Spanish government dismisses critical ethics commission
Photo EPA, Victor Lerena
Southern Europe
Eleven of the twelve Spanish ethics commission members are fired by the government. The advisory body had been very critical of the government law on euthanasia last year. The announcement of Carlina Darias, the Spanish minister of health, was met with surprise and controversy.
The decision of the government came just before summer recess, Protestante Digital reports.
The decision was a surprise for many. The terms of four of the ethics commission members could have been renewed, which usually happens. And what makes critics even more suspicious of the decision is that it comes after the Committee has been very critical of the Spanish euthanasia law, which was approved in March 2021.
At the time, the Committee published a critical report that rejected euthanasia as an ethical medical practice. According to the body, there were “solid health, ethical, legal, economic and social reasons to reject the transformation of euthanasia into a subjective right and a public benefit.” Furthermore, the Committee turned against the government by defending the right to conscientious objection against euthanasia by religious, medical centres.
New members have already been appointed to replace the dismissed ethics committee. Of the eleven new members, six were nominated by the government itself, the official statement of the government read. Other organisations put forward the other members.
According to Protestante Digital, the new Committee exists of jurists, an economist, an artificial intelligence expert, a philosophy professor, doctors and a nurse.
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