Activists cry foul over ‘passive euthanasia’ bill

"Passive euthanasia, facilitated by deliberately withdrawing medicines, is highly inhuman and can never be justified in a country like India"

Human rights activists in Kerala have formed a collective to launch a massive protest against the Union government’s move to pass a bill that indirectly supports passive euthanasia.

Leaders of the joint forum said in communication here on Sunday that they would organise a public convention in front of the Secretariat on August 29 and convince people on the hidden provisions in the proposed bill and the chances of the bill’s misuse.

“Passive euthanasia, facilitated by deliberately withdrawing medicines, is highly inhuman like any other form of mercy killing and can never be justified in a country like India,” said A.V. Vidhyadharan and Aneesh Prabhakar, conveners of the joint forum.

Primitive concept

They alleged that it was a primitive concept endorsing the survival of the fittest, rejecting even the basic idea of the Hippocratic Oath.

According to the leaders’ of the collective, the draft bill on ‘passive euthanasia’ titled ‘The Medical Treatment of Terminally Ill patients (Protection of Patients and Medical Practitioners) Bill, was a blatant threat against the citizens’ basic right to live.

“We want the State government to take a firm stance against the move with the support of human rights organisations and prevent doctors from being transformed to authorised killers,” they said.