End of life: The ECLJ refers the matter to three United Nations bodies

From Wednesday, April 9, the Social Affairs Committee of the French National Assembly will examine the bill on the end of life (No.1100), tabled by the socialist deputy Olivier Falorni on March 11, 2025. This provides for the legalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide. It is its sole objective.

The European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ), together with nearly 8,000 citizens (7,939), today referred the matter to three United Nations (UN) bodies: the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Independent Expert on the Rights of Older Persons and the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities of the Human Rights Council.

The aim of this referral is to ensure that these three UN bodies remind the French Parliament of the international legal framework within which the debate on end-of-life issues must take place. Over the last couple of years, this debate has been going on without any consideration for France's international obligations regarding the protection of the right to life and health. These obligations are little known because they are not sufficiently reminded and emphasized by the authorities responsible for promoting them. The referral by the ECLJ aims to remedy this shortcoming.

International, intangible and supra-legal standards absolutely and without exception prohibit euthanasia and assisted suicide. First of all, the prohibition of killing is the foundation of human rights. This principle was reaffirmed in the aftermath of the Second World War, after doctors were convicted in Nuremberg for euthanizing disabled people. Therefore, any euthanasia – even when presented as voluntary – is a violation of human rights.

Thus, the European Convention on Human Rights states very clearly that “No one shall be deprived of his life intentionally” (art. 2). Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights stipulates that “Every human being has the inherent right to life”. Even when presented in a liberal and voluntary manner, the decriminalization of euthanasia is in direct violation of these provisions.

Furthermore, as the experience of countries such as Belgium and Canada proves, once decriminalized, the practice of euthanasia becomes uncontrollable and spreads at the expense of the most vulnerable, disabled and elderly people. The decriminalization of euthanasia therefore not only leads to a systematic violation of human rights, but also to an extremely serious cultural and legal regression: the normalization of the suppression of the most vulnerable people. Thus, on March 21, 2025, the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, because of the right to life, recommended that Canada repeal euthanasia for persons with disabilities.

Our referral asks the UN to initiate a reporting and investigation procedure on all countries that have legalized euthanasia, so that abuses are fully exposed and can no longer be denied by euthanasia advocates.

This referral has already been made, but you can still get involved by signing the petition below, as we will send an update on the number of signatories to the UN in May 2025.

Finally, we welcome the opinion of the "Democracy, Ethics and Solidarity Collective" (Collectif Démocratie, éthique et solidarités), which made the front page of Le Figaro on Monday, April 7: “Great voices are raised against ‘active assistance in dying’”. The ECLJ is represented in this Collective and participates in its work.

We also strongly support a separate bill on palliative and supportive care (No. 1102), introduced by MP Renaissance Annie Vidal on March 11, 2025. Pro-euthanasia activists, particularly from the ADMD, are unfortunately delaying its examination. However, this text is essential because it aims to strengthen the provision of care for the elderly and disabled.