There’s a good reason B.C.’s provincial capital was selected to host a recent Euthanasia Prevention Coalition conference on assisted suicide and health care.
“We chose to hold this event in Victoria because it is the killing capital in the world,” executive director Alex Schadenberg told the conference at Oaklands Bible Chapel.
“There are more euthanasia deaths here, percentage-wise, than any other place in the world,” he said to 160 live attendees and hundreds more who registered online for Euthanasia is Not the Answer to our Healthcare Crisis.
Canada’s political landscape was highlighted as one of the chief impediments to euthanasia prevention in Canada, with Schadenberg calling for political change.
“We have a democratic deficit in Canada,” he said. “Under this government there isn’t any interest in what we have to say.”
As an example, Schadenberg highlighted Bill C314: The Mental Health Protection Act recently introduced by Abbotsford MP Ed Fast. The private member’s bill would amend the Criminal Code of Canada to protect people with mental illness from euthanasia.
Fast has been approached by MPs who share his concerns but are unable to vote according to their conscience because their party whip is enforcing policy discipline, Schadenberg said.
“They are being told you can’t vote with Ed Fast – but you can go to the washroom if you don’t want to vote. We need to reclaim democracy in Canada.”
Angelina Ireland, president of the Delta Hospice Society, said it’s time to stop expecting political answers.
“We can’t look to the government to solve this problem; we need to look to ourselves,” she said, quoting the adage, “Politics is downstream of culture.”
Those taking part in the conference are “part of the greatest human rights movement of all time,” Ireland said. “We know that we must protect each other. That we must speak, not for those who want to have MAiD (medical assistance in dying), but for those who do not.”
Ireland encouraged people to sign a “do not euthanize” advance directive with two witnesses to protect them from euthanasia in the event of severe health complications. She also spoke about Delta Hospice Society’s new Guardian Angel program that pairs volunteer advocates with at-risk individuals dealing with end-of-life decisions in the health-care system. The program will start in B.C. and the hope is to expand it nationally.
Guardian Angel was a response to the growing number of stories of patients being coerced or encouraged to pursue MAiD by health-care professionals, and the program will offer training and support to volunteers to help them advocate for the individuals they are paired with.
“We are going to ensure that the doctors and nurses will come around and make sure the person is being taken care of properly,” said Ireland.
Canada’s 2022 euthanasia numbers haven’t been released yet, but based on provincial data so far Schadenberg believes Canada may be looking at another record-setting year. He projects some 13,500 state-assisted suicides, up 35 per cent from 10,064 in 2021.
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