Yesterday the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada released a joint declaration opposing assisted dying.
Michael Coren sums up their opposition in today’s Toronto Star:
No to abortion, no to gay rights, no to euthanasia. Because [the Christian right] have lost the first two they are fighting like zealots to defend the last.
Ian Bushfield, Executive Director, BC Humanist Association:
There is nothing new in this latest anti-choice statement. It represents an increasingly fringe view that has been rejected by an overwhelming majority of Canadians and the Supreme Court of Canada. These so-called moral leaders are trying to use fear to make compassion and dignity into a controversial issue.
The Bishops and Priests talk about increasing funding for palliative care, but the fact is that places that permit people to choose to end their lives with dignity are among the places with the best palliative care. Pretending palliative care removes the need for choice in dying creates a false dichotomy.
The secular community will continue to support the fight for choice in dying. People are suffering today and they have waited long enough.
Coren's article goes on to argue that Stephen Harper obstructed assisted dignity because his government was “beholden — if not completely sympathetic — to a Christian right obsessed with the issue.” But Justin Trudeau’s Liberals are considering asking the Supreme Court for a six month extension before the assisted dying law is struck down.
Both the BC Humanist Association and Dying With Dignity Canada have called on Trudeau not to delay granting Canadians their Charter rights and their choice.
Dying With Dignity Canada and the BC Civil Liberties Association have gone further and set out a Blueprint for Leadership on Assisted Dying. This blueprint shows how governments and medical bodies can make physician assisted dying possible within the deadline set by the Supreme Court of Canada.
The BC Humanist Association will be joining Dying With Dignity at the Voice Your Choice Rally in Vancouver on Wednesday, November 4th at noon at the Vancouver Art Gallery.