Jan. 17, 2021. This program explained laws and practices of Voluntary Euthanasia and briefly reviewed Assisted Dying practices in various countries around the world.

Speakers:
Rob Jonquiére, MD, Executive Director, World Federation of Right to Die Societies will report on the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and other European countries.

Asuncion Alvarez, PhD, Board Member, World Federation, A founder of Death with Dignity Mexico will report on Colombia, Uruguay, Venezuela, Peru and Mexico.

Sean Davison, PhD, Chairman of the Board, World Federation Founder of Dignity South Africa will report on New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and his own situation involving two arrests.

Francesco Porcellati from Libera Uscita informed us about a promising ruling in Italian courts. From a Constitutional Court ruling in October 2019, part of article 580 of the Italian Criminal Code was deemed unconstitutional. The court recognized the right to a medically assisted suicide provided certain criteria were met, including: the person wanting to end his/her life should have legal capacity to make decisions, be suffering from irreversible pathologies that are the source of unbearable pain; be dependent on life-saving health treatments and have a wish to achieve a peaceful end. They also imposed the criteria that the health condition of the person be verified by a committee of the National Health Service. By this ruling the Parliament was tasked with modifying the text article 580 of the Italian criminal code that called for the punishment of those who simply gave assistance to a suicide.