I’ve always been on the fence about the topic of voluntary assisted dying or euthanasia.
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On one hand, people with a terminal illness should have the choice to end their lives without pain or suffering but I’ve also always believed that with life comes hope.
Recently, I’ve been persuaded to be more in favour of a Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill, which was voted down in NSW Parliament on Thursday night.
Firstly, a while back I watched a video online called “Stop the Horror” which was released ahead of the Victorian Parliament’s vote on a similar bill. It recreates the last days of Greg Sims, who died in complete agony.
I couldn’t finish it. It is so hard to watch that there is an option to hit a button and stop the video.
Secondly, I had the opportunity to speak to Greg Connell about his father Cletus, which was in last Friday’s edition of the Cowra Guardian. Cletus, like many other terminally ill people, chose to commit suicide to end his suffering.
While watching the debate on Thursday, something Greg said struck me.
“It takes a big politician to go in there and try and get something done. It takes a bigger politician to go in there and vote for something they don’t necessarily believe in but most people do,” he said.
I watched politician after politician give their reasons for or against the Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill but one thing I did notice was that very few of them chose to speak on behalf of their constituents.
One notable exception was Member for Orange, Phil Donato. He actually surveyed people in his electorate and the majority voted yes, so he announced he would as well.
Plenty of them said they couldn’t support the Bill due to their faith, and I respect that, but as MPs, they are supposed to respect the wishes of their electorate.
Others said there simply wasn’t enough safeguards to ensure that only those who needed it could access the bill – but surely it’s better than doing absolutely nothing.
I would love to see it now in place that every single MP who voted “No” go visit these patients in hospital and maybe they would realise that the only thing this bill would guarantee is a choice. And with a choice, comes power.
If you or someone you know needs help, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Kelsey Sutor