Colombia's Constitutional Court, on Wednesday, in a major decision legalised the support of medical staff in suicide for people suffering from incurable diseases. Euthanasia has been legal in the country since 1997. Colombia becomes the first Latin American country to legalise suicide assisted with medical staff.
Euthanasia is when a patient chooses to die in a procedure where medical staff are present. In January 2022, it was used for the first time by a person suffering a non-terminal illness, a Reuters report reads.
Assisted suicide is when a terminally ill person decides to end their life after consulting a doctor, while medical staff is present. A Colombian right-to-die group DescLAB contested criminalisation of those who assist others with suicide to be violating people’s right to a dignified death and access to medical help.
“It’s a new mechanism which, along with euthanasia, allows us to access a free, safe and accompanied medically assisted death,” DescLAB research director Lucas Correa told Reuters.
The ruling was backed by six out of nine judges. It requires the patient meets standards set in place for euthanasia-- being diagnosed with an injury or an incurable disease, which causes them intense mental or physical pain, which doesn't allow them to live a dignified life. The patient must express their wish to end their life and should enlist the help of a doctor.
Currently, a person who encourages or assists a person to terminate the life of a terminally ill person can be sentenced to between 16 and 36 months in prison
