Martin Buijsen, Professor of Health Law at Erasmus School of Law, spoke with EenVandaag about suicide powder and assisted suicide. The Coöperatie Laatste Wil (Cooperative for Last Will), which commits to “self-control over a humane end of life”,used as a synonym for the suicide powder that is also known as substance X. The powder has been sold online hundreds of times. Suicide is not illegal, but assisting someone in committing suicide is. A court case against a member of this Cooperative is ongoing.
Martin Buijsen, Professor of Health Law at Erasmus School of Law, spoke with EenVandaag about suicide powder and assisted suicide. The Coöperatie Laatste Wil (Cooperative for Last Will), which commits to “self-control over a humane end of life”,used as a synonym for the suicide powder that is also known as substance X. The powder has been sold online hundreds of times. Suicide is not illegal, but assisting someone in committing suicide is. A court case against a member of this Cooperative is ongoing.
The Cooperative recommends substance X as a way to end life quickly, painlessly and securely. It is claimed to be a substance to kill oneself in so called humane way. However, that is not the case because it slowly suffocates the body.
“Assisted suicide is punished with a maximum penalty of three years in prison. In this case, a dealer had focused himself on a large group of people, which could even lead to a four-year sentence”, says Buijsen. “The suspect is only punishable when buyers have used the powder. In addition, the Public Prosecution Office must be able to link him to specific deaths. That might be difficult: the suspect says he deleted all the information, and that he asked his customers to do the same”, according to Buijsen.
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