Assignment: Loving, living and dying together in the Netherlands
Els and Jan have fewer than three days left on Earth. Childhood sweethearts who met in kindergarten more than six decades ago, they know precisely when they will die. And how. On an early summer’s Monday morning they will travel to a nearby hospice. Some of their family and friends will accompany them. And then precisely at 10.30am - holding hands, they hope - two doctors will administer lethal medication to each of them.
In the Netherlands, euthanasia and assisted suicide are legal if someone is suffering unbearably with no prospect of getting better. The suffering can be physical or psychological. Els was diagnosed with dementia. Jan lived with pain 24/7.
Last year, 33 Dutch couples chose to die like Els and Jan. And in February, one of the Netherlands’ former Prime Ministers ended his life by euthanasia together with his wife.
For Assignment, Linda Pressly meets Els and Jan as they prepare for the end. And she explores the complex issue of allowing euthanasia in cases of dementia. A warning: some listeners might find the content of this documentary upsetting.
- Datum:
- Duur:
Gerelateerde podcastafleveringen
/http%3A//ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/3000x3000/p0kxnkls.jpg)
/http%3A//ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/3000x3000/p0p6whgm.jpg)
/http%3A//ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/3000x3000/p0p66lc2.jpg)
Meer afleveringen van The Documentary Podcast
-
The price of peace
Colombia is reeling from the False Positive scandal. Incentivised by the government, soldiers abducted and killed over 7,000 innocent civilians, falsely presenting them as guerrilla fighters in an attempt to convince the nation they... -
Hong Kong's bookstore raids
The spoken languages in Hong Kong and Taiwan differ, with Cantonese being spoken in Hong Kong and Mandarin preferred in Taiwan, but the two territories use traditional Chinese characters for reading and writing. This has created a... -
We will always love you, Dolly
Flags are at half-mast across the United States following the death of Dolly Parton at the age of 80. Born in poverty in a log cabin in rural Tennessee, she went on to sell more than 100 million records and became one of the most...