X-Message-Number: 4447
From: Peter Merel <>
Subject: SCI.CRYONICS Voluntary Euthenasia Legalised in Australia
Date: Thu, 25 May 1995 13:33:36 +1000 (EST)

24/5/95 - the government of the Northern Territory of Australia this
evening passed a bill that legalises voluntary euthanasia in that
state. The vote was highly controversial, causing the originator of the
bill and Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, Marshall Perron,
along with his Deputy and Treasurer to resign, (allegedly) to curry
political favour for the bill.

Devotion to duty of this calibre is highly unusual in any politician, much
less an Australian politician, and if there is any way for members of the
cryonics community to recognise Perron, without detracting from his cause,
it would be splendid if they could do so.

I don't have the text of the bill yet, but as I understand it it permits
terminally ill patients who are experiencing chronic pain to apply to the
courts for permission to end their lives. They may then be assisted in
this endeavour by medical staff without further legal involvement. 

The benefits that this would confer to cryonic suspension procedures
may be considered by our experts here.  Perron's legislation has
sparked similar bills in South Australia and Western Australia, and the
Australian Federal health Minister, Carmen Lawrence, is being urged to
introduce national legislation to support the practice across the whole
country. This advice is being opposed by churches and the Australian 
Right-To-Life movement, but they are not powerful here and are regularly
ignored in questions of medical practice like abortion on demand and 
in-vitro fertilisation.

I don't exactly recall Lawrence's stand on the matter, so we'll see.
More on the legislation when I can get hold of a copy.

--

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http://www.usyd.edu.au/~pete/          |         Reject Nothing.               |


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