Besieged by unbearable pain, Alain Cocq, 50 years old suffering from an incurable disease for 34 years, wishes to lead "
his last fight
" even if it means "
to let himself die
".
“
On the evening of September 4, I will stop all hydration, all food,
” he declares to
Le Figaro
, serene, at the idea of “
unloading this immense burden
”.
After having waited whole weeks for a response from the Elysee Palace, this Wednesday September 3 it is around 8:30 pm when Alain Cocq receives the long-awaited phone call.
"
I just got the presidency on the phone and that's a no
."
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According to our information, Emmanuel Macron sent a letter this Thursday to Alain Cocq announcing to him that not being
"above the law, I am not able to accede to your request".
Even if in this letter, the President of the Republic ensures that he is "
very sensitive and admiring of the incessant fights you have led against the disease and its consequences [...]
writes Emmanuel Macron.
I have heard the personal steps you wish to take today, those which consist in refusing any relentless therapeutic treatment.
[...] With emotion, I respect your approach
”.
On July 20, in a letter to Emmanuel Macron, published on Facebook, the bedridden man who is entirely dependent on machines to eat and drink, called on the president to talk about his "
extremely painful
"
daily life
.
He therefore asked the authorities "for
an end of life in dignity with active medical assistance
".
He claims "
his sweet
" as he calls it, a high dose of barbiturates, a powerful sedative to "
finally fall asleep
" and relieve his body "
confined
" and "
crippled with pain
".
Yet for decades, Alain fought against illness and was a staunch advocate for a fulfilling life despite disability.
Years of fighting disease
While descending the steps of a staircase, Alain Cocq slips at the age of 23 and dislocates his knee, which does not bleed despite the scratch.
Bad surprise.
Everything is linked for the young man.
He discovers that he suffers from an "
ischemia
", which is a "
stoppage or insufficiency of the circulation of blood in a tissue or an organ
".
There were only three of them in the world who suffered from this disease, he is the only survivor.
Doctors only give him a few weeks of life but he hangs on and decides to fight.
In 1993, he left in a wheelchair from Dijon and joined the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
The following year, still in a wheelchair, he began a Tour de France.
Thirsty for adventures and challenges, Alain Cocq does not stop there.
He traveled on European roads, passing through Brussels in 1998 and through the UN in 2008, always with the same objective in mind: that of improving the situation of people with disabilities.
On June 17, 1998, Alain Cocq arrived in a wheelchair at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg after a journey of 2000 km.
DAMIEN MEYER / AFP
But this journey does not leave the adventurer unscathed.
Five heart attacks, seven cerebral and eight emergency operations.
"
Everything has accelerated for four years.
[...] I was no longer able to fit in my chair, the pains were becoming more and more stinging
”.
Slow agony broadcast on social networks
"
I no longer fight for myself but for the others, those who will follow,
" he laments.
His end of life has therefore become a political act and the former member of the Socialist Party does not hide it.
He publishes on his Facebook wall all the progress of his fight, in particular his last act.
He will broadcast live on social networks his slow agony after stopping treatment on Saturday morning "
without sound, at the request of his nursing staff and assistance staff
".
He wants to show the authorities and the citizens "that
in France, we cannot die with dignity
".
24 hours before his "
final battle
", Alain Cocq has three requests.
First of all, he wants to change the Leonetti law by adding “
the possibility for everyone to choose their death
”.
For the moment, according to article L1110-5-2 of the Public Health Code, "
deep and continuous sedation causing an alteration of consciousness maintained until death
" can be administered to a patient at his request only on request. 'he is
suffering
from
"
a serious and incurable disease
" and whose "
life-threatening prognosis is committed in the short term presents a suffering refractory to treatment
".
His second demand concerns the hospital environment which he has frequented on numerous occasions: more nurses and orderlies to ensure better supervision.
Finally, he adds that a law on old age must be put in place by putting an end to age limits because "
there is no time more important than birth and death in a lifetime
".
