By Hélène de Lauzun, European Conservative. (Photo: Denisse Leon/Unsplash)
The assisted suicide legislation will be one of the most permissive in the world.
Emmanuel Macron will be able to boast of having fulfilled one of his campaign promises with the passage of the assisted suicide bill, which was set for a final vote in the National Assembly on July 15th.
The National Assembly adopted the “right to assisted dying” in its final reading by a vote of 291 in favour to 241 against. The bill had been adopted by a vote of 295 in favour to 232 against in a new reading on June 30th.
On the right, the bill was overwhelmingly rejected by lawmakers. In the Rassemblement National (RN), only 12 lawmakers voted in favour, while 106 voted against. Among Les Républicains, there were 5 supporters of the bill compared to 41 opponents. The allied group, the Union of the Rights for the Republic (UDR), rejected it in its entirety.
After several months of debate, lawmakers restored their original version of the bill, rejecting the Senate’s amendments intended to strengthen safeguards. Believing that no compromise was possible, senators had chosen to reject the bill without initiating another round of parliamentary back-and-forth.
Opponents denounce the law as one that will make France one of the most permissive countries in the world regarding euthanasia. Grégor Puppinck, of the European Center for Law and Justice, lists 27 provisions that are extremely concerning. A single doctor can decide on the entire procedure, with no requirement for a written request or witnesses; the doctor may meet the patient for the first time on the very day of the request, consult two people of his or her choice without them examining the patient, and then authorize euthanasia within a timeframe that can be reduced to three days. People under legal guardianship are not excluded; family members are not informed before death and have no recourse.