South Australia Voluntary Euthanasia Bill kept alive

Description:

The South Australian Voluntary Euthanasia bill introduced by Greens MP Mark Parnell has passed by an 11-10 vote in the upper house of the state parliament.

Independent MP Anne Bressington's vote was key, and while she has not committed to supporting the bill, she did vote in favour of it progressing to the next stage of debate. Ms Bressington says she has concerns about the government board that would be created to oversee the process.

Frances Coombe of the South Australian Voluntary Euthanasia Society says political opinion on voluntary euthanasia is changing. "I think members of Parliament I know and some have remarked in there now, that this is an issue that's not going to go away," she said. Debate on the bill is expected to resume in a fortnight.

[Note: Some other recent stories related to this topic are in the Links: section below.]

[Note: there are stories in the Overflow: section below.]

Links:

To read the full article click on one of these links, both of which go to the same destination. A short link is provided for the convenience of readers. Also, readers may search and browse past advisories on the web (see bottom.)

  • http://tinyurl.com/yc25eu4

  • http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/10/29/2727064.htm

    Also see:

  • Euthanasia bill put to South Australian house [EuthaNEWSia, Oct. 27]
    http://www.euthanewsia.ca/archive/2009/10/enid200910271249.4.html

    This advisory contains links to the bills before the South Australia Parliament.

  • Euthanasia "a matter of when, not if" in SA [news.com.au]
    http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,26275806-29277,00.html

    "Greens MLC Mark Parnell's voluntary euthanasia bill passed a second reading in the Upper House 11 votes to 10 in a conscience vote about 1am (CDT) today…. "But the final hurdle will be a difficult one. It's the committee stage of the debate - we have to, as a parliament, agree clause by clause," Mr. Parnell said."

  • SA euthanasia bill passes second reading stage [The Australian]
    http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26275563-2702,00.html

    "The bill will go to committee in a fortnight and then have to pass a third reading. If the bill ultimately passes the upper house, it will then proceed to the lower house, where the two major parties have pledged to allow a conscience vote. There have been five failed attempts since 1995 to get a voluntary euthanasia bill passed by the state's parliament."

  • Independent MP Ann Bressington key to South Australia euthanasia vote [Adelaide Now]
    http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,26272019-2682,00.html?from=public_rss

    "Independent MP Ann Bressington said she would consider amendments proposed by Greens MP Mark Parnell aimed at eliminating the possibility of abuse. Labor Minister Gail Gago opened what was expected to be a marathon debate about 9.15pm. The former nurse called on her colleagues to support reform and said seriously ill patients had begged her to help end their lives."

    Greens Mark Parnell said: "I think the vote will be close. I think it will be one or two votes either way."

  • Rally support for voluntary euthanasia [ABC News, Australia]
    http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/10/28/2726574.htm?section=australia

    "About 120 people have rallied on the steps of Parliament House in Adelaide in support of voluntary euthanasia. Ian Wood from the group Christians Supporting Choice for Voluntary Euthanasia says many Christians support euthanasia. He says most of the opposition is from church hierarchies. "We've got members who are Anglican, Baptists, Catholic, Church of Christ, we've even got a Jehovah's Witness," he said. "The message of Jesus is love and compassion and that's what we think should be involved in the legislation.""

  • Australian Christian Lobby says "overwhelming majority of Christians" oppose euthanasia [Christian Today, Australia]
    http://au.christiantoday.com/article/christians-opposed-to-sa-euthanasia-bill/7180.htm

    The Australian Christian Lobby "has battled strongly against euthanasia being legalised for years at both State and Federal levels and before numerous parliamentary inquiries. In consulting with churches and Christian leaders we have been left in no doubt that the vast majority of Christians are opposed to euthanasia." spokesperson Jim Wallace said.

  • Vocal majority should ensure legislation passes [Adelaide Now]
    http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,26263423-5019058,00.html

    "THE baby-boomer bubble will be responsible for the legalisation of voluntary euthanasia. Two private members' Bills on the topic - one by Greens MLC Mark Parnell and one by independent MP Bob Such - are slated to be debated in Parliament this week."

Source:

"Voluntary Euthanasia Bill kept alive". ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) Updated October 29, 2009 07:39:00. <www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/10/29/2727064.htm>. Australian Broadcasting Corporation, ABC Ultimo Centre, 700 Harris Street, Ultimo NSW 2007, GPO Box 9994, Sydney NSW 2001.

Tags:

Tags (or keywords) briefly indicate some major topics of the report.

  • voluntary euthanasia

  • legislation

  • Frances Coombe

  • South Australian Voluntary Euthanasia Society (SAVES)

  • South Australia

  • Australia

Overflow:

Stories that EuthaNEWSia did not get to:

  • Euthanasia "Exit Pill" Developed [Voxy.co.nz]
    http://www.voxy.co.nz/national/euthanasia-039exit-pill039-developed/5/28849

    "A single solid pill for a peaceful death has been developed by Exit International. The pill is made from a stable inert form of the barbiturate Nembutal that has been developed for long term storage and transport. To use the pill to achieve a peaceful death, the pill is altered into the soluble active drug and reconstituted as a small drink."

