Watchman: Medical Assistance in Dying (Maid) Recommended That “Mature Minors” Whose Deaths Were “Reasonably Foreseeable” Could Access Assisted Suicide, Even Without Parental Consent

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Opponents condemn the "The panel urged the government to pass legislation permitting kids under the age of 18 with terminal conditions to die through assisted suicide.

A plan by a Canadian legislative committee to expand the country's assisted-suicide program to terminally sick children has been blasted as "reckless" and "horrible" by campaigners.

They told DailyMail.com that sick and disabled children might soon join the nearly 10,000 adults who die each year through state-sanctioned euthanasia in the world's most permissive such program.

The Special Joint Committee on Medical Aid in Dying (MAiD) suggested in its long-awaited report that "adult minors" whose deaths were "reasonably foreseeable" might obtain assisted suicide even without parental authorization.

The report and its 23 recommendations will be debated in the House of Commons in the coming months, with amendments to Canada's assisted dying laws possible as early as this year.

"I think it's disgusting," said Amy Hasbrouck, a Not Dead Yet activist who works against MAiD.

'Teenagers are not in a position to decide whether or not to commit suicide. Any teenager with a disability who is continuously informed that their life is pointless and miserable will be depressed, and they will, of course, wish to die.'

Mike Schouten, whose son, Markus, died of cancer last year at the age of 18, said it was "reckless" to allow children terminate their lives with doctor-prescribed medications."

Mike Schouten, whose son, Markus, died of cancer last year at the age of 18, said it was "reckless" to allow children terminate their lives with doctor-prescribed medications."

There were more over 10,000 deaths through euthanasia in 2021, a rise of roughly a third from the previous year.
In 2021, there were over 10,000 euthanasia deaths, an almost one-third rise over the previous year.

According to Alex Schadenberg, executive director of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, Canada has been on a dangerous "slippery slope" to widespread assisted suicide since the law was passed in 2016.

"We promised controls and guardrails, but the next administration can simply open it up further by making a decision—and that's exactly what's happening," Schadenberg explained.

After hearing over 150 witnesses and analyzing hundreds of documents, a joint committee of Canadian lawmakers reached the conclusion earlier this month that children who are competent to make decisions should have access to MAiD. Keep reading.

"They're getting ready to go after our children."
Book of Medical Aid in Dying Activities

This 'activity book' for children about assisted suicide was funded by Canada.
The handbook defines Medical Aid in Dying as the use of medications to prevent a 'person's body from working."

Just as Ottawa openly admits that its assisted suicide program may have gone too far, critics have pointed out the existence of a little-known medical help program in a dying children's activity book funded by the Canadian government.

The book is not designed for minors seeking assisted suicide, and it will not be widely distributed through schools or public libraries. Minors are ineligible for medically assisted suicide in Canada, while the Quebec College of Doctors has advocated for the practice to be extended to severely deformed neonates.

The activity book, on the other hand, is intended for children who may soon be attending a medically assisted death in person. "Made for young people who have someone in their life who may have MAID," the organisation claimed in a statement.

The pamphlet defines MAID as the use of medications to prevent a "person's body from working."