“All options are on the table”assured the spokesperson for the French government Olivier Véran this Friday, January 27 about a possible change in legislation on the end of life, during a trip to Switzerland, where assisted suicide is tolerated.
Olivier Véran was accompanied by the Minister Delegate for the Health Professions Agnès Firmin le Bodo, and members of the parliamentary working group on the end of life, to meet the nursing staff of the University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG).
Asked about the possibility of authorizing assisted suicide in France, Olivier Véran affirmed that “all options are on the table”.
Euthanasia: how to manage the risks of abuse?
He underlined the importance of the work of the citizens’ convention on the end of life, which is currently looking into the question of a possible change in French law. Even though the terms of“euthanasia” or of “assisted suicide” are not explicitly mentioned, participants will consider whether to legalize one or the other. In March, they will say whether or not to change the current law, without guarantee of being followed.
“These citizens who come together and who must allow us to have a peaceful debate are pioneers”said Olivier Véran. “We are not making it a political fight in the political sense of the term. We are not making it a partisan fight ”he added.
“It can refer to a lot of convictions, a lot of fears”
Olivier Véran had already traveled to Belgium to study the legislation in this country, and subsequent trips are under consideration, particularly to Spain.
“We do not consider that there is a country that is ahead or behind another, because here we are touching the heart of the intimate, death. It’s very personal and it can refer to a lot of conviction, a lot of fear, a lot of fear.he pointed out, however.
Frédéric Worms: “Requests for euthanasia are not requests for death”
Current French law provides for a “deep sedation” for the terminally ill and suffering unrelentingly, but does not authorize euthanasia or assisted suicide.
In Switzerland, only those who, “driven by a selfish motive”assisting someone’s suicide is punishable.
“It’s a way of making the law that is very different from what we know in France where we start from the principle that everything is forbidden, except what is authorized”commented Olivier Véran.
Present during the visit to the HUG, the President of the Council of State of the Canton of Geneva, Mauro Poggia, stressed to him that the fact of wanting to regulate by law questions “which are resolved through dialogue, understanding, empathy, listening” might “to lead to a blockage and a disempowerment of all the actors”.
