No one talks about death. Human beings have an innate fear dealing with the thoughts of death or how one’s life will eventually end. The issue of euthanasia is not talked about much. Not even many people want to be interested in what it involves. Ironically, death is inevitable.
At first glance, euthanasia appears to be reasonable and unreasonable at the same time. Some would argue that it is physician assisted suicide, but if the physician is of the school of Hippocrates, that is problematic. Otherwise, it is ending life prior to the persons natural expiration date.
Euthanasia is understood as the intentional termination of life by another at the explicit request of the person who wishes to die. But does everyone who undergoes Euthanasia really wish they died that way?
Criminals are killed through Euthanasia. But how does that affect the person’s immediate family? Well, euthanasia is also considered as the best way to end suffering of a person who is battling with incurable diseases out of concern and compassion for that person’s suffering.
In many jurisdictions, active euthanasia can be considered murder or Manslaughter, whereas passive euthanasia is accepted by professional medical societies, and by the law under certain circumstances
The general belief in practicing euthanasia is that, suffering is so unbearable that the person wants to take a conscious decision to end life.
This is similar to suicide, but only difference is that it is assisted or under someone’s supervision. In India attempt to commit suicide are criminal offences under the penal code. This makes it an offence if someone tries to opt for active euthanasia.
Also, passive euthanasia has been the bone of contention since the infamous case of Aruna Shaunbag. The medical attendant was raped unnaturally and choked blocking the air supply to her brain leaving her completely in a vegetative state. The condition of life here is essentially zero.
Her relatives decided to pull the life support but the hospital refused it and was allowed to take care of her. Finally in the past decade the court allowed under the circumstances that if a life has zero medical possibility of sustenance and living within the society either with support or without it as to be satisfied beyond all medical ability for the legal representatives to be able to take a conscious decision of pulling the life support.
Sometimes it so happens that the death is better than taking treatment, when a person is considered to die within a couple of days or moths.
Just observe how painful it is to have chemo therapy for treatment of Cancer. The medicines used are such that it’s side effects almost kill the patient mentally.
Is euthanasia legally and morally justifiable?
People who accept and believe in euthanasia say it should only be carried out when a person is terminally ill, or in serious unreliable pain and suffering, and require that euthanasia be used as a last resort.
Does it mean people are still skeptical about euthanasia? Maybe, such ending of life must have both moral and ethical acceptance before it can be carried out
While euthanasia is considered in most societies as evil, evidence of research shows that people who are at the point of death voluntarily request to be killed through euthanasia.
They do so because they fear the possibility of social isolation and becoming a burden to their families or close contacts. But is this legal? Is it not suicide ”disguised”?
But people who accept euthanasia claim that a person has the right to self-determination and autonomy and the state should allow them to choose the time of their own death. Does it mean there should not be any real justification for euthanasia, whether moral or legal?
To those who do not have anything against euthanasia, they believe that, life is not an obligation.
Euthanasia was made legal in Belgium in 2002, making it the second nation in the world to do so after The Netherlands. The law permits doctors to assist patients in ending their lives if they freely declare a desire to do so due to excruciating pain. As of 2022, euthanasia has been legalized in very few countries including Belgium, Canada, Colombia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain and several states of Australia
Recently, in The Netherlands, over 100,000 researchers and politicians petitioned the government to support assisted suicide for the over-70s who are categorized as ”life complete” and want to die.
The talks on euthanasia will not end now. While it is considered as evil by some societies, others believe in its ability to end human suffering. If euthanasia could be limited to murderous criminals alone, on what basis can it be used?
There are several promptings that comes naturally to the topic of euthanasia. What should be of concern is doing things that fall within the interest of upholding Humanity beyond ethics, morality and legality
