I am furious about the case of Bernadette Forde (assisted suicide)

username123

I was listening to some discussion on this on NewsTalk yesterday.

What I am most furious about, is the fact that the poor woman actually had 2 flights booked to Switzerland to attend a Dignitas clinic, for herself and a friend to travel out and 1 ticket back for the friend and the travel agent called the Guards because there were 2 tickets out and 1 ticket back. Since when do we as a society accept travel agents standing in moral authority over us?

Whatever people think about assisted suicide, to prevent someone from travelling to a country to do something that is legal in that country - is no business of the travel agent or anyone else IMO.

That travel agent ensured that the poor woman had to undergo months more pain, plus the psychological pain of knowing that her friend who helped her in Ireland would end up in trouble with the law AND an undignified death.

Link to the case: http://www.herald.ie/news/courts/travel-agent-raised-the-alarm-over-suicide-trip-28003717.html

bronte

Horrible case.

We afford our pets a more comfortable dignified passing.
I know people have their concerns about elderly vulnerable people being bullied/brainwashed into assisted suicide, but surely it should be on a case by case basis so those in agony who just want to go peacefully don't have to suffer?

vitani

That's the part that annoyed me most as well. Ok, fair enough, our own laws don't allow assisted suicide, but whose business is it if anybody wants to travel to another country where it is actually legal. Do we stop people going to Amsterdam because they might smoke some cannabis? Do we prevent people travelling to the UK for an abortion? How is this situation any different?

Neyite

vitani wrote: »

That's the part that annoyed me most as well. Ok, fair enough, our own laws don't allow assisted suicide, but whose business is it if anybody wants to travel to another country where it is actually legal. Do we stop people going to Amsterdam because they might smoke some cannabis? Do we prevent people travelling to the UK for an abortion? How is this situation any different?

We used to. This was how the X Case referendum came about, was that the victim, together with her parents wanted to travel for an abortion to the UK. They queried something with regard to bringing back tissue samples to prove paternity of the rapist with Gardai and they prevented the girl from travelling to procure abortion. The girl was suicidal at the prospect of having her rapists baby.

That was only 1992. I was 17 then, and 38 now. Cosmo and the like had black censor squares in the back adverts for the Irish editions where abortion or pregnancy counselling which did not specifically exclude abortion as an option in pregnancy.
It was illegal to have an abortion,
It was illegal to travel to have one,
It was illegal to give out information on how to get one.


The referendum changed it in that we now were permitted to travel to get an abortion, magazines and papers could advertise abortion clinics, and family planning clinics could give women information on reputable clinics in the UK, and other information that they needed to travel.

vitani

Neyite wrote: »

We used to. This was how the X Case referendum came about, was that the victim, together with her parents wanted to travel for an abortion to the UK. They queried something with regard to bringing back tissue samples to prove paternity of the rapist with Gardai and they prevented the girl from travelling to procure abortion. The girl was suicidal at the prospect of having her rapists baby.

That's why I specifically used that example - it's probably the closest parallel that can be drawn to any other situation in Ireland. We decided by referendum over 20 years ago that women shouldn't be prevented from travelling to procure an abortion, even if it's something we don't allow take place in Ireland.

It's extremely disturbing to me that the Gardai can stop someone from physically leaving the State if they think they're going to a clinic like Dignitas.

Lucyfur

MOD

As this case is on going, it can't be discussed on boards for legal reasons. Please feel free to open a general discussion on euthanasia.

Lucy