The Netherlands announced on Tuesday October 13 that it would legalize euthanasia for terminally ill children aged one to 12 years old.
Health Minister Hugo de Jonge said he was going to draft regulations on the subject, based on a study written by experts showing that sick children were suffering "
desperately
".
Read also: Belgium: debate on euthanasia for "fulfilled life"
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.
De Jonge explained that a study conducted by medical experts, commissioned by his ministry, showed that the new rule could apply to five to 10 children per year.
"
The study shows that there is a need for the power to intentionally end life among doctors and parents of incurable children who are in desperate and appalling pain and will die for the foreseeable future
," de Jonge wrote in a letter to parliament.
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 prosecution for carrying out authorized euthanasia on a suffering child, de Jonge said.
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.