Essay Database

Browne A. Assisted Suicide and Active Voluntary Euthanasia - A Position Paper of the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association. Vancouver: The Association, 1988. The position paper presents arguments for and against assisted suicide and active voluntary euthanasia, as well as some of the most commonly made objections to legalization of assisted suicide and active voluntary euthanasia. The author then replies to each objection and makes proposals for law reform in the area, arguing that the law …

…that a person cannot be harmed by having his worthless life ended. In fact the most active and clear-sighted advocates of the legalization of voluntary euthanasia are also advocates of the legalization of non-voluntary euthanasia. They promote the view that many human beings lack the 'moral standing' (what is here called 'basic dignity') in virtue of which they enjoy basic human rights; so they cannot be wronged even if the motive for killing them is