The Plenary of the Constitutional Court has endorsed this Wednesday the euthanasia law against the appeal filed by Vox against the Organic Law 3/2021. The sentence of the progressive magistrate Ramón Sáez has gone ahead with nine votes in favor and only two against, those of the conservative magistrados Concepción Espejel and Enrique Arnaldo.
The debate on the euthanasia law in the previous plenary session, held on March 9, was brief, although it has only been this week that the magistrates have analyzed in depth the appeal of Vox and the sentence proposed by the rapporteur, Ramón Sáez. During this time, intense debates have been held on the validity of the law and the rights of patients and society in general.
The euthanasia law, which was passed a year ago in the Congress of Deputies with PP and Vox voting against it, establishes that euthanasia can be carried out on patients who request it and who are in a context of “serious, chronic, and incapacitating suffering or serious and incurable illness, causing intolerable suffering.” This decision has been widely celebrated by organizations defending human rights and human dignity, which consider that this law recognizes the right to a dignified death and individual freedom.
The parties appealed the law, although Vox’s appeal was practically an amendment to the entire law because it was directed against numerous articles, while the PP’s challenge is more limited. Therefore, rejecting Vox’s appeal means, “de facto,” also dismissing that of the PP, according to legal sources explained to Europa Press. This ruling represents a great step forward in the fight for human rights and the dignity of life and is a historic milestone in the advance of society towards greater awareness and respect for individual rights and freedom of decision.