Colombian bishops' conference opposes euthanasia proposal

Published: 2007-10-04

BOGOTA, Colombia (CNS) -- The Colombian bishops' conference said it opposes proposed legislation that would regulate euthanasia. "Life must be respected from beginning to end," said retired Bishop Fabian Marulanda Lopez of Florencia, secretary-general of the Colombian bishops' conference. The bishops' conference said in a press release that "pain and suffering are an integral part of one's existence" and that one must "accept that and live it as a fundamental value." Colombia's high court removed penalties for euthanasia in 1997. Since then, some doctors have performed euthanasia, generally without attracting public attention. No rules or regulations currently control how or when euthanasia can be carried out. The proposed legislation would regulate the practice, permitting doctors to euthanize terminally ill patients on medical support who suffer from intense pain or extreme dependency. It would also require written permission from the patient or the patient's family, a second opinion from another professional and a psychiatric evaluation. It says there must be no medical alternative for relieving the patient's suffering.

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