Despite the strong objections from most Irish doctors, disability groups, and those campaigning against suicide to the act of legalised assisted dying, the joint Oireachtas committee proceeded to endorse their proposal. Does this echo recent cases of politicians pushing forward in blissful disregard of any counter views? Alan Farrell TD contested the committee chairman Michael Healy-Rae’s support for the minority report by Senator Rónán Mullen and Robert Troy TD, arguing it being “untenable.” At this point, what was expected of Healy-Rae? To abandon his beliefs and concordantly align with the majority? The bulk report outlined 38 suggestions, obviously engineered to pre-empt objections by presenting euthanasia access as restricted as possible.
The belief of being Irish and unique in maintaining regulations that other nations have failed to uphold resonates glaringly here. For instance, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Canada have been consistently expanding the grounds for assisted suicide and euthanasia. Yet, we, as Irish, nurture the sweet illusion that there is something about us that will protect us from slipping down any such slopes.
The 2022 statistics from the Netherlands are quite startling. Euthanasia was responsible for more than one in twenty deaths that year, representing a 13.6% rise from the past year.
Our belief, although stubborn, is confronted by the reality that in various sectors, from making public RTÉ employee salaries to removing terror-related content from the web, we readily sidestep restrictions.
The 2022 statistics from the Netherlands reveal that euthanasia accounted for over one in twenty of all fatalities, showing an increase of 13.6% from the previous year, based on the regional euthanasia review committees’ report. The data provided by these committees showed that 288 individuals were euthanised on dementia grounds, six of whom were considered unable to choose but had previously expressed their wishes, and 115 cases were based on psychiatric disorders.
Supporters of assisted dying within the committee might point out that their recommendations categorically stipulate against using prior directives when an individual is no longer competent.
My argument centres around the idea that it is naive to have ever assumed that euthanasia, once introduced, wouldn’t evolve beyond its original intentions. Consider the Dutch case; they introduced the notion of euthanasia, yet they probably did not predict its application to those suffering from depression or infants diagnosed with spina bifida.
The main report highlights that coercion in any form will be an act against the law. Still, what about the more subtle forms of coercion, such as the internal struggle and guilt experienced by those who feel they have become a burden due to their old age or incapacity?
In a culture and medical landscape drastically transformed by assisted death and euthanasia, we find ourselves at a pivotal point. Utilising the Overton window concept, which was popularised by the free-market libertarian Joseph P Overton. Overton used a small window in a piece of cardboard to illustrate what would be politically acceptable. If something falls within the “window,” it is seen as acceptable; anything outside is deemed extreme and unbearable. He pointed out that this window of acceptability could be moved. Once assisted death is legalised, it irrevocably shifts this window.
As assisted dying becomes a practical option, some people, unfortunately, may choose death over life as they perceive themselves to be burdensome to others.
Resistance and apprehension among Irish physicians persist, with many doubting or opposing assisted dying. For instance, the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, our largest postgraduate medical training body boasting over 11,000 members and fellows across 29 medical specialities in over 90 countries, stands firmly opposed to assisted dying. They argue that it contradicts the principles of best medical practice, imposes impossible implementation of safeguards, and could potentially compromise the exceptional Irish palliative care system.
Representing the Irish Palliative Medicines Consultants Association, Dr Regina McQuillan warned that introducing assisted dying would inflict a profound negative impact on the trusted relationship between doctors and patients. Despite this, the main report confidently professes to having superior understanding than palliative medicine consultants.
The society’s responsibility should be to nourish hope. Assisted suicide, on the other hand, symbolises the epitome of hopelessness. As suggested by Elma Walsh, by rejecting assisted suicide, everyone has the power to combat suicide.
Peter Kearns, from the Independent Living Movement of Ireland, highlighted in the minority report, an essential proposition. He voiced the concern of disabled people, stating that legalising the right to independent living should be prioritised over assisted suicide.
The vehemence of individuals with disabilities was a key contributor to the overwhelming rejection of the so-called Care Amendment. The phrasing of the referendum seemed meticulously designed to exempt the government from any liabilities. The populace desires a functional health system, an end to the 72-hour trolley waits and a cessation to the one million person-long waiting lists.
A bold statement was made against assisted suicide by Elma Walsh, the mother of Donal. Elma, whose son courageously fought against suicide prior to his own death from cancer, pointed out that assisted suicide eradicates hope. She declared that as a society, we are responsible for fostering hope, and assisted suicide is akin to abandoning hope. She emphasized the role of everyone in battling suicide, by refusing to support assisted suicide.
The untenable part is not Michael Healy-Rae’s endorsement of the minority report, but the belief in a large-scale public outcry for something that has demonstrated a tendency to uncontrollably spread, much like a lethal contagion, in other European nations.