Call for euthanasia criticised by disability group

The call by Kelly Taylor, a woman who has GUCH (Grown-up Congenital
Heart, or Eisenmenger's Syndrome) to have euthanasia legalised has
been criticised by disability rights group No Less Human (NLH).

"What Mrs Taylor really needs is a treatment that will remedy her
suffering - that is clear from her statement quoted by the BBC. One
wonders why she was taken off the waiting list for a transplant when
for eight years she was considered a candidate for one, and why
doctors seem to have given up on her. Even if a transplant is no
longer possible, it is likely that some sort of palliative treatment
could help Ms. Kelly. Euthanasia is a despairing option to the
challenges of disability, and making it legal would militate against
positive approaches which can help people with disabling conditions to
make the most of their lives. What Mrs. Taylor actually needs is help
to re-establish a sense of the value of her own life", said Alison
Davis of NLH, who has several severe disabling conditions.

"It is understandable that people in Mrs. Taylor's position should
feel despairing, but it is an affront to the rights of other
vulnerable people to present the situation as if she were a victim of
archaic laws.

"Many more people would become victims (in a more literal sense) of
the law if the right to life of people with disabilities were
undermined in the way Mrs Taylor suggests. What suffering people
really need is not euthanasia, but help to live with dignity, until
they die naturally," Alison Davis concluded.

For further information, or to contact Alison Davis, please call +44
(0)7939 178719.

NLH is a group within SPUC, the Society for the Protection of Unborn
Children (SPUC) www.spuc.org.uk 020 7222 5845.