Death has become fashionable: Dutch doctors do not cope with requests for euthanasia

Doctors in the Netherlands can no longer cope with a large number of requests for euthanasia, while among those willing to die there are not only terminally ill citizens, but also those who "feel sorrow and lost the meaning of life", said the representative of the European Christian political movement, Belgian Leo Van Doesburg, writes Blagovest-Info.

Doesburg took part in the XXIII International Conference of the Foundation for the Unity of Orthodox Peoples "Values ​​and Interests in a Changing World: A Christian Approach", which was held on 27-30 March in Germany.

In Doesburg’s view, so far in many EU countries "such social structures as the family and the church have been neglected" and "the level of sadness, anxiety, loss of the meaning of life has increased in the West," which led to a rise in suicide rate.

"In the Netherlands, the number of desires for euthanasia has increased based on psychological misunderstanding, rejection of suffering. The number of requests for euthanasia in the country exceeds physical capacity of doctors to implement this act, "Doesburg said, recalling that in the Netherlands euthanasia is supported at the state level.

"Now the question is posed as follows: not even those who suffer from incurable diseases, but simply the elderly who feel sorrow and lost the meaning of life should have the right to euthanasia. In the case when a person, even being healthy, simply does not feel psychologically comfortable enough, like an elderly person. And this idea is being promoted, "Doesburg said.

At the same time, he drew attention to the increasing pressure in Western Europe on doctors who do not agree to perform abortion and euthanasia. "The issue of prohibiting doctors to oppose abortion on religious grounds or because of the Hippocratic Oath - to protect human life and never take it away – is under discussion in today’s Europe," he said.

Last October, Western media reported that the Government of the Netherlands is preparing a bill authorizing euthanasia to those who wish to end their lives not for medical reasons – just being tired of it and want to die. Presumably, the document will have been developed by the end of 2017 after consulting with the expert community.

The Netherlands became the first country to legalize euthanasia in 2002 for terminally ill patients experiencing serious physical suffering. Earlier it was reported that in 2015, the Netherlands recorded more than 5.5 thousand cases of euthanasia, which is now practiced also in several other European countries.

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