{"id":314981,"date":"2024-07-06T13:37:03","date_gmt":"2024-07-06T18:37:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=314981"},"modified":"2024-07-05T14:38:57","modified_gmt":"2024-07-05T19:38:57","slug":"dutch-couple-dual-euthanasia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/dutch-couple-dual-euthanasia\/","title":{"rendered":"Dutch couple dies in dual euthanasia… and neither had a terminal diagnosis"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

A couple in the Netherlands is making headlines for their decision to die together by euthanasia, even though neither had a terminal illness.<\/p>\n

Jan Faber and his wife Els van Leeningen had been married for nearly 50 years before their deaths in early June. At that time, Jan had been living with chronic back pain for decades, while Els had been diagnosed with dementia. They ultimately opted for euthanasia \u2014 something Jan had reportedly been talking about for years \u2014 and were approved, even with Els’ rapidly declining cognitive abilities raising red flags as to whether or not she could truly consent.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you take a lot of medicine, you live like a zombie,\u201d Jan reportedly explained<\/a>. \u201cSo, with the pain I have, and Els\u2019 illness, I think we have to stop [living].\u201d<\/p>\n

“I\u2019ve lived my life, I don\u2019t want pain anymore,\u201d he added. \u201cThe life we\u2019ve lived, we\u2019re getting old. We think it has to be stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n

“There is no other solution,” Els said.<\/p>\n

READ: Transgender-identifying individual seeks euthanasia for post-surgical pain and regret<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

According to the Daily Mail<\/a>, the couple’s physician was uncomfortable giving his approval for the assisted death because of Els’ dementia. So, the couple instead turned to the Centre of Expertise on Euthanasia, an organization devoted to helping people end their lives.<\/p>\n

Their son, who didn’t want to be identified, noted the difficulty he had in watching both his parents die.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember we were having dinner in the evening, and I got tears in my eyes just watching us all having that final dinner together,\u201d he said. \u201cThe final half hour was difficult. The doctors arrived and everything happened quickly – they follow their routine, and then it\u2019s just a matter of minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n

The notion of couples dying together by euthanasia has been romanticized in the media, especially following the deaths<\/a> earlier this year of former Dutch Prime Minister Dries van Agt and his wife Eugenie, who were killed while holding hands.<\/p>\n

Couples euthanasia has been increasing<\/a>. In 2021, 16 couples died together by euthanasia in the Netherlands alone compared to nine in 2018. Yet there is nothing romantic or peaceful about euthanasia, which uses a lethal injection<\/a> of a paralytic drug that may cause the person to actually end up drowning. Though the person may look peaceful outwardly, the death can actually be extremely painful.<\/p>\n

Dr. Theo Boer, professor of healthcare ethics at the Protestant Theological University, told the BBC<\/a> he is worried about this trend in dual euthanasia, especially as the practice becomes more widespread.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the past year we\u2019ve seen dozens of cases of duo-euthanasia, and there\u2019s a general tendency to \u2018hero-ify\u2019 dying together,\u201d he warned. \u201cBut the taboo on intentional killing – that\u2019s eroding, and especially when it comes to duo-euthanasia.”<\/p>\n

The DOJ put a pro-life grandmother in jail for protesting the killing of preborn children. Please take 30 seconds to TELL CONGRESS: STOP THE DOJ FROM TARGETING PRO-LIFE AMERICANS.<\/i><\/b><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A couple in the Netherlands is making headlines for their decision to die together by euthanasia, even though neither had a terminal illness. Jan Faber and his wife Els van Leeningen had been married for nearly 50 years before their deaths in early June. At that time, Jan had been living with chronic back pain […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":607,"featured_media":315088,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false},"categories":[5,3473],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nDutch couple dies in dual euthanasia, neither had terminal diagnosis<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Their son, who didn't want to be identified, noted the difficulty he had in watching his parents end their lives at the same time.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/dutch-couple-dual-euthanasia\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dutch couple dies in dual euthanasia, neither had terminal 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