Archbishop Anthony Fisher
Polding Centre,
133 Liverpool Street,
Sydney NSW 2000
Australia
Dear Archbishop Fisher
Firstly, my best wishes to you on your appointment as the ninth Archbishop of Sydney.
I am responding on behalf of the members of my Group to aspects of your article in the SMH, Oct 10, 2014. “Euthanasia: lethal dose has fearful consequences.” http://www.smh.com.au/comment/euthanasia-lethal-dose-has-fearful-consequences-20141014-115p18.html
It is grossly misleading to infer the Senator Di Natale Draft Bill is a community response to the “elderly, frail and disabled”. It is a response to those dying and faced with unbearable suffering.
If you read through the draft Bill, you find –
The objects of this Act are:
(a) to recognise the right of a mentally competent adult who is suffering intolerably from a terminal illness to request a medical practitioner to provide medical services that allows the person to end his or her life peacefully, humanely and with dignity;
You state “Now people who aren’t terminally ill, aren’t even physically ill, people who haven’t volunteered or can’t volunteer, can legally be killed”. This is simply emotive scaremongering! I ask would you please provide me with factual documentation for this claim. Belgian legislation has never been restricted to the terminally ill, but legislation does recognise an advance directive. It applies to “a patient in a medically futile position of constant and unbearable physical or mental suffering that cannot be alleviated, resulting from a serious and incurable disorder caused by illness or accident.”
You state, “It asks us all to agree that some people are better off dead and that our laws and health professionals should make them dead.” Again, this is emotive and simply not true. Continue reading