Australia’s Dr Death starts UK ‘suicide club’: Workshops and online guide will cause ‘endless tragedies’<\/p>\n
Published: 08:15 AEST, 28 September 2014 | Updated: 08:15 AEST, 28 September 2014<\/p>\n
Pro-euthanasia group Exit International was setup by Dr Philip Nitschke.<\/p>\n
The group has 1,000 UK members and has now opened a London office.<\/p>\n
Membership restricted to over-50s and younger with terminal illnesses<\/p>\n
Founder: Dr Philip Nitschke believes it is a ‘fundamental right’ for anyone to take their own life.<\/p>\n
A \u2018suicide club\u2019 that provides advice and equipment to help people kill themselves has been set up in Britain.<\/p>\n
Exit International, which campaigns to legalise euthanasia, has opened a London office to \u2018cope with demand\u2019 after its UK membership hit 1,000.<\/p>\n
The group, which charges members a fee to access online information and attend workshops to discuss \u2018peaceful\u2019 methods of suicide, has attracted fierce criticism in Australia, where it was originally set up.<\/p>\n
Unlike other advocates of assisted dying, Exit does not campaign only on behalf of the terminally ill.<\/p>\n
It also aims to help older people simply \u2018tired of life\u2019 kill themselves using drugs or gas, in what it terms \u2018rational suicide\u2019.<\/p>\n
Its activities include:<\/p>\n
However, opponents of euthanasia \u2013 and even some supporters \u2013 say Exit\u2019s approach is \u2018dangerous\u2019, with one warning its spread here will lead to \u2018endless tragedies\u2019.<\/p>\n
Exit has already been implicated in the death of Yorkshire grandmother Anne Veasey, who had multiple sclerosis.<\/p>\n
The group\u2019s Ireland director, Tom Curran, was interviewed by police over her death in 2012, but never charged.<\/p>\n
Although assisting or encouraging suicide is illegal in Britain, the law has been tested by campaigners seeking the right to end their lives when they choose.<\/p>\n
Next month a bill to allow doctors to help patients take their lives in certain circumstances is to be debated in the House of Lords.<\/p>\n
Philip Nitschke, who believes it is a ‘fundamental right’ for anyone to take their lives when they want.<\/p>\n
Exit UK\u2019s \u2018inaugural event\u2019 is to be held next Saturday in London. It is free to attend for members, who pay around \u00a360 a year, while non-members are required to pay a one-off fee of around \u00a350.<\/p>\n
The group was set up by Australian doctor Philip Nitschke, who believes it is a \u2018fundamental right\u2019 for anyone to take their lives when they want. Restricting access to suicide method information is \u2018censorship\u2019, he argues.<\/p>\n
Exit claims to limit membership and information to those over 50, who have no history of depression or mental illness.<\/p>\n
It only lets in younger people if they have a serious pressing reason, such as a terminal illness.<\/p>\n
But The Mail on Sunday found no proof of age or clean mental health was required to access its e-handbook, a guide to suicide.<\/p>\n
It was guarded by only ticking a terms and conditions box.<\/p>\n
The T&Cs state \u2018that you are aged over 50 years and \/ or seriously ill\u2019 and \u2018have never been diagnosed with a mental disorder\u2019.<\/p>\n
Dr Nitschke said yesterday the fact that a few depressed people could use Exit was outweighed by the \u2018benefit\u2019 it brought to others.<\/p>\n
It \u2018should not be used to stop people who have a legitimate need for this information\u2019, he added.<\/p>\n
But Tory Peer Lord Alton, who has campaigned against assisted suicide, said: \u2018If you can end up with a lethal pill, through a simple tick-box method, that is going to lead to endless tragedies. It is downright irresponsible.\u2019<\/p>\n
Kevin Fitzpatrick, of the anti-euthanasia group Not Dead Yet, said: \u2018This is a suicide club, in that you have to pay membership fees.<\/p>\n
‘Nitschke is not only playing on people\u2019s emotions, but he is profiting from them.\u2019<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
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Australia’s Dr Death starts UK ‘suicide club’: Workshops and online guide will cause ‘endless tragedies’ Published: 08:15 AEST, 28 September 2014 | Updated: 08:15 AEST, 28 September 2014 Pro-euthanasia group Exit International was setup by Dr Philip Nitschke. The group has 1,000 UK members and has now opened a London office. Membership restricted to over-50s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n