Thursday, May 24, 2007

Euthanasia -The mercy killing

The most precious possession in one’s life is her own life. It is a true fact that everyone loves most his own life than any other possession. But when this valuable life becomes unbearable due to terminal suffering, few people muster the courage to put it to an end forever. Yes, this is how the concept of Euthanasia could help those pain stricken people. The word Euthanasia implies mercy killing or it can also be interpreted as assisted suicide. A person is being assisted to end his life to give him respite from his extreme physical pain and illness.

But this concept has not been accepted throughout the world. The practice of Euthanasia is illegal for human in United States. It is only performed there on persons who are on a death row for execution. A lethal injection is used to give them a quick and painless death. Killing is regarded as a sin as well as a sacrilege. It is also believed to be against the principle of humanity and medication. It came from Hyppocrates, the father of modern science, who said, ‘I will give no deadly medicine to anyone if asked, nor suggest any such counsel’. Doctors are still bound by this law. The first oath taken by the doctors after they complete their medical degree is also the same. In the whole world only Netherlands and Belgium allow this practice. The topic of Euthanasia was brought to the forefront of public opinion with the trial of Doctor Jack Kevorkian in the late 1990s. He was sentenced to 10-25yrs in prison for the murder of Thomas Youk after giving him a lethal injection. Euthanasia, like abortion, is a heated topic. People have divided into two different sects. Different people hold different view about it. Various religion and church are of the view that we all God’s child and our life is His greatest creation. So we have no right to destroy it. On the other hand, the proponents of Euthanasia are of an altogether different view. They think the state and the church have no rights to impinge upon one’s wish to sever all ties with this world.

This practice of mercy killing is common among farmers who kill their elderly pets to give them respite from the unbearable pain and agony. Euthanasia is also performed on old, disabled and suffering cats or dogs by their owners to end the extreme pain .When homes cannot be found for animals, animal shelters perform the same process on them.

But the practice of Euthanasia has not been legalized in all countries. If it is thought rationally, on one hand, Euthanasia is the only process which can end the tremendous pain and illness of the people who are suffering from any incurable and chronic disease. The patients who have to depend entirely upon medicines to keep their heart beating and are depraved of any physical as well as social activity, desire for mercy killing. They seek for a painless death. They deem it better to expire in sleep than to bear the pain throughout a death –like life.

On the other hand, the legalization of Euthanasia entails many hazards, both moral as well as social. This is against the humane quality to kill someone rather in religious term, to destroy the God’s creation. Legalization of Euthanasia will enhance the number of crimes. It will become impossible to distinguish between murders and wish death. IT won’t be a problem to perform Euthanasia on those suffering people who can communicate their wish to their relatives, doctors or to any other social institutions. But it will pose a big problem for those who are in coma or cannot express their wish. Unscrupulous relatives could take wrong advantage of the opportunity. They along with dishonest doctors, for financial gain, would make the murder appear as mercy killing. Crimes would be committed with legal stamp. So the situation is quite to be handled.

Euthanasia is a controversial subject and probably it will continue to remain so. Different shades of opinion exist upon the rights and wrongs of it but no solution has been found so far. It’s still debatable if one day euthanasia will unshackle the ailing people from their meaningless existence or be a potential weapon of mischievous people. The controversy is in its seed as it questions the very existence of human life, rather its termination.

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