The 'Slippery Slope' is real: Netherlands may remove all euthanasia barriers

The Dutch parliament will consider a petition to eliminate euthanasia restrictions due to a campaign group's collection of more than 75,000 signatures.

Key Takeaways:

• A Dutch euthanasia group has collected 75,000 petition signatures, allowing them to advance a bill that would remove restrictions surrounding euthanasia.

• Currently in the Netherlands, a person needs to have a medical diagnosis with "unbearable suffering," along with the approval of a physician in order to qualify for euthanasia.

• The new bill would remove these restrictions, allowing a person to choose euthanasia without a doctor's involvement.

The Details:

Although euthanasia has been legal in the Netherlands since 2002, it must be committed within some parameters: in order to be eligible, a person must have a medical diagnosis causing "unbearable suffering with no prospect of improving" and the request must be approved by a doctor.

The campaign group Stichting Levenseinderegie ("Foundation for End-of-Life Management") has now collected more than 75,000 signatures asking parliament to consider a citizens' initiative that would remove those parameters. Their proposal, the End-of-Life Management Bill, would allow an individual to choose euthanasia without oversight or direction from a doctor. 

The group reportedly conducted a survey which found that 71% of respondents agreed with a new law in which “people decide for themselves if and when euthanasia and assisted suicide should be applied.”

A translated synopsis from the petition summarizes the changes the group hopes to make:

1. You decide on your euthanasia request, even if life has been completed.

2. You or the volunteer physician will perform the euthanasia (with the required medical care).

3. In the case of terminal palliative sedation, you may choose euthanasia, regardless of whether you have previously submitted an advance directive.

Zoom Out:

The initiative appears to be the latest move in an attempt to open wide the gates of euthanasia in a society that has long accepted it as standard practice.

As Alex Schadenberg, International Chair of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, noted, euthanasia deaths in the country continue to rise, and in 2024, made up 5% of all deaths.

"Euthanasia deaths have been steadily increasing and the oversight of the law has been steadily decreasing," he wrote. "A concerning trend in the Netherlands is the increase in euthanasia deaths based on psychological suffering and the increase in the number of younger people who are dying by euthanasia."

Stichting Levenseinderegie was founded by Wim van Dijk, who was previously convicted of illegally selling a suicide powder. According to Dutch News, he barely received a slap on the wrist for his crime; he had to complete 40 hours of community service and received a six-month suspended jail sentence. He was not deterred from promoting euthanasia, and now focuses on changing the law so that anyone who wishes to die will be aided in doing so.

The Bottom Line:

When euthanasia opponents warn of the "slippery slope" that comes with state-sanctioned death, this is it.

Euthanasia is no longer being peddled as an option for those who are terminally ill and experiencing unbearable suffering — instead, its supporters are now publicly advocating for suicide for anyone, and for any reason.

Supporting such legislation completely devalues the dignity and worth of every human life.