A former rugby player suffering with 'locked-in syndrome', is arguing for the right to die. Tony Nicklinson is petitioning the UK High Court because without a doctor's help, he cannot administer the lethal medication needed, to end his life.

Fifty-seven year-old Nicklinson from Wiltshire, England, is a prisoner in his own body. Seven years ago, a severe stroke left him unable to move. Constrained by a condition called 'locked-in syndrome', this rare neurological disorder is characterized by complete paralysis of voluntary muscles in all parts of the body except for those that control eye movement. Yet Tony's mind remains cruelly intact, and with no known cure or standard treatment, Nicklinson is more than fully aware that things will never get better.

Tony's only method of communication is through a computer that detects his blinking and speaks for him. In a statement to CBS, the British man described his life as "dull, miserable, demeaning, undignified and intolerable" and he wants to end it.

This week, Nicklinson will take his battle to the British High Court, where he is fighting for the right to end his life in a dignified manner. Unable to take his own life, the completely dependent man, does not want to leave behind a murder charge on the shoulders of whoever helped him; he is petitioning the court to prevent this.

Euthanasia has always been a controversial and hotly debated topic. Nicklinson argues that under the European Convention on Human Rights, being able to choose how to die is a matter of personal autonomy.

But not everyone agrees. Dr David Richmond who, until his retirement in 2001, was Head of Geriatric Care at Auckland Hospital in New Zealand said that "when euthanasia is legalised, personal autonomy and choice are dangerously compromised" and equates the act to capital punishment.

In the video above, Tony Nicklinson tells Victoria Derbyshire of the BBC:

"To those people who say I should be grateful I still have my life, I think they should try locked-in syndrome and then see if they are still grateful they have a life."

Since 2007, Nicklinson has refused to take any life-prolonging drugs and his wife Jane, said her husband is adamant about dying. He has been asking to die since he began communicating after his stroke, she added, when he realized he would not improve.

Tony Nicklinson once held a high-flying job as a corporate manager in Dubai, and led an active life which included skydiving and bridge-climbing in his free time. The court will hold its first hearing on the case this week.

Digital Journal, 23-1-12

http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/318354