BERN, SWITZERLAND – Switzerland will not make organized assisted suicide a federal crime: the Federal Council Wednesday 29 June instead chose to boost efforts to discourage suicide and to improve palliative care options.
The cabinet noted that “the government is still intent on fostering suicide prevention and palliative care in order to reduce the number of suicides. The entire package of measures should contribute to strengthening the right of self-determination.”
Switzerland permits assisted suicide but only under certain circumstances, and the government, after consulting cantons and interested parties on the impact of making it illegal, concluded that banning it would have a number of drawbacks.
Bern was quick to underscore, however, that “to render assisted suicide admissible, the current legal provisions already require the person seeking suicide to have the mental capacity to consent and to be sufficiently well informed.
Moreover, the term ‘selfish motives’ referred to in the above-mentioned legislation already renders criminal prosecution possible in cases of assisted suicide abuse.”
The council argues that current legal tools are “flexible and practice-oriented” and constitute “a sensible balance between the State’s responsibility to protect the individual and to respect personal freedom.” Legislating a ban could in fact “legitimize” organized assisted suicide businesses, thus encouraging people to use their services. Clinics are currently tolerated as long as employees stay within the limits of the law.
The medical profession in Switzerland was one of the groups consulted.
A study where a group of 201 African-Americans with narrowing of the arteries were told to take up lifestyle changes or transcendental meditation twice a day for 20 minutes “significantly” reduced heart disease, the BBC reports. The story is based on findings reported at a five-day scientific meeting of the American Heart Association where the latest heart research is being presented.Among other findings reported Monday 16 November: biotech soybeans may prove to be a good alternative to fish oil as a source of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids and from another study, a telephone-based collaborative care programme speeds recovery and helps coronary bypass patients avoid depression.
Links to other sites: AHA and AHA Science News congress, BBC,
