"Hand in Hand" Former Dutch Prime Minister and Wife Choose Euthanasia Together

Couple's Health Declines... Pass Away Together at 93
Netherlands, First in the World to Legalize Euthanasia in 2002

Former Dutch Prime Minister and his wife reportedly passed away together through euthanasia.

The British daily The Guardian reported on the 10th (local time) that "Former Prime Minister Dries van Agt and his wife Eugenie passed away together through euthanasia on the 5th at the age of 93." The 'Rights Forum' institute, founded by former Prime Minister van Agt, also stated, "Last week, the van Agt couple faced death holding hands together."

Former Prime Minister van Agt served as the Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 1977 to 1982. It was reported that his health had been poor since suffering a stroke in 2019.

Former Dutch Prime Minister Dries van Agt (center), who passed away through euthanasia with his wife [Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

He always expressed unwavering affection, calling his wife, who had been his partner for over 70 years, "my lady." Gerard Jonkman, director of the Rights Forum institute, told Dutch public broadcaster NOS, "Both van Agt and his wife experienced deteriorating health, and neither could leave before the other."

The Netherlands legalized euthanasia in 2002, the first country in the world to do so. Euthanasia is carried out when six conditions are met, including that the patient is suffering unbearable pain, there is no prospect of treatment, and the patient has long wished for death.

Elke Swart, spokesperson for the Dutch Euthanasia Expertise Center, which assists about 1,000 euthanasia cases annually, said, "Even in cases of joint euthanasia requests, each requirement is strictly reviewed," adding, "It is very rare for two people to simultaneously suffer unbearable pain and wish for euthanasia together."

The first reported cases of joint euthanasia in the Netherlands were 26 people (13 couples) in 2020, followed by 32 people (16 couples) in 2021, and 58 people (29 couples) in 2022. In 2022, a total of 8,720 people chose euthanasia in the Netherlands.

"Famous French actor Alain Delon officially states he wants euthanasia"
Photo by EPA Yonhap News

Euthanasia is classified into passive euthanasia (assisted suicide), where the patient self-administers a lethal drug prescribed by a doctor, and active euthanasia, where the doctor directly injects a lethal drug. Currently, countries including the Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain, Colombia, Austria, and New Zealand permit passive euthanasia.

Jean-Luc Godard, the legendary director who led the French New Wave (Nouvelle Vague) cinema in the 1960s, ended his life through euthanasia in Switzerland in September 2022 at the age of 91. Although euthanasia is illegal in his homeland France, he was able to choose euthanasia because he had lived in Switzerland for many years.

Similarly, famous French actor Alain Delon (89) publicly expressed his wish for euthanasia after brain surgery following a stroke in 2019 and currently resides in Switzerland.