The data from the study into ending of life decisions in the Netherlands in 2015 is now available - and the conclusions are horrifying.
Every five years the Netherlands conducts a study to determine how people die in the Netherlands and whether or not there are concerns with the euthanasia law. 2015's report was recently published, and it details the numbers of deaths by euthanasia, assisted suicide and "terminations of life without request".
Vast scale
The sheer numbers of lives being deliberately ended will shock many in this country. In 2015, there were 7254 assisted deaths in the Netherlands. Of these, 6672 were euthanasia deaths (where the doctor administrates the means of death, supposedly on request), 150 assisted suicide deaths (the person is supplied with drugs to take him or herself), and, most chillingly, 431 were "terminations of life without request".
Abuse of law
These figures are shocking enough, but they also reveal a clear abuse of the already permissive law. According to Alex Schadenburg of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, in "the Netherlands 2015 official euthanasia report there were 5561 reported assisted deaths in 2015 and yet the data from the study indicates that there were 7254 assisted deaths in 2015. Therefore, there were 1693 unreported assisted deaths (approximately 23%) in 2015."
Running amok
This news comes as the Netherlands considers extending euthanasia to those who feel they have "completed life". It also follows increasing evidence of patients with dementia being forcibly killed, including one woman who was held down by relatives when she tried to struggle. No wonder even the architect of euthanasia in the Netherlands says the law is "running amok".
News in brief:
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