Erminio Enzo Boso (9 July 1945 in

Pieve Tesino Pieve Tesino (''La Piève'' in local dialect) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about east of Trento. Pieve Tesino borders the following municipalities: Tesero, Pan ...

– 10 January 2019 in Pieve Tesino) was an Italian politician. Also known under the pseudonym of

Obelix Obelix ( ; ) is a cartoon character in the French comic book series ''Asterix''. He works as a menhir sculptor and deliveryman as well as one of the primary defenders of the Gaulish village, and is Asterix's best friend. Obelix is noted for his ...

, for his massive build and stature, he was one of the founders of the Northern League in the

province of Trento Trentino (), officially the Autonomous Province of Trento (; ; ), is an autonomous province of Italy in the country's far north. Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, an autonomous region under the c ...

. He served as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

between 1992 and 1996. In 1997 he was elected to the

Padanian Parliament The Padanian Parliament is a body established by Lega Nord with internal representation based on electoral principles. Previously known as the Northern Parliament and the Parliament House of Mantua, it includes all administrators, regional coun ...

. In 1998 he was elected to the Council of the Autonomous Province of Trento and was then re-elected in 2003. He was a candidate in the 2004 European Parliament Elections, obtaining around 10,000 personal preferences in the North-Eastern Italy constituency. In June 2008 he was proclaimed an MEP, taking over from

Gian Paolo Gobbo Gian Paolo Gobbo (born 1 April 1949) is an Italian politician. He is the President of Liga Veneta, the "national" section of Lega Nord in Veneto. In 1978–1980, he was a founding member of Liga Veneta. In 1990 and 1995, he was elected to the R ...

, and joined the

Independence/Democracy Independence/Democracy (IND/DEM) was a Euroscepticism, Eurosceptic Political groups of the European Parliament, political group that operated in the European Parliament between 2004 and 2009. At its height in 2004, it had 37 MEPs and it only ex ...

parliamentary group. In May 2013 he attacked Minister

Cécile Kyenge Cécile Kashetu Kyenge (; born Kashetu Kyenge, 28 August 1964) is an Italian politician and ophthalmologist. She was the Minister for Integration in the 2013–14 Letta Cabinet. From 2014 until 2019, she was a Member of the European Parliament ( ...

, also calling himself "racist", while on July 9 of the same year, intervening in a radio broadcast, he declared that he was happy if a boat of migrants sinks. In the 2014 European Parliament election, Boso was again a candidate in the North-Eastern Italy constituency. He got around 3,300 preferences, not enough to be elected. During the election campaign, he proposed a new flag for the European Union, based on the

Flag of the Confederate States of America The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and ...

. Boso died on 10 January 2019 at the age of 73 in his hometown, due to a heart attack.E' morto Enzo Erminio Boso
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boso, Erminio 1945 births 2019 deaths Lega Nord politicians Members of the Regional Council of Trentino-Alto Adige Senators of Legislature XI of Italy Senators of Legislature XII of Italy MEPs for Italy 2004–2009