ZURICH–A 77-year-old British man with terminal throat cancer was taken to Zurich by his own son and daughter to become the first British citizen to kill himself with the aid of the Dignitas assisted suicide group. In the past four years, Dignitas has facilitated 134 such suicides, mostly by foreigners travelling to Switzerland for that purpose, a phenomenon known as “death tourism.”
The London Observer's account reads like a horror novel. The elderly man arrived in Zurich on October 23 and was taken to a small hotel, where he met Ludwig Minelli, the Swiss lawyer who runs Dignitas. He was then taken to a Dignitas-affiliated “doctor” who determined that he was in “a fit mental state to make the decision.” It was then arranged that, two days later, a small suburban flat rented by Dignitas would be the scene of his suicide by means of drinking a barbiturate that would induce a brief and fatal coma.
Minelli said: “The man was very calm, very peaceful … Clearly, he had thought about this course of action very hard before embarking upon it.” Dignitas provides the service for “free,” using membership fees of about $25 per person to subsidize clients.
The family may now face charges because it is illegal in Britain to help someone commit suicide. Meanwhile some Swiss officials don't like the negative publicity. Zurich public prosecutor Andreas Brunner said: “Death tourism is a very touchy subject. What if someone has psychological problems? What if they have an illness which it turns out, is actually curable?”
To read Observer coverage see:
http://www.observer.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,6903,825126,00.html
For previous LifeSite coverage see: http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2002/aug/02081302.html
(This update courtesy of LifeSite News.)
Church Can't Be Silent in Face of Legal Euthanasia, Pope Says
Vatican City — John Paul II warned about the dangers of euthanasia, when he received the new Belgian ambassador to the Vatican. Belgium is the second country, after the Netherlands, to legalize this type of killing.
In his address today to career diplomat Benoit Cardon De Lichtbuer, 60, the Pontiff said that man, “created by God and called to share in his divine life, has always been at the center of the Christian vision of the world and that this is why the Church respects and defends life.”
“How can she silence her great anxiety and reprobation in the face of laws recently voted on in different countries which legalize active euthanasia?”the Holy Father asked.
“In a society, in which all too often it seems that only good health and profitability matter, it is necessary to see weak persons or those at the end of life with other eyes; in particular, by applying and developing palliative care for all patients whose situation calls for it,” he added.
This care “makes possible the relief of pain and supports in dignity those who are going to die,” the Pope explained. “Recognition of the sacred character and the inviolability of every human person, conferred by the Creator, is, in fact, the only authentic defense against ever possible violation of their dignity,” the Holy Father stressed.
He added: “A society that would run the risk of challenging these principles, would expose itself to far graver dangers, in particular, to making the right of persons and fundamental values depend solely on consensus, which is ever changing.”
(This article appeared on Zenit news service and appears courtesy of Steven Ertelt and the Pro-Life Infonet email newsletter. For more information or to subscribe go to www.prolifeinfo.org or email infonet@prolifeinfo.org.)
