To the editor:
With significant opposition by a number of their own MPs, the Justin Trudeau government is justifying its support for an ill-conceived and dangerous euthanasia bill with the totally false claim that assisted dying is a "Charter right."
When the Supreme Court of Canada struck down Canada's Assisted Suicide Act, it was not giving activists the right to read into the Charter a "right to die."
So, when Liberal House Leader Dominic Leblanc glibly justified the Liberal decision as a Charter of Rights issue, he was wrong.
This use of the Charter is misleading, dishonest and an abuse of Parliament and it tramples the rights of those who, for conscience and moral considerations, oppose the bill.
Long-term Liberal MP John McKay said, “It’s not core to the government’s mandate; it’s a response to the Supreme Court. I don’t see this as a Charter issue.”
In striking down the assisted suicide law, the Supreme Court - using imprecise and subjective language - made an activist decision that sets a dangerous precedent, which if unchecked, could lead to the kind of abuses now common in the Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland.
Canada's euthanasia lobby is pushing for euthanasia for psychiatric reasons, such as depression, for example, where a person incapable of making their own decision could die an assisted death.
Assisted suicide is in reality an abandonment of seniors, people with disabilities and other socially devalued people, such as those who suffer from depression.
The Liberals need to prove they respect Parliament and democracy and follow the example of the opposition Conservative and NDP parties and allow for a free vote. It is simply unconscionable and wrong to force people to vote against their conscience.
To call such a radical interpretation of the Charter that would allow the extinguishing of lives a "slippery slope" is no exaggeration.
Gerald Hall
Nanoose Bay