The first use of the so-called suicide machine has been stopped.
The pod is the brainchild of Australian inventor Philip Nitschke. He says it provides a quick and painless death.
He hoped it would be used in this country to help those who wish to end their lives, but the prosecutor’s office in canton Sankt Gallen says any operator using it will be charged.
Backers say the futuristic looking pod is activated by the person inside. It floods the capsule with nitrogen which causes suffocation.
Detractors say that is the same method this has been used in the US as a method of execution, and it fails to provide a quick and easy death.
Also, while assisted suicide is legal, the law is clear – no one can make a financial gain from it. The canton says its unclear how the inventor benefits.
While Sankt Gallen is the first canton to make it clear that if its used criminal proceedings will follow, commentators believe other cantons will follow.
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