Markus died just six short months ago, on May 29, 2022, only 15 months after his diagnosis. If he were here today, his appeal to you would be to not expand euthanasia to minors, for two reasons.
First, earlier this month, it was reported in the news that CAMAP, the Canadian Association of MAiD Assessors and Providers, is recommending that physicians have an obligation to bring up medical assistance in dying with patients who meet eligibility requirements.
As Jennifer just outlined, Markus met all the eligibility requirements. This means that if euthanasia is extended to minors, the day will come when families just like ours, with their dying children, will feel an obligation to end the suffering of their child by having a doctor euthanize him or her.
Dear committee members, we recommend against the expansion of euthanasia, because by giving some minors the right to request, you put all minors and their families in a position where they are obliged to consider it. If that had happened to Markus, the message he would have heard would have been clear: “We don't value your life; we don't think it is worth living, and if you want, we can end it for you.” It would have said to him, “We are giving up on you.”
Honourable members, we should never give up on our children.
The second reason we recommend you not extend MAID to minors is that by doing so, you eliminate unimaginably beautiful experiences.
When we went to the Canuck Place Children's Hospice, we didn’t know how long Markus would live. We hadn’t even wanted to go the hospice initially, but being there allowed us to embrace each moment we had with him, and him with us. If euthanasia becomes available to minors then that Friday night when we thought Markus was going to go, after we’d all had our time with him to say our goodbyes, it would have seemed like the thing to do, right? “It’s time,” the nurse would say. “It’s the compassionate thing to do. He doesn't have to suffer anymore.”
But then we would not have had Saturday, a most beautiful day shared with our son, our brother and our friend. We suffered much with Markus, and we miss him terribly, but Markus showed us how to find meaning in suffering, and he was thankful for each day that God gave to him.
Therefore, it is our heartfelt recommendation to this committee, on behalf of Markus and our family, that you not extend MAID to minors and instead focus on providing the necessary, robust palliative and hospice care resources to ensure the best quality of living, even when someone is dying.
Thank you.