Berlin: Supreme Court sanction for euthanasia in Germany Despite strong opposition from pro-life movements and human rights organizations The Supreme Court of Germany’s Karlsruhe-based Supreme Court has ruled that the German Department of Criminal Procedure (ECHR) has banned the use of euthanasia such as assisted suicide. By order of the Full Bench of the Court, paragraph 217 of the German legal system was invalidated. The German Catholic Church has come out with bitter opposition to the verdict.
Berlin Archbishop Heiner Koch responded by stating that the court must stand for the protection of life and the new order is painful. The German Medical Association is also suing a physician-assisted euthanasia physician-assisted suicide. In Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, in addition to Germany, euthanasia is permitted under certain circumstances.
