Renowned Taiwanese sculptor Ju Ming (朱銘) last month died of apparent suicide at the age of 85 after a prolonged illness. It came after former sports commentator Fu Da-jen (傅達仁) traveled to Switzerland in 2018 to end his life through physician-assisted suicide. Even celebrities with great access to resources are denied the right to a dignified death in Taiwan, so the public must face an even harder situation.
Those who oppose the legalization of assisted suicide emphasize two points: First, they worry that some families could pressure sick relatives to be euthanized to avoid caring for them, or that some people would choose to die so as not to burden their families. Second, it goes against some people’s religious beliefs.
However, both are hard to justify in law.
Euthanasia laws in many countries require professionals such as doctors to act as a “neutral third party” to assess a case, so it does not entirely depend on the will of the person seeking assistance or their family.
Ju’s and Fu’s cases show that the lack of regulations over assisted suicide can result in people taking their lives anyway, which is not a solution.
It is not a choice between pro-euthanasia and anti-euthanasia, as in reality it is the difference between regulated euthanasia and suicide.
As for religious beliefs, the separation of church and state is a fundamental principle of the Constitution. Religion cannot be used to deny people the right to make decisions about their lives.
If the government wants to restrict people’s power to make decisions about their own lives, it should bear the “burden of proof,” and should be reviewed based on constitutional standards.
Chen Chih-hsiung is dean of National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University School of Law.
Translated by Eddy Chang
US President Donald Trump is systematically dismantling the network of multilateral institutions, organizations and agreements that have helped prevent a third world war for more than 70 years. Yet many governments are twisting themselves into knots trying to downplay his actions, insisting that things are not as they seem and that even if they are, confronting the menace in the White House simply is not an option. Disagreement must be carefully disguised to avoid provoking his wrath. For the British political establishment, the convenient excuse is the need to preserve the UK’s “special relationship” with the US. Following their White House
Taiwan is a small, humble place. There is no Eiffel Tower, no pyramids — no singular attraction that draws the world’s attention. If it makes headlines, it is because China wants to invade. Yet, those who find their way here by some twist of fate often fall in love. If you ask them why, some cite numbers showing it is one of the freest and safest countries in the world. Others talk about something harder to name: The quiet order of queues, the shared umbrellas for anyone caught in the rain, the way people stand so elderly riders can sit, the
After the coup in Burma in 2021, the country’s decades-long armed conflict escalated into a full-scale war. On one side was the Burmese army; large, well-equipped, and funded by China, supported with weapons, including airplanes and helicopters from China and Russia. On the other side were the pro-democracy forces, composed of countless small ethnic resistance armies. The military junta cut off electricity, phone and cell service, and the Internet in most of the country, leaving resistance forces isolated from the outside world and making it difficult for the various armies to coordinate with one another. Despite being severely outnumbered and
After the confrontation between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday last week, John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser, discussed this shocking event in an interview. Describing it as a disaster “not only for Ukraine, but also for the US,” Bolton added: “If I were in Taiwan, I would be very worried right now.” Indeed, Taiwanese have been observing — and discussing — this jarring clash as a foreboding signal. Pro-China commentators largely view it as further evidence that the US is an unreliable ally and that Taiwan would be better off integrating more deeply into