Euthanasia

Abstract

Euthanasia and its procedure involves difficult issues regarding legal and procedural compliance in countries across the world. Every adult of sound mind has a right to determine what should be done with his/her person. It is illegitimate to administer treatment on an adult who is conscious and of sound mind, without his consent. Patients with Permanent Vegetative State (PVS) and no expectation of improvement cannot make decisions about treatment to be given to them. It is ultimately for the Court to decide, as parenspatriae, as to what is in the best interest of the patient.

Every human being requirements to live and enjoy the life till he dies. Sometimes a human being needs to end his life in the way he chooses. To end one’s life in an unusualapproach is a sign of abnormality. When a person ends his life by his own act we call it “suicide” but to end a person’s life by others on the request of the deceased, is called “euthanasia” or “mercy killing”.

Euthanasia is mainly related with people with incurabledisorder or who have become injured

and don’t want to go through the rest of their life misery. A strictly handicapped or incurably ill person supposed to have the right to choose between life and death. This right of a patient with terminal illness cannot be equated with an able bodied, sane person’s right.

The term euthanasia comes from the Greece words “eu” and “thanatos” which means “good death”2 or “easy death”. It is also known as Mercy Killing. Euthanasia is the intentional premature termination of another person’s life either by direct intervention (active euthanasia) or by withholding life prolonging measures and resources (passive euthanasia). It is either at the express or implied request of that person (i.e., voluntary euthanasia), or in the absence of such approval (non-voluntary euthanasia).

Euthanasia was practiced in Ancient Greece and Rome: on the island of Kea, hemlock a poisonous plant was in use as a means for quickening death, a technique also followed in Marseilles. The Greek philosophers Socrates and Plato supported euthanasia while Hippocrates disapproved it. He was against such practice which would lead to death of a person.

Protestantism maintained suicide and euthanasia while it was an accepted practice during the Age of Enlightenment. Every culture identifies and recognizes these terms from different approaches. Sometimes they are equated to sins, while on some instances they are recognized as acts of valor. There is this line of difference between them.