Early projections after a referendum in Switzerland indicate that Swiss voters in Zurich have turned down a proposal to ban assisted suicide. Approximately 200 people commit assisted suicide in Zurich annually, a significant number of them are foreigners who come in from abroad to end their lives.
It appears that voters are heavily in favor of keeping things as they are. Since 1941 assisted suicide has been legal in the country if the person involved in helping is a non-doctor and has no personal or vested interest in the result of the procedure.
In Switzerland, assisted suicide refers only to providing the means; it does not include actively helping the person carry it out. You can provide the patient with the medication, but you cannot administer it to them.
Dignitas, an organization that helps people end their lives, says it has had over 1,000 clients from abroad. Exit, another organization, will only deal with Swiss residents.
Although most Swiss voters are in favor of assisted suicide, they are not happy with the term suicide tourism. Many individuals from neighboring countries, and further afield, where the practice is illegal, come to Switzerland to die – a situation that makes the locals feel uneasy, according Swiss media.
One of the proposals which Swiss voters appear to have rejected would have made it a requirement that any client would have to have been a resident in the Zurich area for at least 12 months. The proposal was put forward by the Evangelical People’s Party and the Federal Democratic Union. However, the main parties advised Swiss voters to reject it.
The projected result of the referendum reflects a deep respect among the Swiss for an individual’s right to decide when and how to die.
Polls reveal that most citizens would like to see clearer laws regarding assisted suicide.
Written by Christian Nordqvist