pro-life action
THE GLOBAL SLIDE TOWARD euthanasia by LIAM GIBSON
W
hen the British Abortion Act was introduced in1967 its supporters insisted that it would not lead to abortion on demand. Every abortion, they said, would have to be approved by two doctors. Fifty-three years on, over 500 babies are killed in Britain every day by abortion and medical approval is just a bureaucratic formality. Once the taking of innocent human life is made lawful, it becomes acceptable and eventually, it’s regarded as normal. This is also true of the practice of assisted suicide which is spreading across the globe at an alarming pace. Last November, New Zealand’s Parliament approved the End of Life Choices Act by 69 votes to 51. However, the Act requires a referendum before it can be implemented. Under the legislation, New Zealanders over 18 years of age judged to have less than six months to live would be able to request a lethal dose of drugs. Patients would either take these drugs
themselves or have them administered by a doctor or nurse practitioner. Although the words “grievous and irremediable” (terms which could be applied to people with depression or a serious disability) were dropped from an earlier version of the Act, attempts to introduce other safeguards were rejected. In the neighbouring jurisdiction of Victoria, Australia, assisted suicide legislation came into effect in June 2019 and yet this law is already facing calls for further liberalisation. Euthanasia advocates now argue that a requirement for one of the two approving physicians to be a specialist in the patient’s condition is unnecessary. They say terminally ill patients in remote locations may have to travel to see a suitably qualified doctor. In December, a law with fewer safeguards and less conscience protection for medical professionals was passed by the government of Western Australia. It’s expected to come into force sometime next
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