REACTION ESSAY: “OVERDOSE KILLS RIGHT O DIE MAN” and “VINCENT HUMBERT’S LETTER TO JAQUES CHIRAC”

bbc. co.uk /news

Fatal accidents and injuries cause a lot of people’s death every day. But there is something worse than death: paralysis and incurable injuries. Is euthanasia acceptable in situations such as this? The issue became topical once again following the case of Vincent Humbert.

Vincent Humbert had a terrible accident that left him mute, blind and completely paralyzed except for his right thumb three years ago and he described his situation as a living death. He wanted to die because he was completely dependent on others. He wrote a letter to president Chirac asking for the right to die. Euthanasia is illegal in France so his request was turned down but his mother gave him what he wanted by putting an overdose in his drip. Two days later, the young man was dead. Before his death, he had written a book using his right thumb which is called “I ask for the right to die”.

In these conditions, Vincent Humbert must have felt desperate and wished to escape from the eternal darkness and empty life. He couldn’t move or see; he could only hear and think so it’s normal for to have wanted to die. The president might have thought that he was right to want it but he had to obey the law. He turned down Vincent’s request but he could have helped him to cross the border to another country where euthanasia is legal. Forcing someone who doesn’t want to live and has a logical reason for wanting to die to live is not fair. Vincent’s mother, Marie Humbert, did the hardest thing for a mother: she killed her son. By doing so she showed that she understood Vincent’s feelings and respected his decisions.

Which is better to allow someone in this situation to die or to force him to live? It is very hard to say. One is as bad as the other. One thing is certain: Marie Humbert shouldn’t be arrested but probably this is impossible according to the law.

                                                                                           İREM GÜNGÖR / INT; third week of