Nitschke 'choice talk' draws crowd | Coffs Coast News | Local News in Coffs Coast

Belinda Scott | 4th July 2009

Poll

Should voluntary euthanasia be legal?

CAVANBAH Centre was packed to the rafters yesterday to hear from Dr Philip Nitschke about the 'peaceful pill,' other methods of painless death and moves to restrict and censor information on these topics.

The 180 chairs were filled by a crowd of baby boomers and their parents, many of them with first hand experience of the drawn-out pain and suffering which can accompany terminal illness or old age.

“I think he is doing a wonderful job and I wanted to support him,” Sue Hancock said.

“The end of your life should be your choice, not that of the politicians.”

“I was impressed with his ideas... I think euthanasia should be legalised,” Helen Hardingham said.

“It is your life. I would rather a peaceful end than years and years of being incapacitated.”

Robert Walden said he had spent 20 years working with education programs for older people and the current situation was removing access to information and respect for human rights which had taken people 1000 years to gain.

There was no sign of the placard-carrying protestors which have dogged some of Dr Nitschke's meetings.

As well as detailing the lengths people have to go to obtain the drugs and equipment for their own death and the huge legal risks run by partners who assist them, Dr Nitschke said although the Northern Territory was the first place in the world to legalise euthanasia in 1996.

This law was revoked by a Commonwealth private member's bill eight months later while other countries like Holland, Belgium and Switzerland had now changed their laws.

He also said Australia was moving to limit discussion and the spread of information on the issue, not only banning books like his work

The Peaceful Pill Handbook, but making it a criminal offence to possess the book; listing the website www.thepeacefulpill.com as one of the sites to be banned under controversial government internet filtering and even withdrawing the use of venues for meetings.

Assisting someone to commit suicide is currently a serious criminal offence in Australia punishable by up to 20 years jail.

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