BREAKING: Government announces next steps on death with dignity
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- Published on Friday, 17 July 2015 15:15
- Written by editor
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BREAKING: the federal government just announced a public consultation to advise on physician assisted dying.
On February 6, 2015 Canada’s highest court delivered a groundbreaking unanimous judgment in the BCCLA's Carter v. Canada case, affirming the right to dignity and self-determination at the end of life.
The Supreme Court ordered that its ruling would come into force after 12 months, giving Parliament and the provincial legislatures one year to bring their laws into alignment with the Court’s ruling before the decision takes effect.
Today, the federal government announced an external panel to lead the public consultation meant to advise on the new legislation.
We hoped for a balance of views on the panel but we are deeply concerned that this panel composition is not impartial. Two of the three people on this panel were federal witnesses opposed to physician-assisted dying during the Carter v. Canada case. They have publicly argued to uphold the laws that criminalize physician assistance in dying. While these individuals are well-respected people, there is an appearance of bias.
Despite this, we encourage Canadians to participate. Canadians overwhelmingly support the right to physician-assisted dying, and it is the law of the land. Whatever advice this panel might provide, it is clear that Parliament must not enact a law that creates barriers for those who wish to access their constitutional right to physician-assisted dying."
Today, we need your help to make this right into a reality.
We already know that some groups are pushing Ottawa to place barriers in front of seriously ill Canadians who want to access their right to aid in dying.
We can't allow a system that would prevent suffering people from getting the medical help to which they're entitled. That's why we need our supporters to make their voices heard just as loudly.
The federal consultation will be open over the summer, and in the coming weeks we will be sending around the BCCLA’s submission, along with possible talking points for those supporters who wish to write in personally.
In the last year, Canada has made more progress on this issue than it did for the twenty years before. We could not have won this legal battle without the support of our community, and now we must ask for your support again as we work with Canadian law-makers to ensure that this right becomes a reality.
New to this issue? Watch Grace deliver a TEDx Talk
If you are just joining the BCCLA, you may have questions about our work on this important issue. We invite you, and all our longtime supporters, to watch Grace Pastine, BCCLA Litigation Director and one of the lawyers on this case, deliver a TEDx Talk on this subject in May of this year.
We are delighted to share this video of Grace with all our supporters at this crucial moment. Together, we are giving choice and hope to people like our clients Gloria Taylor, Kay Carter, Elayne Shapray, and so many other Canadians who are suffering against their will.
We’ll be in touch soon with more information on the public consultation. Thank you for the immense support you have shown this issue.
Sincerely,
Josh Paterson, Executive Director
And the BCCLA team
