Reports today from New Zealand confirm that List MP Maryan Street has withdrawn her euthanasia bill from the ballot system in the National Parliament. reports Street as saying that, it's because she does not want it to become fodder in election year.
She denies it's because of any political pressure from within her own party to withdraw it because of sensitivities about the popularity of the issue.
In a separate Yahoo News story, the news was welcomed by Family First NZ's Bob McCoskrie:
"To legalise assisted suicide would place large numbers of vulnerable people at risk - in particular those who are depressed, elderly, sick, disabled, those experiencing chronic illness, limited access to good medical care, and those who feel themselves to be under emotional or financial pressure to request early death,"
"Older New Zealanders are not a problem to be rid of - they're a generation to be honoured and cared for. Elder Abuse has become a significant problem in New Zealand. We cannot ignore the possibility that dependent elderly people may be coerced into euthanasia or assisted suicide,"
New Zealanders go to the polls next year. No doubt this is not the end of the debate. New Zealanders would do well to keep this issue in mind at the ballot box next year.
See also:
New Zealand euthanasia bill is wide-open and open to being wider, says the author of the bill.
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