  • Nitschke to promote illegal pill [ABC News]
    http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/10/30/2728364.htm

    Darwin-based euthanasia campaigner Dr Philip Nitschke says he does not expect to be arrested for promoting a new illegal pill here and overseas. The drug has been developed from the euthanasia drug Nembutal and manufacturers say it can be stored for 50 years.

  • Vancouver church hosts right-to-die doctor [Vancouver Citizen, Canwest]
    http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Vancouver+church+hosts+right+doctor/2142389/story.html

    "Rev. Steven Epperson of the Unitarian Church of Vancouver said he believes Dr. Philip Nitschke, director of the pro-euthanasia group Exit International, has the right to free speech, even if he's telling people how to kill themselves. "Historically, we have provided a forum, a space, for controversial, difficult ideas to be presented," Epperson told the Vancouver Province. Almost 40 years ago, Greenpeace held its inaugural meeting at the church, which is in its centenary year. And the church has a long tradition of allowing women and gays to speak out in their space."

  • Stacking the Deck For Euthanasia in Canadian "End of Life" Commission [Secondhand Smoke, Wesley J. Smith]
    http://www.firstthings.com/blogs/secondhandsmoke/2009/10/28/stacking-the-deck-for-euthanasia-in-canadian-end-of-life-commission/

    Smith points out that Queen's Philosophy professor Udo Schuklenk wrote, in an essay on atheism: "According to [organized monotheistic religions], we are not ethically entitled to ask for physician assisted suicide or voluntary euthanasia." He says that Scot philosophy professor Sheila McClean wrote the book, The Case for Assisted Suicide. Another panelist, Jocelyn Downie authored Dying Justice, a book urging the decriminalization of both euthanasia and assisted suicide. Further: "Another commissioner is a Dutch euthanasia researcher. Cute." This accounts for four of the six panelists.

  • It's alive! End-of-life counseling in health bill [The Associated Press]
    http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hH5D8HNGJ05AvGKc7Fxd33wv8dXgD9BKUE5O0

    "The Medicare end-of-life planning provision that 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin said was tantamount to death panels for seniors is staying in the latest Democratic health care bill unveiled Thursday. The provision allows Medicare to pay for voluntary counseling to help beneficiaries deal with the complex and painful decisions families face when a loved one is approaching death."

  • A man from Croxley Green with multiple sclerosis wants the law to change so he can die at home [Watford Observer]
    http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/4708038.Croxley_man_fights_for_right_to_die/

    "A man from Croxley Green wants to change the law in Great Britain, so he can die with dignity in his own home. Chris Handley, 55, from Links Way, has lived with a degenerative disease for 15 years. "My carers get me out at half nine, I sit in this cafe and then I'm back in bed by two. That's my life.""

  • BC letter: Spend just one day in his shoes [Comox Valley Record, BC]
    http://www.bclocalnews.com/vancouver_island_north/comoxvalleyrecord/opinion/letters/66543132.html

    John Hiltz writes: "I'm dying of terminal cancer. I'm in near-constant pain. I'm hungry but can't eat, constipated, and so weak I can hardly stand up…. I'm not saying we should kill off everyone with a terminal illness. If someone wants to cling to life in a drug-induced stupor with drool dripping down their cheek, consuming valuable health resources, go right ahead and good luck to you."

  • Assisted Dying in Scotland [The Journal, Edinburgh]
    http://www.journal-online.co.uk/article/6028-suicide-act-to-be-modified

    Student newspaper interviews Dr Libby Wilson, and surveys the Scottish situation concerning assisted dying.

  • Doctors who back assisted suicide 40 per cent more likely to withdraw treatment [Times Online]
    http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article6890633.ece

    "Doctors who support the legalisation of assisted suicide are more likely to withdraw or withhold treatment from dying patients, a study has found. Actively helping someone to die remains illegal in Britain but more than a third of GPs and hospital doctors report making decisions which they expected would accelerate the death of a terminally-ill patient."

  • Ten Inevitable Tragic Consequences of National Health Care [The Huffington Post]
    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-peter-breggin/ten-inevitable-tragic-con_b_332740.html

    American psychiatrist Dr. Peter Breggin writes of the dire consequences he predicts for a National Health Care system for the United States. His argument is predicated on government forcefully adopting cost-cutting policies such as euthanasia, assisted suicide, and abortion as alternatives to expensive medical treatment.

  • Ending it … [The National Forum, AU]
    http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=9610

    David Fisher writes in an opinion article: "I will be 84 this month and am in good health, but I don't know what the future will bring. I belong to the Voluntary Euthanasia Society of Queensland which seeks to have the Rights of the Terminally Ill Act [the Northern Territory act from the 90's] enacted. At this time the Senate Community Affairs References Committee is conducting an "Inquiry into Suicide in Australia". The committee is open to submissions until November 20, 2009." He explains that he will be telling the committee about the suicides of his father-in-law and cousin.

ID:

The EuthaNEWSia ID for this advisory is: enid200910301500.
Mailed: Friday, October 30, 2009 14:40:48 -0600
at Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Etcetera:

EuthaNEWSia is a free Canadian news advisory service covering end-of-life issues such as right to die, assisted suicide, and euthanasia. EuthaNEWSia is produced by the Right to Die Society of Canada which works toward a good death for all, including open, regulated and equitable access to euthanasia and assisted suicide. The editor is Michael Dawson <editor@euthanewsia.ca>. 

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