Ken Orr: Is End of Life Choice Bill a breach of Declaration of Human Rights?

Ken Orr

The prohibition against the killing of another human being is the foundation of the law and medicine.

It is prohibited by the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights 1948. It is now in grave danger of being violated by our own Parliament.

Parliament passed at its first reading the contentious End of Life Choice Bill of David Seymour MP, leader of the Act Party, on December 13.

Universal and inviolable human rights are the basis of a civilised society. The right to life of every human person from conception to natural death lies at the foundation of all authentic human rights. Right to Life believes that the passing of this bill at its first reading is a breach of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights.

Article 3 states: "Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person."

The preamble to the declaration states, "Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world."

Our right to life is therefore inalienable and universal, which means that our right to life may not be taken from us nor may we give it up.

Being universal, every member of our community from conception to natural death is the bearer of human rights. We do not forfeit our right to life because we are aged, disabled or seriously ill.

The Crimes Act 1961 prohibits aiding and abetting in suicide and homicide. These laws are immutable and are there to protect the right to life of every human being from birth to natural death.

These laws uphold our inalienable right to life proclaimed in the declaration which was signed by the New Zealand government in Paris on December 10, 1948.

Our human rights, including our right to life, are conferred on us by our Creator at conception. Right to Life believes that the End of Life Choice Bill is an intolerable threat to our inalienable right to life.

The bill claims that we have a human right to give up our right to life by authorising a doctor to assist in our suicide or to kill us with a lethal injection.

Right to Life believes that Parliament was in breach of the Declaration of Human Rights by even debating this contentious bill. The breach of the declaration and the threat to our right to life is now of the utmost gravity as Parliament has now sent the bill to the Justice Select Committee.

Parliament has now consented to engage in a serious consideration of the bill's proposal to authorise doctors to kill their patients or assist in their suicide. The calling for submissions from the public on this contentious bill does not justify breaching the declaration.

This bill should be seen as a threat to the right to life of every citizen, it should be of the greatest concern to every citizen who is concerned with upholding the human rights of the most vulnerable members of our community, the aged, the disabled and the aged.

An attack on the human rights of a sector of the community should be seen as an attack on the human rights of the whole community.

Right to Life encourages all members of our community to rise up in defence of our inalienable and universal right to life by making a written submission to the Justice Select Committee opposing this life threatening bill which is a threat to the right to life of the elderly, the disabled and the seriously ill.

Ken Orr is a spokesman for Right to Life. Views expressed here are the writer's and not those of Hawke's Bay Today