KEY POINTS:
Dr Philip Nitschke, euthanasia campaigner
Do you have any belief in life after death?
S. Cooke, Hamilton
As someone with a background in the physical sciences, nothing I can see suggests any life after death. I am also an atheist. The recycling of the elements of life,
the carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, etc, of which we are all composed, back into the earth's pool would be the closest I come to accepting "life after death".
Are there any lives you have helped to end which you regret?
D. Langman, Christchurch
I don't see myself as helping people end their life. Rather, I've supported people in their own decisions about dying. I have no regrets about providing such support. However, I do regret not foreseeing certain problems. Take Nancy Crick as an example: Nancy died in 2002. At the time it was reported that she did not have bowel cancer. I regret not being clearer about this. Nancy had had bowel cancer and then had her bowel removed. So, technically, no one knew if she still had cancer or not. I should have foreseen the way the media and my enemies would jump at this technicality, assuming that if you don't have cancer then you must be a well person, which is not the case.
Is it true your organisation had a falling-out with Lesley Martin and the New Zealand euthanasia movement? If so, why?
M. Donald, Titirangi
Exit and the New Zealand Voluntary Euthanasia Society enjoy an excellent working relationship. As the largest NZ voluntary euthanasia organisation, we are grateful for their support. We even share our websites. Have I had a falling out with Lesley Martin? I respect Lesley's decision to follow the purely legislative path of VE law reform. I understand she doesn't want to find herself back in jail and the law reform path is a safe one. However, people in their 70s and 80s don't have 20 years to wait for a VE law. Most of our members want us to pursue the exploration of end-of-life choices for the here and now. I don't have the luxury of time to lobby politicians to do the job they get paid to do. I'm glad, however, that Martin has.
How do you justify intentionally taking life when ultimately it is the same as taking something that does not belong to you? How do you justify depriving a patient of the alternative treatment available for pain and distress?
J. Devoy, Hastings
To suggest that your life does not belong to you and that it belongs to God is simply a point of view with which I do not agree. People who join Exit tend to be elderly. The 10 per cent who are seriously ill have experienced considerable time in the health system. Some people would prefer to accept their illness and enjoy their last weeks, months and years free of medical intervention.
Would you agree to euthanasing a child under any circumstance?
Sarah W, Waitakere
I certainly support the recent moves by the British Medical Association to allow severely deformed babies to be euthanased. I also agree with Holland's efforts to incorporate people aged under 18 years into their voluntary euthanasia laws. Children get terminal illness and they suffer dreadfully. Some die in horrible circumstances. Are we to say they cannot have help to end their suffering because they have not reached the magic age of 18?
