Salabiah A1B214051

Should Mercy Killing be Legalized?

            Dying patient should have the right to require doctors to end their life. People who are pro-euthanasia will definitely agree with that statement. Now, what is Euthanasia? Euthanasia, as known as mercy killing, is a deliberate action of intentionally ending a life of a person in order to relieve pain and suffer. “There are two main classifications of euthanasia: 1) Voluntary euthanasia- this euthanasia is conducted with consent of the patient. 2) Involuntarily euthanasia- this euthanasia is conducted without the consent of the patient. The decision which is made by another person because the patient is incapable of doing so by themselves. There are two procedural classifications of euthanasia: 1). Passive euthanasia- this is when life-sustaining treatments are withheld. 2) Active euthanasia- lethal substances or forces are used to end the patient's life.” (Nordqvist, 2016). Many people are arguing about should or should not euthanasia be legalized. I, myself, disagree with this idea of ending a patient's life. The main reasons can be listed as follow.

            First, euthanasia violates the religions belief that only God has the right to take a person's life away. In Al Qur'an, the holly book of Islam, Allah says, “Nor can a soul die except by Allah's leave, the term being fixed by writing” (Qur'an, 39:42). By legalizing the euthanasia, it means we agree and support the idea of a human end another human's life, which implies that we give them right to behave as God while they are not. All human beings will die eventually, but it is not justifiable to arrange their own death. Based on this, “the power to play with people's lives should not be handed out under a legal or medical disguise” (Hassan, 2008, p. 25).

            Not only Islam stands up against the euthanasia, but another religions, too. Since, basically every religion considers a life is sacred and is worth protecting, the Bible also has the say about this; Death is an enemy (1 Corinthians 15:26). Life is sacred gift from God (Genesis 2:7). When given the choices between life and death, God told Israel to “Choose Life” (Deuteronomy 30:19). It is clearly stated that no excuses for people to end a life or ask someone to end their life.

            Second, euthanasia is murder. Euthanasia and murder have same definition which is taking a person's life intentionally. This is considered as immoral and sinful. The procedure of euthanasia which should be done by doctors, gives them the opportunity to play God. Many people becomes unaware that a person with certain capacity takes self-interested shortcuts in order to earn more or to make things easier. They will likely be tempted to kill someone in the quickest way to avoid the troublesome case or eliminating the hassle of dealing with importunate family members. As an example, 'Dr. Jack Kevorkian, a pathologist who took advantage of his patients' agony and murdered them. According to the report, his goals were to popularize assisted suicide (euthanasia), to harvest organs for transplantation, and to experiment the sick and injured patients.' (Charatan, 1999). This is may become a common phenomenon happens in the future if we agree with the legalization of euthanasia.

            Furthermore, euthanasia breaks patients trust in the medical profession. 'Doctors are the people who we trust and look for guidance and advice about our health. If we find out the doctor we attend is the one who practices euthanasia, we would not visit them again. The reason is, when we go to a doctor we want to make sure that our doctor will do everything that he or she can to keep us alive. We do not want to go to someone  who thinks that maybe we would prefer to give up on life.' (Anderson, 2015). In addition, putting a doctor in charge to end a patient's life, with or without the patient's consent, against the Hippocratic Oath which say “To please no one will I prescribe a deadly drug nor give advice which may cause his death”. It is their responsibility to prescribe medicine which will cure the illness of a patient, not to kill them.

            Third, euthanasia encourages vulnerable people to end their lives. When patients lack of  necessary knowledge about the pain or disease, they tend to relate it with death. They will not have the urge to survive. People who are sick and dependent will be pressured to choose death, rather than suffer to fight their disease. Beside that, there is a chance of deviation of the reasons of people who require assisted suicide. It will not only be asked to end the unbearable and incurable diseases of a patient, but also to end a life of a person who simply does not want to live any longer, for instance, a woman named Gill Pharaoh, who was 75 years old, with no health issues, decided to end her life at a Swiss euthanasia clinic on July 21^st. According to Daily Mail, her decision to die was based on a desire to not grow old. Regarding this illustration, we can see, euthanasia cuts the willpower of human nature, kill the hopes in life, and it even denies the worthwhile existence of human being. Life supposed to be cherished and desired. Life becomes meaningful and more valuable because of the hardships that we go through. So, do not lose hope, Allah says, “All you who believe, seek your help in patience and prayer; indeed, Allah is with the patient (Qur'an, 2:153-154).

            Legalizing euthanasia, especially for irreversible and unbearable mental conditions, indicates some suicides are acceptable. This risks sending a 'mixed message' regarding the tragedy of youth suicide and creates a confusing double standard. It also implies that someone's life is not worth living and steer some people towards a premature death. So, for people who say euthanasia does no harm should think again of its effects.

            People who stand up for euthanasia argue that it protects self-hood and human dignity. They will be able to die with self-determination left in them. However, this idea is ridiculous, because people who die by choosing to struggle and fight for their life are the one who have dignity, not them who surrender. They are trying and doing their best to defeat their disease  and bearing the pain. They brave enough to take the risks. So, there is no solid reason to justify euthanasia.

            In conclusion, euthanasia is an action of ending a person's life intentionally. It against the religions belief, it is homicide, and it encourages vulnerable people to die rather than survive. Doctors and the family of the patient have to support them to go through the hardship. They should be patient in taking care of them. Motivate them to fight their disease. The legalization of euthanasia will promote abuse and may arise many social problems. Therefore, euthanasia should not be legalized.

References

       1. Aramesh, K. and Shadi, H. (2007). An islamic perspective on euthanasia. The American                     Journal  of Bioethics, 7(4), pp. 65-66.

                      Retrieved  from: http://www.world-educationcenter.org/index.php/paas

       2. Nordqvist, Christian. (2007). Euthanasia and assisted suicide. Retrieved from :                                               http://medicalnewstoday.com/articles/182951.php

3.      Schippert, Alayna. (2016). Euthanasia should be illegal. Retrieved from: http://www.debate.org/debates/Euthanasia-should-be-illegal/2/&ei

4.      Anonymous. (2015). Euthanasia should not be legalized philosophy essay. Retrieved from: http://www.ukessays.com/essays/philosophy/euthanasia-should-not-be-legalized-philosophy-essay.php&ei

5.      Anderson, Dave. (2015). Top 10 reasons euthanasia should be illegal. Retrieved from: http://www.listland.com/top-10-reasons-euthanasia-should-be-illegal/&ei

6.      Angelotti, Julia. (2014). Guest view: for many reasons euthanasia should not be legalized. Retrieved from: http://m.kcchronicle.com/2014/03/18/guest-view-for-many-reasons-euthanasia-should-not-be-legalized/axz1ths/&ei