October 25, 2005

The Right Honourable Paul Martin

Prime Minister of Canada

House of Commons

Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6

Dear Prime Minister,

I am writing on behalf of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (EFC) to express grave concern regarding recent calls for the legalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide. These practices are the subject of increasing attention in the media and in Parliament, and appear to be gaining public acceptance. As the Justice Minister has indicated that the government intends to study euthanasia and assisted suicide, we urge you to proceed with great care, to firmly resist pressure to legalize these practices, and to foster a culture of life in Canada.

As a national association of protestant evangelical Christians, we believe that human beings are created in the image of God and have inherent dignity and worth. As such, there is no such thing as a "useless" life; all life is sacred, and should be cherished. Further, we believe that our worth is not determined by what we can do or the pleasure we are able to experience, but rather by who we are in relation to God and to each other. We believe that human life must be valued, respected and protected throughout all its stages, and in all circumstances.

Persons who are disabled, terminally ill or elderly are some of our society’s most vulnerable persons. And these are the ones who would be most at risk if assisted suicide or euthanasia were legalized. As Mr. Justice Sopinka stated in Rodriguez v. Canada, assisted suicide is ungovernable; it is not possible to devise safeguards which would adequately protect the vulnerable. The same can be said of euthanasia. Those who are most likely to ask for euthanasia are those who are most vulnerable to pressure from family members and the health care system, and fearful that they are becoming burdens to both.

End of life issues are difficult and complex. Anyone who has had to make end-of-life decisions with or for a family member knows this to be true. However, euthanasia is not the answer to the tremendous suffering faced by so many. Medical treatment should never be used for the purposes of causing death, and should always be life-affirming. The answer, then, is good palliative care, in all its facets. Palliative care protects the vulnerable and the sanctity of life, it is compassionate, it involves a dying person’s community, and is good stewardship of valuable health care resources. Palliative care eases the path from life to death in the most comfortable way possible.

In 2000, the Senate Subcommittee report, Quality End-of-Life Care: The Right of Every Canadian, in part, recommended that:

Quality end-of-life care must become an entrenched core value of Canada's health care system. Each person is entitled to die in relative comfort, as free as possible from physical, emotional, psychosocial, and spiritual distress. Each Canadian is entitled to access skilled, compassionate, and respectful care at the end of life. This Subcommittee sees care for the dying as an entitlement for all.

Calls for a more compassionate and comprehensive approach to end-of-life seem to be assigned a low priority in the existing health care system. Thus, in spite of statistical evidence indicating an increase in the numbers of total deaths and acknowledged changes in demographics, disease patterns, and health care institutions, there has not yet been the required shift of resources to end-of-life care.

We affirm both good medical care and palliative care, and recommend that the government focus its energy and resources in improving end-of-life care for all Canadians. With restrained health care budgets, there are gaps in the level of care across Canada. A focus on quality end-of-life and palliative care would be consistent with the life-affirming ethos in Canadian medicine. In contrast, the legalization of assisted suicide and euthanasia would call into question the presumption for life which characterizes our health system.

This week, Parliament may be called to vote on private member’s bill C-407, which seeks to amend the Criminal Code to allow both euthanasia and assisted suicide. This bill would allow anyone, under certain conditions, to kill another person suffering from severe physical or mental pain, so long as they are “assisted by a medical practitioner”, and that person has expressed the free and informed wish to die. Patients are not required to have sought or received treatment, can be suffering from any stage of terminal illness; and need only “appear lucid” to make the decision.

A strong and unqualified commitment to the sanctity of life by the major institutions of our society is required, particularly in a culture fascinated by and exposed to death and marked by an erosion of the value of life. We strongly urge you to emphatically oppose Bill C-407, a piece of legislation which is deeply flawed and would have far-reaching implications for the vulnerable in our society.  We also call upon the Prime Minister to show strong leadership in resisting calls for the legalization of assisted suicide and euthanasia.

Sincerely,

Bruce J. Clemenger

President

The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada

Issue: Euthanasia

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