The Swiss government is considering restricting or even banning organised assisted suicide in an attempt to reduce so-called "death tourism". Swiss authorities want to ensure euthanasia is a last resort for the terminally ill, amid fears their current laws on assisted suicide could be open to abuse. A study last year suggested more and more people seeking help to die in Switzerland did not have a terminal illness. "We have no interest, as a country, in being attractive for suicide tourism," the Swiss justice minister, Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, told reporters in Berne, adding that more foreigners were travelling to Switzerland to die.
L’interdiction de l’homicide s’applique sans restriction en Suisse. L’euthanasie active directe (homicide intentionnel visant à abréger les souffrances d’une personne) est ainsi interdite. En revanche, l’euthanasie active indirecte (utilisation de substances dont les effets secondaires peuvent réduire la durée de la survie) et l’euthanasie passive (renonciation à la mise en œuvre de mesures de maintien de la vie ou interruption de celles-ci), sous certaines conditions, ne sont pas punissables – sans être réglées expressément au niveau la loi. Il n’y a pas de nécessité de légiférer à propos de ces trois formes d’euthanasie. Afin d’empêcher que l’assistance organisée au suicide ne se transforme en une activité orientée vers le profit et de mieux protéger la vie humaine, deux options sont à l’étude : l’adoption de restrictions législatives d’une part, et l’interdiction des organisations d’assistance au suicide d’autre part.
A 46-year-old-man who wants to die after a stroke that left him almost completely paralysed is bringing a groundbreaking legal action that could effectively lead to the legalisation of assisted suicide in the UK. Martin was a fit and active man who enjoyed rugby, cars and socialising with friends in the pub before suffering a brainstem stroke three years ago. Now requiring round-the-clock care, his mobility is limited to moving his eyes and small movements of his head. He communicates by staring at letters on a computer screen which the machine recognises and forms into words spoken by a digitised voice. Martin has been asking to die since six months after the stroke but says he has no one willing to assist him and cannot on his own organise a trip to the Swiss clinic Dignitas, where he could end his life legally. His wife, who chooses to be known as Felicity, says she will be with him if he dies but will not help bring about his death.