In light of the upcoming debate in the NSW Parliament over the NSW Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill 2021, Catholic Outlook publishes this media release regarding an upcoming protest against the legislation.
The ‘Compassion Never Kills’ Rally is organised by Right to Life NSW and supported by community and faith-based groups, will be held in the Sydney CBD next Thursday 18 November from 4pm to 6pm.
Be one of 1,000 voices speaking out against Alex Greenwich’s outrageous killing legislation!
On Thursday 18 November 2021 from 4pm to 6pm 1,000 concerned citizens will gather behind the State Library of NSW to protest against Alex Greenwich’s personal crusade to allow doctors in NSW to kill their own patients. This protest is organised by Right to Life NSW, working with a coalition of community and faith-based groups.
We will march around the NSW Parliament with banners and placards to state our position that “COMPASSION DOES NOT KILL”.
Vulnerable citizens of NSW deserve our full support at the end of their lives. We know from recent Australian research that palliative care is at least 98% successful in treating patients where it is adequately funded and delivered. Guaranteeing a legal right to effective palliative care should be the focus of end of life care legislation rather than a bill that mandates, funds, and encourages state assisted suicide.
The international experience shows that over time the cohort of persons who choose to activate assisted suicide increases at dramatic rates. The leading psychologist Professor David Kissane has shown in a recent briefing to NSW politicians that persons with mental illness and depression have increasingly sought to access assisted suicide in European jurisdictions.
Health professionals also call for caution and the Health Professionals Say No network has called for a focus on health service delivery to deal with the remaining threat posed by COVID-19 rather than prioritising assisted suicide measures. The Australian and New Zealand Society of Palliative Medicine has recently stated that “ANZSPM does not support the legalisation of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide and acknowledges the significant deficits in the provision of palliative care in Australia and New Zealand”.
It is inconceivable that assisted suicide legislation should even be contemplated when access to adequate palliative care is not available to all NSW citizens.
Lawyers are telling us that this bill is full of holes. Doctors are telling us they are don’t think that this bill is safe. Come join and tell NSW politicians that COMPASSION DOES NOT KILL!
For more information about the protest and to register, please click here.
Members of the faithful in Western Sydney are being urged to reach out to their state MPs to oppose the introduction of voluntary euthanasia in NSW. To find out more information about contacting local MPs, please visit bit.ly/noeuthanasia-signup.
With thanks to Right to Life Association NSW.
