“Unfortunately, this law gains more social acceptance as time goes by”, said Montero while analysing the Belgian experience from a legal perspective. “Although the law originated on the basis of applying euthanasia in a controlled manner, today it’s out of control”, he continued. He said, “It’s utterly delusional to try to control a law that now depends entirely on the patient’s wishes”. Montero has expressed his arguments in full in the book, Cita con la muerte. 10 años de eutanasia legal en Bélgica (“A Date with Death: 10 Years of Legal Euthanasia in Belgium”).

Using recent examples drawn from real life, the Belgian academic showed how one of the arguments for applying this law (namely, to prevent unbearable suffering) is now being used in relation to potential as well as actual suffering. “For example, a few years ago everyone was talking about the case of the Nobel prize winner Christian de Duve. He was diagnosed with cancer at 94 and asked to be euthanized so that he wouldn’t suffer, even though the doctors had prepared a logical treatment plan for him”, Montero explained.

Montero, who is also a professor of Civil Law, clearly feels that the law is being interpreted too loosely. “Because the topic has become trivialized, people start asking why it can’t be applied in other contexts. So now we’ve accepted the euthanasia of children – something that nobody was asking for – and there are those who propose using it in many other situations, such as for people suffering from dementia”, he argued.

“This law is the result of pure ideology. The reasoning behind its approval was the idea that ‘my life is mine, so I can do whatever I want with it’. However, what people are really doing with euthanasia is putting their life – and death – in the hands of someone else. So the idea that ‘you can do whatever you want with your own life’ is false”, Montero continued.

He also went on to talk about the major complications this law could bring to doctors providing palliative care. “In social terms, euthanasia is so widely accepted that people with problems could find themselves obliged to end their lives, because if they didn’t, they might become a burden to society”, he continued.

During the question-and-answer session that concluded his talk, Montero expressed his regret that the rate of euthanasia has increased rather than diminished over the last ten-plus years. “A door has been opened and it’s being pushed open further and further. On top of that, those in favour of it are calling it an ‘ethical advance’”, he concluded.