or has been wrongly applied, the Supreme Court has the power to annul the previous verdict and order another court to reexamine the case. It heard the Onedas’ case on December 13, 1983.

The Supreme Court does not often annul a verdict put before it, and the two previous adverse verdicts would carry considerable weight. So, was there any hope that the Onedas would justly be seen as the loving, caring parents they are?

A Dramatic Turn of Events!

Let us describe for you that day in court:

After an introductory speech presenting the salient points of the case by one of the five judges acting as reporter, the case for the prosecution began.

The judge acting for the prosecution is particularly feared by the defense counsel because it is very difficult to annul his requests. And in this instance the judge was an expert jurist who had handled this role in a number of famous cases. What would he have to say?

Surprisingly, he asked: “Did the mother or father show they desired the death of their child at any time, according to the facts brought to light during the case? Has the Cagliari court given a thorough answer to this question?” He added: “The Juvenile Court left the child with her father and mother because it held them to be loving parents and the family environment was the best for her.” Then he noted that ‘the judges, experts and sociologists concerned were in the best position to determine that the parents merited having custody of their child.’

What about the claim that the Onedas maliciously caused their child’s death? The judge continued: “There is no evidence of behavior or other elements of proof strong enough to allow us to speak calmly of malice aforethought. . . . For this reason, therefore, we hold that the judges [of Cagliari] have not given a satisfactory answer to these questions.”

The judge for the prosecution then submitted this startling request: “I therefore call upon the Court to annul the verdict on the question of malice aforethought.”

No evidence to prove malice aforethought! That meant that the Onedas were not willful murderers! Besides this, the judge for the prosecution was requesting the annulment of the previous trial!

Next the Court heard from the defense counsel, lawyers who were known countrywide. They pointed out the inconsistencies of the previous court proceedings and the absurdity of the judgments that had been reached.

Then the Court withdrew for a time. Finally the presiding judge read the Court’s decision: The previous verdict was annulled and the case turned over to the Appeal Court of Assizes at Rome to be reheard.

In stating its motive for its decision the Supreme Court, among other things, brought out the serious shortcomings of the pediatric clinic and the other public service institutions; ‘undoubtedly . . . the public service institutions were found gravely wanting; after their initial actions . . . they showed a complete lack of interest, despite the explicit request made for some provision for definitively and permanently solving the problem of the ideological beliefs of the accused.’ This is the decision of the Supreme Court of Cassation, page 30.

Finally Reunited!

Consiglia Oneda has now been released because the term for preventative detention expired. After three-and-a-half years of hardships the Onedas are finally reunited. Giuseppe and Consiglia have the joy of being together and giving loving attention to their little Ester. Let them tell us about their experience firsthand:

Giuseppe: “We were married in 1976, and a year later Isabella was born. We had looked forward to her birth, but soon after we realized that something was wrong. She was very pale and sickly. When she was six months old, doctors diagnosed the dreadful disease that would cause her death. You can imagine how sad we were to hear that fatal diagnosis.”

Consiglia: “Naturally, we became even more attached to our baby. I think any parent would react that way toward a suffering, helpless child who had a fatal illness. We immediately placed Isabella under treatment at the pediatric clinic, where blood transfusions were administered. Nevertheless, she continued to worsen. I remember that after a year of transfusion therapy she had an enormously swollen belly; her liver and spleen had become enlarged. How she suffered when they gave her transfusions! Once it took the doctors an hour to find a vein; all the time my little girl screamed with pain.”

Giuseppe: “In that sad period we found real comfort in our study of the Bible. We were particularly struck by the promise in Revelation 21:4 that God will soon wipe the tears of pain from the eyes of those suffering, and that death will be no more.”

Consiglia: “For us this meant that, by means of the resurrection, we would be able to see Isabella healthy, even if she were to die, which unfortunately seemed inevitable. Then, when we learned from the Bible of God’s command to ‘abstain from blood’ [Acts 15:20; 21:25], we made a decision . . .”

