by NexDev | September 18, 2015 | End of life, Laws, surveys, protagonists, News
In spite of strong opposition, an amendment aiming at legalizing assisted suicide was voted this past September 9th at the California Assembly (by 43 votes in favor, and 34 against) and in the Senate on September 12th (23 votes for and 14 against). It now is awaiting ratification by the democratic governor, Jerry Brown, who has until October 11th to accept or on the contrary veto this proposed law. This proposition authorizes the doctor “to give patients with no hope of being cured, a medical treatment which would end their life.” Two doctors must certify that the patient has no longer than six months to live before the medical treatment can be prescribed.
This subject came to light in 2014, when Brittany Maynard, a 29-year-old with untreatable cancer, moved from California to Oregon in order to have recourse to assisted suicide. A short time before her death, she filmed a video which sparked an outpouring of emotion, which has since been viewed world-wide.
California could thus become the sixth American state to legalize one form or another of medically assisted suicide, after Oregon, Washington State, Montana, New Mexico and Vermont.
Opponents to this amendment think that such measures could lead to hasty suicides. “I don’t want to encourage elderly and vulnerable people to die and I think that this could be an unexpected consequence of this law”, Republican Senator, Ted Gaines deplored.
by NexDev | September 18, 2015 | Publications, News
Faced with the benefits of techno-science and developments which are sometimes unreasonable, should the recognition of our finiteness be wiped out? A utilitarian world of dope-enhanced performances at the expense of human stability is willing to incite us to give up the positive values of our limits. Surfing in a virtual word, transhumanism, and in perspective, post-humanism, refuse the vulnerability of the body in order to deify an enhanced, incorruptible man.
Yet doesn’t the current vitality of solidarity-based support include more than prolonging life absurdly? Just look how accepting to travel the journey of weakness can bear fruit as A.D. Julliand demonstrates so well in her book “A particular day” where the love of their sick child attests to the beauty of an ordeal faced together. Faced with this extreme fragility, the heart of the family relationships consists in a permanent renewal ‘nourished by love received and enriched by love given’: a genuine call never to underestimate the power of words and gestures, characteristics of our human nature and awakened by the vulnerability of others. From the person who sends a message of kindness in search of reciprocity, a potential of love can be deployed integrating the vulnerability of the others’ body.
In this ordeal, the body and the spirit of the person remain joined, far from being resumed as an imperfection that needs to be stalked, pretending to live in an imaginary perfect world. The receptiveness and acceptance of the gift contribute fundamentally to an inner momentum signifying the refusal of an almighty power and the firm choice of joyful otherness: thus the foundation of mutual service is linked to the sign of our finiteness. Isn’t this a demonstration of a ‘unique shared inner experience’ (J. Kristeva) of indigent humanism?
Gilles ANDRE-POYAUD, married and father of one boy.
Physician
University graduate in bioethics
by NexDev | September 14, 2015 | Bioethics, Medically Assisted Procreation
Representatives from No Maternity Traffic were received by the Secretary at the Hague conference regarding private international rights on September 4, 2015. They submitted a written statement to sound the alert that the practice of gestational surrogacy seriously infringes on women’s and children’s rights.
The Hague Conference on International Private Law is one of the worldwide intergovernmental organizations in charge of jurisdictional cooperation, especially for matters concerning the family and children’s rights. Since 2011, the Court at the Hague has been mandated to study the question of gestational surrogacy, because of the human stakes at issue, and the ethical and legal questions that this practice raises on an international level, notably concerning the parenthood of children.
In their written statement, No Maternity Traffic underlined the fact that an international convention which rules the effects of maternity by substitution would imply to accept the principle of ‘substitution’ maternity, whereas this practice seriously violates the rights and the dignity of women and children. No Maternity Traffic thus invites the Conference and the 79 member states that make up the conference to reflect first on the practice of “substitution maternity” in and of-itself, but also in respect to the international laws currently in effect.
No Maternity Traffic, which re-groups different international associations, including Alliance Vita as one of their active members, has also asked the European Council to oppose all forms of gestational surrogacy. To sign the petition: www.nomaternitytraffic.eu
by NexDev | September 11, 2015 | End of life, Laws, surveys, protagonists, News
The national colloquy of the Regional Spaces for Ethical Reflection was held at Strasbourg on September 10 – 11, 2015 on the premises of the National School of Administration (ENA).
