“ In practice, it is still the doctor who decides whether to perform euthanasia. He can suggest it, not give patients obvious alternatives, ignore patients ' ambivalence, and even put to death patients who have not requested it.”
D eception instead of‘ dignity '- that is the language of assisted suicide. How do you make something that ' s unthinkable into something palatable? Call it something else and that ' s exactly what the advocates of euthanasia have done; they have simply corrected the language, but if we return to the semantics of voluntary euthanasia and let us try replacing euthanasia with“ kill” and“ help to die”… when we do this, many of the most emotive support to its legalization fade away. Before I give reasons for leaning towards this divide on this issue that has become front burner in today ' s scheme of things it is only pertinent that I explain the major concept in this topic. The word euthanasia is defined in Collins English Dictionary as the act of killing a person painlessly especially to relieve suffering from an incurable disease while Steadman Medical Dictionary further describes it as a quiet painless death and an intentional putting to death by artificial means of persons with incurable diseases. Standing on this, I give the following reasons for my opposition. If euthanasia is legalized- Guess what? In practice, it is still the doctor who decides whether to perform euthanasia. He can suggest it, not give patients obvious alternatives, ignore patients ' ambivalence, and even put to death patients who have not requested it. Euthanasia enhances the power and control of doctors, not patients and it makes nonsense of the right to life of an individual as enshrined in every country ' s constitution and provided for in article 2 of the universal declaration of human rights“ Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of persons” and besides, the criminal code of Nigeria makes suicide or any form of assisted suicide for any reason a crime( sections 311,326,327 and 239). Doctors have stepped into a right-to-life row following the suggestion some hospital patients should be allowed to die because it cost so much to keep them alive.
AMSUL Digest 2014