Giuseppe: “. . . to hold to Bible principles. For us this was the only way we could hope to have Isabella back healthy in the day when God will resurrect her from the dead. We could see that the transfusions were not halting the disease, and we knew that many children in Sardinia die at an early age from this same illness despite being given transfusions. We had also heard that many parents, after months of transfusions during which their children showed no improvement, had chosen to care for their children at home with less painful and frightening means.”

Consiglia: “How could we refuse the only prospect of having Isabella healthy again, the prospect based on God’s promise? From what we had read about the results of this treatment, we realized that blood transfusions were not a good thing. We learned that they often cause fatal damage to vital organs.”

Giuseppe: “We let the doctors know of our decision, and that was the start of this well-known story.”

Consiglia: “Isabella was very sensitive, affectionate and intelligent.”

Giuseppe: “She was little more than two years old, yet she already knew many things from My Book of Bible Stories. She knew God’s name, Jehovah. She could recognize and tell us about the pictures in stories of Bible characters.”

Consiglia: “It is a terrible thing for a mother to know she wasn’t able to give her child a body healthy enough to go on living. My daughter Ester reminds me so much of Isabella. Now I want to give this healthy child the love I would like to have continued to give to Isabella. I’m happy to be back with my family and the Christian brothers who are so fond of us. Still, I’ll never forget those three and a half years spent in prison, including the day my cellmate tried to commit suicide out of despair. Though I was able to save her, it was a terrible experience. Yet it helped me to rely on Jehovah God more.”

Giuseppe: “My cellmates did all they could to break my Christian integrity​—violence, homosexual practices and other corruption. My greatest fear was that I might fail in my integrity and lose the possibility of living in God’s happy new system of things. At times I despaired, as when the appeal court confirmed the sentence; at times I wished I’d never been born. All the same, I received comfort from Jehovah in fervent prayer. I’m grateful, too, that he put the book of Job in the Bible because I feel that there are similarities between Job’s experience and mine. Of course, God answered Job, giving him the strength to bear the test and find ‘the way out.’”​—1 Corinthians 10:13.

“Even in the saddest moments of the prison nightmare, Jehovah was my constant point of reference. [1 John 1:5] I was also greatly encouraged by the fellow Christians who sent me countless letters from various countries. Their loving interest was a confirmation that God does not abandon us. Scriptures such as Romans 1:12 and Mark 13:13 helped me to stick it out. I came out of prison, ‘thrown down’ as the apostle Paul says, ‘but not destroyed.’”​—2 Corinthians 4:9.

Consiglia: “I don’t know whether Giuseppe and I will be completely acquitted when the legal case finally comes to an end. Yet, we are grateful to those who have helped and who are still working to cancel the false charge that we murdered our daughter. That is the most terrible thing a parent could be accused of.”

Giuseppe: “We are happy to have come through without hating anyone for what has happened. Love of God and neighbor will certainly help us to count our many blessings. We have our family, our spiritual brothers, our faith and our hope.”

Likely you will agree that these humble parents from Sarroch were unjustly accused, and you probably feel sympathy for the suffering they underwent. You may, though, wonder about some aspects of this matter of parental involvement in the health care of children. Yes, it is an issue that may directly touch any of us or our relatives and friends.

[Footnotes]

[Box on page 10]

Baby Jane Doe​—What Will Parents Do?

Loving parents sometimes face agonizing decisions. Suppose that you were the parents of Baby Jane Doe, for example, what would you do? The New York Times (November 1, 1983) reported:

“Three weeks ago a Long Island couple had a girl, and she was not healthy. Baby Jane Doe had spina bifida, an abnormally small skull, hydrocephalus or excess fluid on the brain, and other deformities. Even if operated on, she would remain severely retarded and bedridden for life​—in her case about 20 years. After consulting with their doctors, social workers and clergy, Baby Jane’s parents made a painful choice: to forgo the operation and let nature take its course.”

Some outsiders disagreed, taking the matter to court. But when it reached the U.S. Supreme Court, the Court refused to hear the case. Baby Jane Doe illustrates the agonizing problems that even loving parents may face.

[Picture on page 9]

Consiglia Oneda leaving prison and rejoining her daughter Ester