Euthanasia advocates press cause despite official caution

The undated photo shows Xiong Zhengqing (R) and his wife carry their son who has been unable to breath on his own. [Photo: jxnews.com.cn]

Xiong Zhengqing, the father of an 18-month-old boy who suffered brain damage in Lu'an, Anhui Province, had seen his application to euthanize his child declined, Guangzhou-based Nandu Daily reported on Wednesday.

On December 1, 2014, the boy, Xiong Junyi, was accidentally dragged into a conveyor belt at the express company where his dad worked. His chest was crushed and blood clots choked off his breathing, which led to cerebral hypoxia and subsequent brain damage.

Doctors at the Anhui Provincial Children's Hospital told the parents they could save Xiong Junyi's life, but were afraid he might be left permanently unable to care for himself.

"There is a slim chance he might be cured … I saw euthanasia as the best solution, since at the very least my child won't be in pain anymore. When he's choked by phlegm at home where there is no respirator, he has difficulty breathing, his eyes roll back, his lips tremble, his face turns blue," Xiong Zhengqing said.

However, both the hospital and the Lu'an civil affairs bureau turned down Xiong's application, saying "it is illegal."

Xiong's was one of the latest cases to trigger repeated debate over euthanasia. A couple in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province also attempted to resort to euthanasia in May 2014 for their 8-month-old child born without a cerebellum, the Yangtze Evening News reported on May 13, 2014.

Some 87 percent of 207,000 respondents surveyed online by news portal qq.com in May supported the Suzhou parents. "Unfortunately, the always high pro-euthanasia rate in China is still powerless to push forward the practice," Zhang Zanning, a law professor with Southeast University in Nanjing who was responsible for the first lawsuit over the practice of euthanasia in China in 1990, told the Global Times.

The legalization of euthanasia has made no significant progresses in recent years, nor will it within the foreseeable future, said experts and members of advocacy organizations reached by the Global Times.

A legal bottleneck

Li Yan, 36, the founder of A Call To Legalize Euthanasia, a patient advocacy organization, told the Global Times that, except for the media and families suffering same anguish, nobody seems to be interested in introducing a lawful process for euthanasia. Li was thrust into the limelight in 2007 when she begged Chai Jing, a well-known news reporter, to submit her proposal for peaceful death through deputies of National People's Congress to China's top legislature.

Li, who was born in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region and has suffered from progressive muscular dystrophy since she was a year old, said "I cannot do anything without my parents, so I wanted to leave the world before them."

"I sent messages to the lawmakers on Sina Weibo, [China's twitter-like service], but nobody replied," Li said with a bitter smile. She explained that as all 20 members of her organization are unable to push forward the issue themselves due to poor health, they have to turn to others.