Some critical voices say that it “glamorizes suicide” and could lead to a “contagion” of it.
Switzerland is one of the few countries where assisted suicide is legal, and while others such as the Netherlands and Belgium allow it to patients suffering from unbearable physical or psychological suffering, Switzerland does not contemplate these requirements in its legislation, according to the Medical Association British.
That said, people who wish to end their life in that country will soon have access to a new method already authorized by Swiss medical authorities: a 3D printed capsule that, according to its creator, can end the life of someone in a matter of minutes, without pain.
Philip Nitschke is the creator of Sarco, a coffin-shaped capsule whose real-life trials are scheduled for early 2022. It should be noted that, according to Swiss laws on assisted suicide, Sarco it does not violate any of its regulations, said Exit International, a non-profit organization that develops the product and after a legal analysis of the issue.
Without pain: a way to die “elegant and stylish”
But how does it work? The capsule fills with nitrogen gas at the push of a button, which rapidly lowers oxygen levels, knocking the user unconscious within a minute, Nitschke said. Thus, the person does not suffocate or experience distress, he said, but dies from lack of oxygen after falling asleep.
Since it is a mobile capsule, it is possible to emphasize it anywhere, said its creator, who also referred to the machine as a “elegant and stylish” way of dying.
“Glamorize suicide”
But since Nitschke introduced the concept four years ago, it has been met with varying degrees of bewilderment and rejection, with some critics arguing that the look of the Sarco it is one of their biggest problems.
The director of the Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University, Daniel Sulmasy, said that the elegant design of the capsule, almost similar to that of a luxury car, “glamorizes suicide.” And not only that, he dismissed Nitschke’s plan to publish the instructions for its 3D printing on the internet, noting that it could lead to the contagion of suicide.
Other detractors are concerned that Sarco be accessible to people who are not in their right mind, or even children. In other words, the product is misused.
In this regard, Nitschke defends that the capsule is safe and that it will cause painless deaths. Plus, he doesn’t expect any surprises during trials in 2022 that will take place at a Swiss assisted suicide clinic with a half-dozen volunteers, he notes.
Responding to criticism of the “suicide contagion,” Nitschke said Exit International will publish plans to Sarco in a book that distributes with methods on assisted death, which establishes that its use is restricted to people over 50 who are “in their right mind or seriously ill.” (I)
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