More than 50 members of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly have signed a Written Declaration opposing proposals to extend Belgium's euthanansia laws to children.
The proposals were approved by the Belgium Senate in a vote of 50-17 in December, and are due to go before the House of Representative for further scrutiny. If passed, they will make Belgium the first country to introduce euthanasia for minors.
In a Written Declaration published this week, 58 members of Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Group affirmed that the move "betrays some of the most vulnerable children in Belgium" and "promotes the unacceptable belief that a life can be unworthy of life which challenges the very basis of civilised society".
It cited the Assembly's own Resolution 1859 (2012) which states that: “Euthanasia, in the sense of the intentional killing by act or omission of a dependent human being for his or her alleged benefit, must always be prohibited”.
Read the full Written Declaration here >
