Archbishop's euthanasia warning: 'Right to die could become a duty to die'

A proposal to introduce voluntary assisted euthanasia would turn doctors’ duty of care into a “duty to kill”, Archbishop Charles Scicluna has warned.

In a pastoral letter to be read out in Churches across Malta and Gozo on Sunday, the archbishop described the proposal as a “dangerous step” that undermines the value of human life and could eventually lead to abuse.

Legalising it would fundamentally alter the role of doctors and the responsibilities of the state, he warned.

“Life begins to be considered a burden rather than a gift, and medical duty to care may even become a duty to kill,” he said. “A right to die can become a duty to die.”

The White Paper, launched for public consultation earlier this month, outlines plans to permit adults suffering from terminal illnesses to voluntarily end their lives with medical assistance, either at home or in hospital. Eligibility would be restricted to those over 18 who have been given less than six months to live by two independent doctors.

Proponents of the measure say the proposal is motivated by compassion for patients in extreme suffering. But Archbishop Scicluna rejected this framing, saying the language used in the document masks the true nature of the act.

“The voluntary assisted euthanasia being proposed is, in fact, assisted suicide,” he said. “The White Paper refers to… ‘medicine’, provided through the national health service. What this means is that the patient will be required to deliver a lethal dose to himself or herself.”

Slippery slope warnings

Scicluna said the safeguards being proposed in the law would inevitably be subject to abuse and would, as happened in various other countries, be eroded over time.

Citing examples from countries that have legalised euthanasia or assisted suicide, Scicluna argued that safeguards often erode over time.

Those at the end of their life could end up feeling like they were a burden on relatives and caregivers. Who would protect them from that feeling if this proposal became law, he asked.

“A right to die can become a duty to die,” he said. “We must never, in any way, make [people] feel that it would be better if they ended their life.”

The archbishop argued that the government seemed to be undermining its own suicide prevention goals, published just a few week ago. The assisted dying proposal was inconsistent with that commitment, he said.

Focus on palliative care

Rather than introducing assisted dying, Scicluna urged the state to strengthen palliative care services across Malta and Gozo.

He praised the government’s recently published National Strategy for Palliative Care and called for full implementation and investment in holistic end-of-life care.

Patients could receive medicine to ease their suffering when in a critical condition, even if that medication meant their life could be shortened as a consequence, he said. Similarly, patients should be free to refuse extraordinary or disproportionate medical treatment that “causes unbearable suffering”.

Palliative care, he said, “is a genuine form of compassion.”

He quoted the late Pope Francis, who described it as “a concrete sign of closeness and solidarity with our brothers and sisters who are suffering” that helped patients and their relatives accept the “vulnerability, frailty and finitude that mark human life in this world.”

Public consultation on the government proposals remains open. Visit facts.gov.mt for more information about the proposal or to submit feedback.