Euthanasia

The organisation Dignity South Africa has welcomed the North Gauteng High Court ruling allowing a Cape Town advocate to commit medically assisted suicide as the first step towards legalising euthanasia in the country. Willem Landman, the CEO of the Ethics Institute of South Africa and a member of Dignity SA, said the court order was only confined to the specific case of Robert Stransham-Ford, but would make it much easier for others who wanted to follow in his footsteps.Because parliament has not yet decided to adopt the draft legislation on euthanasia, other dying patients in similar circumstances would still have to approach the court for an order to allow them to commit assisted suicide.Not knowing at the time that Stransham-Ford had died, Landman described Judge Hans Fabricius' ruling as a huge victory for Stransham-Ford and for Dignity SA, a non-profit organisation which advocates the legalisation of assisted suicide. The debate about legalising Euthinasia has continued to make headlines.

To help us discuss the different views, we have Advocate Mthunzi Mhaga, Spokesperson of South Africa's Department of Justice, Professor Sylvester Chima, Associate Professor, at the University of Kwazulu Natal, Colleges of Head Sciences. Lee Last, Executive Member of Dignity South Africa and Arch Bishop Stephen Zondo Founder and leader of the church, Rivers of Living Waters Ministries: