LEGISLATIVE ALERT | URGENT ACTION REQUIRED FOR WA!

• Contact your MP's asking them to vote against the WA government's euthanasia bill soon to be introduced into the WA parliament in August. (see enclosed list of Parliamentarians)
• This follows the passage of similar legislation in the Victorian parliament.
• Patients in WA will be able to have their lives ended if medical opinion is that they will die in less than 12 months from a terminal illness.
• The WA bill will even allow a nurse practitioner to give the green light to euthanasia as a second opinion.

It is essential you act today to stop the death lobby in its tracks!

REMEMBER THE LIFE YOU SAVE MAY BE YOUR OWN!

See below for information and how to contact your representatives

STOP PHYSICIAN ASSISTED SUICIDE

Did you know that in September 2015, the British Parliament voted overwhelmingly against legalising assisted suicide? The Scottish and Welsh Parliaments did likewise.

Why?  Too dangerous!

They saw the increasing numbers of deaths for an increasing number of reasons– in places like Holland, Belgium and the US state of Oregon, where it has been allowed for some time-even for mental illness! Official figures from Holland in 2015 (Central Bureau of Statistics, The Hague) show 431 people had their lives ended without request.

Former Judge Elizabeth Butler-Sloss, House of Lords (UK) MP: (The Times 8/9/15): "My experience of presiding over the family division of the High Court showed me again and again how subtle and calculate the pressure, coercion and even control asserted on a vulnerable individual can be. The safeguards provide no real protection to the truly vulnerable and they will fall apart if this bill becomes law".

Excerpts Assisted Dying (No. 2) Bill House of Commons UK [11 Sep 2015]

Robert Flello (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Lab): "..Not surprisingly, more than half the people polled think that assisted suicide involves no pain or discomfort. In around 7% of cases, the person suffers from vomiting or spasms. In one in every 10 cases there can be problems with administering the barbiturates. In Oregon, it takes, on average, 25 minutes for the person to die. But the longest period before someone died was four days. In addition, in about 1% of cases, the person has woken up"...Read more at http://bit.ly/2uHP937

Mr Frank Field MP (Birkenhead) (Lab) "…we seem to think this country is populated exclusively by husbands who love their wives, and wives who love their husbands, and grannies, uncles and aunties who all gather around to do the right thing. …I know perfectly well that in certain circumstances some individuals would have no hesitation in trying to persuade a person that the decent thing to do is to end their life – and especially where money is involved".. Read more at http://bit.ly/2mnBXMW

In the South Australian parliament in 2016 euthanasia legislation was defeated for the 15th time.

• Former Labor MP for Newlands S.A. Tom Kenyon MLA: "It is always wrong for the state to kill its citizens even when they request it."
• Labor Deputy Leader john Rau: "…but my concerns were basically about palliative care, and in the end I'm not convinced that that's been properly explored, and I'm not convinced that there's a substantial group – or even a small group – of people who are not able to be adequately comforted by palliative care…"
• Liberal MP Steven Griffiths: "I, and a lot of others, have a lot of questions in a lot of different areas…I didn't get answers that gave me a lot of comfort that what was proposed was what South Australians need."

Simple letter writing hints.

1. Assisted suicide is helping someone to kill themselves! Euthanasia is patient killing.
2. Once assisted suicide/euthanasia bill is passed, numbers and categories of people who are killed increases. See Holland, Belgium and Oregon.
3. Killing people is not medical treatment.
4. We need better access to palliative care, not killing.
5. Elder abuse and coercion can occur, and is occurring overseas.

Doctors Oppose Euthanasia

The World Medical Association opposed Victorian euthanasia urging MPs to block the bill arguing that assisted dying goes against "medical ethics." ¹

The organisation based in Geneva, represents more than 10 million physicians.

The Australian, the British and the American Medical Association all oppose euthanasia.

Assoc. Professor Mark Yates, former President Australian Medical Association (Vic)

".... we know now, quite clearly, that inheritance impatience is having an impact on older people. And as a geriatrician, I get to see the best. But sadly, I also see the worst of human nature and irrespective of our legal construct, now we cannot protect the elderly.....Despite 68 different regulations......100 cancer specialists (who have written to the Parliament), and 100 palliative care physicians who have written to Parliament can't be convinced that this is safe legislation." ²

Dr Karen Hitchcock, Physician, Alfred Hospital (Vic)

"Over the 12 years that I have worked as a doctor in large public hospitals, I have cared for hundreds of dying patients. No one has ever died screaming or begging for me to kill them. Patients have told me they want to die. My response to this is "Tell me why." It is rarely because of pain, but it is often because of despair, loneliness, grief, the feeling of worthlessness, meaninglessness or being a burden. I have never seen a dying patient whose physical suffering was untreatable." ³

Useful facts for your MP'S

1. Following the passage and introduction into Victoria of legislation allowing doctors to end the lives of terminally ill patients who have asked for it under certain conditions, the West Australian (WA) government plans to follow suit.
2. The legislation will be introduced into the WA parliament in August and will be even more wide ranging than that in Victoria.
3. Patients in WA will be able to have their lives ended if medical opinion is that they will die in less than 12 months. Doctors will be able to raise the matter with the patient.
4. A second assessment of the patients' suitability for euthanasia will be able to be made by a nurse practitioner.
5. Alarmingly, the suicide rate in WA is the highest in more than 20 years.  Of special concern is the over-representation of indigenous people. ⁴

Any concerns call LIFELINE 131114

1. The Australian 27/10/17 World Medical Association calls on Victorian MPs to reject euthanasia bill bit.ly/2ONH61L
2. LO radio interview with Jon Faine 20/9/17 bit.ly/2V3tAJo
3. The Monthly Dec 2015-Jan 2016 Dr Karen Hitchcock - The right to die or the right to kill? bit.ly/2j2qHTe
4. The West Australian 27/9/18.

DON'T KNOW YOUR MP's IN WEST AUSTRALIA?

Click here to download your list of West Australia MPs (PDF)