Belgium is one of the only countries whose legislature permits the use of euthanasia on human adults. In the United States, the use of euthanasia is only legal in Washington, Oregon, Montana, and Vermont. But Belgium has just recently become the third country in the world, after the Netherlands and Luxembourg, to grant children the right to die.
The “right to die” is the ethical or institutional entitlement of any individual to undergo voluntary euthanasia and end one’s life. Belgium is now extending its euthanasia law to children under 18, so minors with terminal illnesses can choose to end their suffering. An added condition specifies that the parents of the minor must approve and understand what the decision means.
Karine Lalieux, a Socialist member of the Belgium House of Representatives, favored extending Belgium’s 2002 euthanasia law to minors and claimed, “Our responsibility is to allow everybody to live, but also to die, in dignity.”
While most people are in favor of Belgium’s extension of euthanasia to children, some believe that its controversial ethical applications will question autonomy and make death much more accessible for young people. 86 lawmakers voted in favor of the extension in the Chamber of Representatives while 44 voted against it and 12 abstained.
Carina Van Cauter, a lawmaker for the Flemish Liberal Democrats who supports the law, stated that “there are clear checks and balances in the law to prevent abuse.” There are measures to be taken to ensure that those granted an assisted death are in need of it due to terminal disease.
To guarantee that sick children understand what euthanasia encompasses and the significance of their decisions, Belgium’s new law requires that they be “capable of discernment,” meaning they must demonstrate to a psychologist or psychiatrist that they possess good judgment and comprehend what they are doing. Like adults who seek euthanasia, the children would have to be in a state of terrible suffering with a terminal illness and near death.
To learn more about the extension to Belgium’s euthanasia law, take a look at the video below: