Pressing the button killed him within minutes, and a Swiss organization that operates the assisted death device “Sarco,” called the “Capsule of Death,” faced strong opposition and declared a halt to the use of the device.
According to the Associated Press on the 6th, the assisted death advocacy group ‘Last Resort’, which is in charge of the sale and operation of Sarco, said on the same day, “We will stop recruiting new applicants,” adding, “We will not proceed with the assisted suicide procedure of 371 people on the waiting list for the time being.”
“For only 18 Swiss francs, you will be able to sleep forever,” Sarco, which was first introduced in July this year, promoted extensively at its launching press conference. It is large enough for a person to lie down and release nitrogen when the lid is closed and a button is pressed, causing suffocation within about five minutes. Each device costs 15,000 Swiss francs, and 600,000 Swiss francs were reportedly invested in the development. It was the first time that the device was actually used on April 23. A 64-year-old American woman who suffered from an immune disease killed her by using a Sarco in a forest in Merishausen, Switzerland.
Switzerland is a forward-looking country for assisted suicide, but the news of this woman sparked a fierce debate. The Swiss government rejected Sarco’s application for medical device approval, saying it had no medical utility, and some regions, including Schaffhausen, said they would ban its use at all. Organizations in favor of assisted suicide also opposed Sarco’s permission, saying it was “high risk of abuse.”
However, the Swiss police immediately launched an investigation after the last resort maintained its position to use sarco. Florian Villette, the company’s CEO, was also arrested by police. Villette is accused of encouraging and assisting suicide by watching an American woman at the scene when she died.
Switzerland has been operating the “assisted suicide” system since 1942. The system is for terminally ill patients only, and the patient should consult with a doctor twice and go through a meditation period. According to SWI, however, it is not compatible with Switzerland’s assisted suicide system as Sarco can be applied for use as long as people aged 50 or older have a mental health certificate.
JULIE KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
