A controversial bill that would extend the right to request euthanasia for children suffering terminal illnesses is now one step closer to becoming law.
Doctors visit a patient at the intensive care unit of the Queen Fabiola Children's Hospital in Brussels.
AP Photo/Yves Logghe
Belgium legalized voluntary euthanasia for adults in 2002. Now an amendment to the law is being considered that would allow those under 18 to request euthanasia under certain conditions. If the bill is signed into law, Belgium would be the first country in the world to have no age restrictions on euthanasia.
The law would allow minors to request euthanasia only if they were suffering unbearable physical conditions and have no chance to live. A psychologist would evaluate the child's ability to choose to die and parents would be required to approve their child's decision.
This differs from the country's fairly liberal considerations for adults who can request euthanasia for intolerable psychological ailments and do not have to be terminally ill.
A nurse helps a baby with a respiratory mask at the Queen Fabiola Children's Hospital.
AP Photo/Yves Logghe
Advocates argue the law would give a merciful way out for young people suffering, and legalize a practice that they say is already going on.
Gerland van Berlaer, from Brussels' Free University, told CNN:
"Doctors do terminate lives of children as well as adults. But today it's done in a gray zone or in the dark because it's illegal. And this means that there's a lot of room to do things the wrong way."
Opponents of the measure say it is impossible for children to be able to make an informed decision on whether to end their own lives.
The bill now goes to the full Senate, where analysts say it is likely to pass. After the Senate, the bill would go to the House of Representatives for debate. If approved there, it would go to the king to be signed into law.
Belgium's neighbor, the Netherlands, allows children over the age of 12 to request euthanasia with the consent of their parents. Since the law was introduced in 2002, only five children have chosen to do so.
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