Canada court allows doctor-assisted suicide

Friday's ruling by the Canadan Supreme Court in Ottawa was the result of a legal challenge brought by families of two women with debilitating illnesses, who have since died.

The court said doctor-assisted suicide would be allowed in the case of consenting adults, suffering intolerably from a severe and incurable medical condition. The illness does not have to be terminal.

The decision will take effect in 12 months, allowing Canadian lawmakers time to introduce new rules surrounding the issue.

"We do not agree that the existential formulation of the right to life requires an absolute prohibition on assistance in dying, or that individuals cannot 'waive' their right to life," the court said.

One of the women, Gloria Taylor, died as a result of a neurodegenerative disease - Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), informally known as Lou Gehrig's disease - in 2012. The second woman, Kay Carter, traveled to Switzerland to end her life - a country where assisted suicide is legal.

The decision reverses a 1993 ruling, with the court at the time expressing concern over protecting vulnerable persons. It related to the case of Sue Rodriguez, an ALS sufferer who pioneered the fight for the right to die in Canada.

"This is one incredible day," said Grace Pastine, a civil libertarian who initiated the challenge.

"Physician-assisted dying is now recognized for what it is: a medical service that brings and end, for some individuals, to unbearable suffering."

Religious and disability groups had opposed the push for assisted suicide.

jr/kms (AFP, Reuters)