Stupor, last September 23. We then learned that for the first time in the world, the controversial Sarco suicide assistance capsule had been used, in a forest in Schaffhausen. A 64-year-old American woman chose to go with this device based on nitrogen asphyxiation. “I was happy that this woman could experience the peaceful death she wanted,” comments Philip Nitschke, inventor of the capsule and head of the organization that promotes its use, The Last Resort.
Nearly two months after this controversial death and the arrests that followed – no authorization having been obtained – Philip Nitschke spoke for the first time in the Swiss press, Wednesday in the “NZZ”.
This 77-year-old Australian remains firm, faithful to his fight, sometimes considered radical, for the right to choose one’s death, but he says he is very surprised by the reactions of the Swiss authorities. As a reminder, the lawyer at the head of the Swiss section of the organization is still in prison today.
“It seems that Switzerland is suddenly afraid of its pioneering role on a global scale,” says Philip Nitschke, speaking of assisted suicide. The activist declares himself more than surprised by the still ongoing incarceration of his collaborator. “I am deeply troubled by what is happening. We knew there would be an investigation, that’s normal. But we were and are convinced that everything we do is fully compliant with Swiss law. But when rumors spread that the Schaffhausen public prosecutor’s office was investigating suspicion of intentional homicide, I was horrified.”
These “rumors”, to be taken in the conditional, were traces of strangulation which would have been found on the neck of the deceased, and therefore of a possible intervention in the capsule. Philip Nitschke sweeps them away. The septuagenarian explains that he had followed the process remotely, thanks to a camera placed in the installation, “From the moment the woman got into the Sarco until the police arrived, no one opened the lid,” he says in the German-speaking daily.
Otherwise, in an interview recently published on social networks, the Australian explained that his capsule is sequestered by the courts in Schaffhausen. But his organization is currently making a new one – they are 3D printed. However, promising not to consider using it in Switzerland.
He confirms these remarks in the “NZZ”, swearing that he will wait for a decision from the Schaffhausen courts before considering a second use in our country. But he says he is calm: “The investigations can only have one result: that Sarco does not violate any Swiss law.”
Philip Nitschke, however, intends to continue his fight. “There are other places we could take the Sarco. For example in Finland, where, according to our lawyers, there is no specific law prohibiting assisted suicide,” he says.
