SAVES is not affiliated with Exit International / Dr Philip Nitschke and opposes the public availability of a 'peaceful pill'.

The Dignity in Dying Bill will soon be presented to State Parliament. This presents a vital opportunity for people to make a stand, by writing to their local members of parliament and sending a copy to SAVES. While the majority of citizens support law reform to allow for voluntary euthanasia in certain prescribed circumstances, this has not been reflected in the thousands of letters and submissions sent to parliamentarians on this issue in the past.

Powerful institutionalised opposition is both well organised and well funded, ensuring that the minority view on voluntary euthanasia continues to govern all our lives. We cannot afford to be complacent.

It is important for SAVES members and the general public to express their views, and to do so in their own words, by writing to their local MPs, sending letters to the editors of the local and state newspapers as well as taking the opportunity to speak on talk-back radio. In doing so the following points may be helpful:

• it is our democratic right to make decisions about our own lives
• the proposals are voluntary for the patient and doctor
• the 1996 Morgan Gallup Poll showed that 76% were in favour of voluntary euthanasia
• surveys of doctors have shown that a majority favour a change to the law. The new Bill would bring an existing medical practice into the open and regulate it.
• despite improvements in palliative care and advances in modern medicine, there are still people who live and die in great distress. Such people should have the right to seek a medically assisted, quick and peaceful death if they wish. Doctors should not be penalised for helping them.
• The Dignity in Dying Bill is limited in scope and has many safeguards.

13 March 2001