A petition with over eight thousand signatures was presented to the
Victorian Parliament by the Deputy Premier on Tuesday 17 July.
The petition, one of the largest ever received, was organised by Dying
With Dignity Victoria and draws to the attention of the House that under
current legislation, Victorians do not have the right to choose to die
with dignity when suffering a terminal or incurable illness with
profound suffering. Independent research shows that the vast majority of
Victorians believe this right should exist. The petition requests that
the Legislative Assembly of Victoria enact this right into legislation
with appropriate safeguards.
The petition comes a month after a rally on the steps of Parliament
House by supporters of the petition. The rally commemorated the second
anniversary of the death of Steve Guest. a journalist and former media
advisor to the Cain Labor Government. Who may have helped him achieve
his quest to go peacefully is still a matter that is under police
investigation.
At the rally, Dr. Rodney Syme, Vice President of Dying With Dignity said
that he provided Steve with medication and challenged the Parliament to
enact appropriate legislation that more than 80% of Victorians want.
Cross-party political support at the rally came from Labor, Liberal and Greens. Ken Smith (Liberal)
undertook to join others in sponsoring a Private Members bill into the
current Parliament.
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