We Need Improved Palliative Care – Not Legalised Killing
Christian Heritage NZ today called for a national palliative care policy. CHNZ leader Ewen McQueen said a national
policy was needed both to ensure consistent standards of care across the country and to improve the support for families
caring for someone who was terminally ill. He said the Lesley Martin case in Wanganui demonstrated that more help and
support was needed for caregivers in particular. Said Mr McQueen,
“ No one should be left on their own to cope with caring for a terminally ill relative at home. We need to ensure there
is adequate support for people in such situations.
If any public policy change comes out of this particular case it should be better care and support for the terminally
ill and their families – not a law change to legalise the killing of the terminally ill. “
The CHNZ leader said the law must continue to affirm the sanctity of human life. He stated that we cannot afford to
ignore the clear lessons of history as to what happens when euthanasia finds a foothold in a culture. He noted that one
medical expert involved in the war crimes trials in Nuremberg after World War Two, later wrote – “Whatever proportions
these crimes finally assumed….it started with the acceptance of the attitude, basic in the euthanasia movement, that
there is such a thing as life not worthy to be lived.” (Dr L. Alexander, New England Journal of Medicine, Vol 241, July
1949).
Mr McQueen stated,
“ Once public policy supports the idea that there is such a thing as a life not worthy to be lived, we place our society
in a very dangerous position.”