Euthanasia: Belgium decriminalizes

(B2) Following the example of its Dutch neighbour, Belgium has just legalized euthanasia, or rather decriminalized its practice, after careful consideration and much discussion. Coming from the ranks of the rainbow majority - blue-red-green (liberal, socialist, ecologist), this proposal has indeed given rise to a wide debate, sometimes lively. An ad-hoc committee of Parliament held public hearings for several months inviting doctors, philosophers and politicians to express their point of view.

The new law does not allow everything. Doctors will only be released from criminal prosecution under several conditions. First of all, the patient must be an adult (or an emancipated minor), capable and aware. The request should be made thoughtfully and repeatedly. Children are therefore excluded as well as patients in a coma, unless they have made an advance declaration. The patient must then be in " a hopeless medical situation " and do " state of constant and unbearable physical or psychological suffering which cannot be appeased », and which results « a serious and incurable accidental or pathological condition ". Finally, the doctor must discuss it with the patient on several occasions, consult a colleague and report the practice to an official Commission. If these conditions are not respected, he again becomes liable to prosecution.

However, this framework does not convince everyone. The bishops in particular reiterated, in a very official manner, their opposition to any act of euthanasia. " It means that such human life is worth less than others. ". The social-Christian political parties which did not vote for this law are also unhappy. The Flemings of the CD&V, determined to fight it out, want to use all possible legal remedies, at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Their French-speaking counterparts in the PSC are less clear-cut, however. " We are for euthanasia but with clearer safeguards sums up the party spokesperson. Question of choice retorts Fred Erdman, for the socialist party “ We prefer to proceed modestly, step by step, towards an imperfect law, even if it means improving it after ". The debate continues. Appointment for the first evaluation, in two years ...

Nicolas Gros Verheyde
Published in Christian Testimony, 2002