In terms of the law, the Regional and Inter-regional Spaces for Ethical Reflection “have a vocation to elicit and co-ordinate ethical initiatives in life sciences and health. They take care of training missions, documentation and information, promotion of public debates, meetings and interdisciplinary exchanges. They constitute an overseer of the ethical practices inherent in the domains of life sciences and health”.
The first day of this colloquy was devoted to “Brain death and the removal of organs”. The debate had bearing on the ethical realm of the removal from donors of the Maastricht 3 category (after controlled cardiac arrest) but also on the political strategies, both legislative and medical, to be put into action to increase the number of grafts available.
During the morning, after several contributions on the “Views of brain death in France, Switzerland and Germany”, neurologist Xavier Ducrocq gave a talk on the theme of “What brain death isn’t – states of poorly-relating”. Following this, Professor of sociology Pascal Hintermeyer spoke on the “Anthropological and social aspects of Reticence in the donation of organs”.
The second day gave the stage to doctoral and post-doctoral students. Spoken communications, largely varied, and mostly focused on the theme of life’s end and death. Also touched upon were, notably, the crib death, the “ethics of the places of death; the architecture of a palliative care unit”; and also “what an Aristotelian friendship brings to the ethics of relations between interns and senior doctors”. The afternoon was devoted to solitude at life’s end, philosophic considerations on euthanasia, anticipated directives and “ethics & heuristics of shame at life’s end”.
by NexDev | September 11, 2015 | End of life, News
On September 11, 2015, the House of Commons studied a motion on assisted suicide, the Assisted Dying Bill (No 2) 2015, a subject which divides the British people. The text was massively rejected by 330 votes against and 118 for.
This motion, presented by MP Rob Marris (Labour), takes up again a motion introduced in 2014 in the House of Lords by Lord Falconer (Labour), which didn’t come to anything, but which also aimed at legalising assistance to suicide.
Since the Suicide Act of 1961, Great Britain considers it a crime either to encourage or help a person commit suicide. In 2010, however, a special policy was published detailing the criteria for penal action in cases of assisted suicides.
The Assisted Dying Bill (No 2) 2015 suggested to authorise assisted suicide for people in terminal phase of illness with a vital prognostic of less than 6 months. The lethal products were to be supplied by the patient’s own doctor and taken by the patient himself or herself. By delegation and at the request of the patient, another doctor or a nurse authorised by the patient’s own doctor could also have been allowed to provide the products.
But last July the British Geriatrics Society, the main organisation representing health personnel in geriatrics, expressed itself clearly against euthanasia. Professional bodies such as the Royal College of Physicians, the Royal College of General Practitioners or the British Medical Association maintain the same position.
In the past weeks different movements have also highlighted the dangers of such a motion.
The research institute “Living and Dying Well” explains that the laws are not just regulatory instruments: “They send out a message to society. Thus, a law on assisted suicide sends the message that, if you’re ill and in the terminal phase, ending your life could be a choice. This is suicide, and this cannot be encouraged nor assisted. Most doctors don’t want to be involved in helping patients to die. The observations that can be made in the few countries where these practices have been permitted is not reassuring at all. Our preoccupation should focus on the accompaniment of people in the terminal phase, to live and die in dignity, not to encourage them to end it themselves”.
“Not Dead Yet UK”, a network of handicapped people opposed to assisted suicide and euthanasia, also denounce a law which would put pressure on vulnerable people in the terminal phase and on handicapped people. The association underlines that it is more dangerous than ever to introduce a legislation encouraging suicide – as a solution to the obstacles handicapped people have to face to live – instead of giving them the means to overcome them.
“Care not Killing”, a movement linking citizens, associations and health personnel opposed to euthanasia, called for a demonstration before parliament on the day of the vote; this gathered a number of people affected by handicaps or disabling illnesses, who held up signs saying “Assist us to live, not to die”.
The spokesperson for David Cameron had indicated the previous evening that the Prime Minister’s position was clear: “He is not convinced that new measures need to be taken, and he is not in favour of any motion leading to euthanasia.”
