Any move toward legalizing assisted suicide in the nation should be made with caution and start from the grassroots, as it would be “improper” for the government to take the lead on the policy, Minister of Health and Welfare Hsueh Jui-yuan (薛瑞元) said yesterday.
Hsueh made the remarks at a meeting in the Legislative Yuan, where he took several questions relating to famed sculptor Ju Ming (朱銘), who died by suicide at 85 over the weekend following years of chronic health problems.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wen Yu-hsia (溫玉霞) said that Ju’s death and dozens of similar cases each year highlighted areas of Taiwan’s “long-term care” policies that still needed to be improved.
Photo: CNA
In making those reforms, the government should also consider the question of whether to legalize euthanasia, Wen said, but added that it would probably be difficult to reach a consensus at present.
New Power Party Legislator Chiu Hsien-chih (邱顯智) asked to what degree such issues could be handled under current laws, such as the Hospice Palliative Care Act (安寧緩和醫療條例) of 2000 and the 2019 Patient Right to Autonomy Act (病人自主權利法), which guarantees patients’ right to a good death.
Citing the Netherlands as an example of a country that has legalized euthanasia while maintaining “extremely rigorous standards,” Chiu asked whether the health ministry should initiate conversations with various sectors of society on the topic.
Hsueh said that with euthanasia, the crux of the issue is that it does not just involve a person who is ill and wants to end their life, but also another individual who has to actively assist them.
As this responsibility would currently fall on medical personnel, there is significant controversy over whether it should be allowed, he said.
Many cases, like Ju’s, have complex backstories, and should not be automatically attributed to failures in long-term care policies, he said.
As for the legal and ethical side of the issue, the laws cited by Chiu are sufficient at least for passive situations, in which doctors do not provide life-extending care if that is what the patient wants, he said.
However, in terms of physician-assisted suicide, the problem is that both the Hippocratic Oath and the policies of the World Medical Association are firmly opposed to it, Hsueh said.
Therefore, even if there were a legal basis for euthanasia, there might not be medical professionals willing to take part, he said.
Hsueh also appeared wary of engaging with medical associations on the issue, saying it would be “a bit strange” for the health ministry to be in the position of trying to convince doctors to breach their own professional guidelines.
Because of this, Hsueh said he believes that any plans to change the legal status of euthanasia should be made with caution, and should proceed from the bottom up.
“The government should not be enthusiastically promoting euthanasia. Having the government take the lead [on the issue] would be improper,” Hsueh added.
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
A total lunar eclipse, an astronomical event often referred to as a “blood moon,” would be visible to sky watchers in Taiwan starting just before midnight on Sunday night, the Taipei Astronomical Museum said. The phenomenon is also called “blood moon” due to the reddish-orange hue it takes on as the Earth passes directly between the sun and the moon, completely blocking direct sunlight from reaching the lunar surface. The only light is refracted by the Earth’s atmosphere, and its red wavelengths are bent toward the moon, illuminating it in a dramatic crimson light. Describing the event as the most important astronomical phenomenon
UNDER PRESSURE: The report cited numerous events that have happened this year to show increased coercion from China, such as military drills and legal threats The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aims to reinforce its “one China” principle and the idea that Taiwan belongs to the People’s Republic of China by hosting celebratory events this year for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the “retrocession” of Taiwan and the establishment of the UN, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in its latest report to the Legislative Yuan. Taking advantage of the significant anniversaries, Chinese officials are attempting to assert China’s sovereignty over Taiwan through interviews with international news media and cross-strait exchange events, the report said. Beijing intends to reinforce its “one China” principle
RSS