Well fuck that.
-someone with a disability
I’m that someone, the UN doesn’t represent me.
Yeah, this is where I get caught in circles. I get, as a whole this UN committee, as well as many other organizations, want to push for as much improvement as possible. Very reasonable and understandable they have the goals to improve the rights of humans and ensure equality. I may not like the some of the suggestions, but they do have a supported rationale even if I’m not 100% sold on 100% of their recommendations.
I want people to have autonomy, both for life and death. But I also want improved rights protections alongside proactive approaches when it comes to social determinants of health. Improved interventions when we can’t prevent problems.
However, I do beleive there exists some situations where even if we did address all of those aspects, there are still 1:1 000 000 cases per where the symptoms of a diagnosis, groups of diagnosis collectively, or the adverse effects of their treatment options are unbearable for some. So I don’t want to take away MAiD as a possible compassionate option in those rare circumstances. Watching someone slowly die of health complications, or inevitable and impending renal dialysis they plan to refuse, or starving themselves…it’s distressing.
So in my frustrating mental circle I continue to go >.<
This topic frustrates me.
I 100% beleive that more needs to be done to improve accessibility, resources, services and more, for various different disabilities and health realted issues. Someone who wants to live, could enjoy their life if they had what they needed, shouldn’t feel pressured to choose MAiD say because their provincial government won’t fund enough care spaces. Or one legislative body thinks you should be out their earning a wage and not receiving as much assistance due to ideological BS reasons.
However, someone who has endevoured and continued to survive, who honestly with legitimate effort has explored their options, then self assesses they want to pursue MAiD via the track 2 route, with sound mind and decision making, should have that option.
I also take issue with the comparison of MAiD as currently written to Germany during the Nazi regime. I think there is a massive ethical difference between someone choosing which other individuals should live or be made to die via physical/pharmacological methods based off of discriminatory extremist ideology reasons VS someone, of sound mind, deciding and consenting for themselves if they wish to explore and pursue MAiD options. Surely, there is a better way to explore the ethical and moral dilemmas that can arise with MAiD in which we are comparing apples to apples.
I think we can use guidelines, recommendations, well explained criteria, effective and robust training, and safety measures to address concerns with the application of current legislation.
I honestly think the right to die is one of the most fundamental rights people can have. It’s wild and selfish how we treat it.
One day will be my day, and frankly I’d like quickly while surrounded by loved ones instead of spending a week on pain meds slowly starving too weak to move until I finally die.
Okay, it took me what felt like forever to find the referenced UN article. This and two others positions statements I found discussing the document appear to not beleive in reference links.
I’m not sure how well this will work but https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CRPD%2FC%2FCAN%2FCO%2F2-3&Lang=en
Also of note this document covers a HELL of a lot more then just MAiD, it covers many other areas and suggested improvements for various issues and areas of legislation etc.
The UN Treaty Body Database also has supplied/submitted data, staments notes and summaries, discussion notes, you name it. So if someone wants to go down a very large and deep rabbit hole…
https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/TreatyBodyExternal/Countries.aspx
