WAR AGAINST EUTHANASIA

WAR AGAINST EUTHANASIA

 {AN EXCERPT BY IGONO ABEL RAPHAEL}

WHAT IS EUTHANASIA?

Euthanasia is the termination of a very sick person's life in order to relieve them of their suffering.A person who undergoes euthanasia usually has an incurable condition. But there are other instances where some people want their life to be ended.

In many cases, it is carried out at the person's request but there are times when they may be too ill and the decision is made by relatives, medics or, in some instances, the courts.

The term is derived from the Greek word euthanatos which means easy death.

The issue has been at the centre of very heated debates for many years and is surrounded by religious, ethical and practical considerations.

THE ETHICS OF EUTHANASIA

Euthanasia raises a number of agonizing moral dilemmas:

·         is it ever right to end the life of a terminally ill patient who is undergoing severe pain and suffering?

·         under what circumstances can euthanasia be justifiable, if at all?

·         is there a moral difference between killing someone and letting them die?

At the heart of these arguments are the different ideas that people have about the meaning and value of human existence.

Should human beings have the right to decide on issues of life and death?

There are also a number of arguments based on practical issues.

WHY PEOPLE WANT EUTHANASIA

Most people think unbearable pain is the main reason people seek euthanasia, but some surveys showed that less than a third of requests for euthanasia were because of severe pain.

Terminally ill people can have their quality of life severely damaged by physical conditions such as incontinence, nausea and vomiting, breathlessness, paralysis and difficulty in swallowing.

Psychological factors that cause people to think of euthanasia include depression, fearing loss of control or dignity, feeling a burden, or dislike of being dependent.

WHY WE MUST SAY NO TO EUTHANASIA

Legalizing euthanasia may benefit a few but it will harm thousands more.

Why legislate for suicide when suicide is an increasing problem across the board in the world?

·         Legalizing euthanasia will make people afraid of visiting their doctor when they know that at the back of the doctor's mind they may be considering advising euthanasia as a solution. A doctor's job is to heal not to kill. To alleviate pain, and not to end a life.

·         Legalizing euthanasia for those who are terminally ill cannot but lead to creeping acceptance of euthanasia as a solution for lesser illnesses.

Once we have made the decision to legalize state sanctioned killing (euthanasia) or assisted suicide (abetting the patient to kill themselves), we have crossed the moral divide and no further moral deliberation will be required to assent to extending to other classes of human beings other than the terminally ill.

After all, if euthanasia becomes a right, surely that right becomes a human right and no class of human beings can then be denied that right.

·         Legalizing euthanasia sends the message to all persons that killing yourself is a way to solve your problems.

The involuntarily euthanasia of the weak, aged and infirm was what happened in Germany in the 1930s. Naturally the law there was originally changed for those who were terminally ill before euthanasia started to expand.

·         Legalizing euthanasia will see pragmatic hospital managers using it as a tool to save money.

·         Legalizing euthanasia will result in abuse of the elderly as greedy relatives maneuver to ensure their inheritance is not spent on health care.

·         Legalizing euthanasia will mean less money is spent on palliative care.

There is zero chance that if introduced euthanasia can be contained by so-called legal safeguards.

We must say no to the hydra that is euthanasia. It will keep raising its many heads and unless we cut off every one then the culture of death will have advanced to third base.

  

IGONO Abel Raphael

        AUTHOR