Wellington, New Zealand, Jul 17, 2005 / 22:00 pm
The New Zealand Medical Association announced Friday that it will reconsider its position on euthanasia at the end of July.
Family Life International said this news marks a frightening moment in the country’s history. It points out that the right to life is the fundamental right, which underpins all other rights, and there is no such thing as a right to die.
“Death is not a human right it is an inevitable and unavoidable part of life,” Family Life International said in a press release Friday. “Without life one is never afforded the opportunity to exercise any other human rights.”
The pro-life group argued that euthanasia would fly in the face of the Hippocratic oath and lead to an increase in involuntary euthanasia.
“It leads to a lowering of palliative care standards, and less concern for using finance and resources to fight terminal illness,” the statement said. “It also creates lazy physicians, and a dangerous and unhealthy imbalance in the doctor-patient relationship.”