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What do you think of Switzerland’s liberal approach to assisted suicide?

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I write about demographic developments, societal trends and debates in Switzerland. I joined SWI swissinfo.ch after 15 years at a local newspaper in Zurich.

Foreign nationals, minors, people without terminal illnesses: in Switzerland, assisted suicide is available to many. There are minimal legal hurdles and politicians regularly reject attempts to regulate it.

What do you think about Switzerland’s approach to assisted suicide and death tourism? How is assisted suicide viewed in your country? Join the discussion here!

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Esyna@yahoo.com
Esyna@yahoo.com

I am totally in favor of it. In fact I was a member of Dignitas about 17 years ago. It gave me so much comfort to know I would not have to suffer if my condition became terminal. __It motivated me to lobby the NJ lawmakers to enact a law " death with dignity". I believe 7 states in the US allow it. However in my opinion it needs to be broadened to cover mental decline like after a stroke or alzheimers. The organization Compassion and choices is a lobbying group that tries to get the law passed.

Delphine
Delphine

Assisted suicide is a "violent" way of ending your own life. The impact on families and close ones can be great. However, the looming alternative, non-assisted suicide, is infinitely worse, and obviously not a criminal offence. So rationally a assisted suicide must be legal, if it can reduce the impact on society. __Most arguments against legal assistes suicide in Switzerland are of religious nature. As there is freedom of religion in Switzerland, religious arguments should not be considered when legislating. __One of the most appealing argument, that the "easy" access to assisted suicide puts pressure on individuals, as they might feel beeing a burden to society. Regulations can be interpreted this way and to some extend they can shape society. As the swiss regulations surrounding assisted suicide are historically grown due to absence of regulation rather than avtive frameworking, I do believe that there is a very low risk of this beeing the case. __Then there is contoversy surrounding assisted suicides of non residents. "Going to Switzerland" is, admittetly, a somewhat macabre phrase used in some parts of the world. Unlike our flag, not a big plus. If we regulate assisted suicide rationally, there is no argument to not letting non residents access it. Once again, worse than assisted suicide "tourism" is suicide ("tourism").

Jorg Hiker
Jorg Hiker
@Delphine

Assisted suicide gives governments a macabre way to save money on medical care – using neglect and delays in medical and psychological help to push people towards assisted suicide, and selling it as ‘private decision', 'free choice’ and ‘modern’. Ill people see a list of medical treatments with unaffordable prices, but euthanasia is cheap or free. Many people e.g. in Canada feel that they are simply pushed toward assisted suicide, however spokespeople will deny it.

Rachadrayane39
Rachadrayane39

Rachadrayane39__2026-02-08 20:56__Life is diverse, with many different types of people, each of whom strives to achieve their goals in one way or another. The problem does not lie solely with the individual if they make a mistake, but society also bears responsibility. Individuals alone do not build societies, but with sound ideas and proper guidance, they can change the lifestyle of an entire society____Ahmed Rahmani

Jorg Hiker
Jorg Hiker

A dark aspect of end-of-life discussions is not focusing on access to palliative and psychological care, which should be the first choice before considering assisted suicide. Heavily ill people commonly lack access to state-of-the-art therapies, palliative care, and pain management. They also commonly suffer from untreated depression, feel like a burden to others, and lack the support of loved ones. In these situations, a devilish idea comes: "Perhaps you would like to shorten your life?" However, this is not freedom and not a moral progress. If a vulnerable person receives inadequate support, they will often consider taking their own life.

skiramia
skiramia

the sarco pod is bought from down under? spooky.

Konsiliararzt
Konsiliararzt
The following contribution has been automatically translated from DE.

It is about freedom. In everyday medical practice, there are people who wish to die. These people are suffering, have no hope of recovery and are simply waiting for death. Only the individual can judge their suffering. We must not hinder the end-of-life care of foreigners, but also make this option available abroad. Death tourism is a misnomer; it is never about tourism, but about finding a long-awaited solution after a long journey from countries where religions make a humane end to life impossible.

Es geht um die Freiheit. Es gibt im medizinischen Alltag Menschen die sterben möchten. Diese Menschen leiden, haben keine Hoffnung mehr auf Besserung und warten nur auf den Tod. Das Leiden kann nur der Mensch alleine beurteilen. Wir müsssen nicht die Sterbebegleitung von Ausländer behindern sondern diese Möglichkeit auch im Ausland ermöglichen. Sterbeturismus ist ein falsches Wort, es geht nie um Turismus sondern um eine Lang ersehnte Lösung nach einer Langen Reise zu finden, aus Länder in denen Religionen ein humanes Ende des Lebens verunmöglichen.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR