Mexican group gathers thousands of signatures in petition against euthanasia

The Mexican group Actívate (Get Active) presented a petition with nearly 6,000 signatures to the Mexican Chamber of Deputies on April 18, expressing opposition to the potential legalization of euthanasia in the country. 

Catholic News Agency reports that the signees wanted to convey that  “euthanasia is a form of assisted death that has no place in a society that values life and human dignity.”

“We have come to deliver more than 5,800 signatures to the Chamber of Deputies to let legislators know that Mexican citizens don’t want to accept the initiative, the death bill, called euthanasia. What the public is looking for and proposing is that palliative care be bolstered,” said Cecilia Urrea, Actívate’s campaign coordinator.

According to a translated copy of the petition, the signees are petitioning against a proposed “Law of Euthanasia,” in the Mexican Congress. 

“Euthanasia does not seek a better life condition for the person, but to eliminate the person who is a burden to society,” the petition reads. It goes on to point out that euthanasia laws are discriminatory against the ill and disabled, and they lead to a society where a person is only considered worthy if he or she can make valuable contributions to society. 

In addition to opposing euthanasia, the petitioners also called for support for palliative care legislation.

“The imposition of this euthanasia law implies a setback in the application of palliative care, which are true acts of compassion and empathy with the dying or terminally ill,” the petition says.

“In Mexico, euthanasia and assisted suicide are expressly prohibited in Article 166 of the General Health Law and in Article 312 of the Federal Penal Code [CPF],” Ivette Laviada, who holds a master’s degree in bioethics, told ACI Prenta.

“When a doctor can no longer cure, he can accompany with palliative care,” Laviada added. Necessary nutrition, hygiene, and medicines that eliminate or reduce pain should not be withheld “and the patient, if he so desires, should receive spiritual accompaniment.”

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