European Court of Human Rights rejects euthanasia

The European Court of Human Rights ruled in favor of life in Hungary, rejecting a challenge that sought to allow assisted suicide.

Jean-Paul Van de Walle, lawyer for the ADF International organization —who intervened in the case— He stated that States must protect the right to life and that there is no “right to die.”

The European justice ruling came after Dániel Karsai, a 47-year-old Hungarian lawyer diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), filed an appeal before the Strasbourg Court on the grounds that his country’s legislation violates the European Convention. of Human Rights and, in particular, their right to privacy and euthanasia.

The Hungarian lawyer wanted to resort to assisted suicide before his physical condition deteriorated further. Hungary, clarifies ADF International. protects the lives of its citizens, including the vulnerable, by criminalizing the act of helping someone to end their life, whether the act is committed in Hungary or abroad.

“While we deeply empathize with Mr. Karsai’s condition and support his right to receive the best possible care and relief, it is clear in other jurisdictions that the right to die is quickly becoming a duty to dieVan de Walle warned.

The court ruling established that the Hungarian authorities acted in line with the country’s obligation under international law to protect life.

“Instead of abandoning our most vulnerable citizens, society should do everything possible to provide the best standards of care,” said the ADF International lawyer.

The intervention of ADF International in the case of Dániel Karsai v. Hungary

In its submission to the court, ADF International warned of the dangers and abuses that inevitably arise when any legal protection for life is removed. This, the organization explains, “creates a dangerous scenario in which vulnerable people are pressured to end their lives out of fear (whether justified or not) of being a burden on their families, caregivers or a State with lack of sources”.

The Strasbourg Court stated that “there is no basis” for Member States to be advised, much less required, to provide access to euthanasia.

“Suicide is something that society rightly considers a tragedy that must be prevented and the same should apply to assisted suicide. Caring, not killing, should be the goal we all strive for,” Van de Walle said.

“Once we, as a society, open the doors to intentional murder, there is no logical stopping point. How do we distinguish between the person we convince not to jump off the bridge and the person we let die at the hands of their doctor? The State is obliged to protect the fundamental value of human life. We must not implement legal changes that undermine this obligation to the detriment of the entire society,” he concluded.