Towards euthanasia for children under 12 in the Netherlands

The Netherlands announced on Tuesday that it will legalize euthanasia for terminally ill children between the ages of one and 12.

Health Minister Hugo de Jonge said he would draft regulations on the subject, based on a study written by experts showing that sick children were suffering "desperately".

Five to ten affected per year 

Euthanasia is already legal in the Netherlands for those over 12 who can give consent, and for babies under one year old with parental consent.

But there are no legal clauses for children between one and 12 years old, due to a debate within the Dutch authorities on whether children of this age are capable of making such a decision.

Hugo de Jonge explained that a study conducted by medical experts, commissioned by his ministry, showed that this new rule could apply to five to 10 children per year.

"The study shows that there is a need to be able to intentionally end life among doctors and parents of incurable children, who are in desperate and appalling suffering and will die for the foreseeable future," Hugo de Jonge wrote in a letter to parliament.

Protection of physicians

Ministers in Prime Minister Mark Rutte's coalition government finally came to an agreement on the subject on Tuesday after months of disagreement, marked by strong opposition from Christian parties.

Existing laws do not need to be changed, but doctors will be protected from any prosecution for having performed an authorized euthanasia on a suffering child, said Hugo de Jonge.

The Dutch parliament is expected to debate the matter on Thursday, and the government is expected to implement related regulations in the coming months.

The Netherlands and neighboring Belgium were the first countries in the world to legalize euthanasia in 2002. Belgium then became the first country to allow voluntary euthanasia of children in 2014, followed quickly by the Netherlands.