After introducing a breakthrough method for assisted dying, Sarco is now set to use its suicide pods for first time ever. The first use of a portable suicide pod will be carried out in Switzerland this year, potentially within months to come, the company said on Wednesday.
The space-age-looking Sarco capsule was first unveiled in 2019, which uses the method of replacing the oxygen inside it with nitrogen, causing death by hypoxia. It would cost $20 to use.
The suicide pod is often dubbed as the ‘Tesla of euthanasia”. Since its introduction at the Venice Design Festival in 2019, it has drawn criticism for promoting death.
Legality of suicide in Switzerland
Dr Philip Nitschke, a vocal advocate for assisted dying, created the machine and claims that it will help its users to die swiftly and painlessly. However, the prosecutors in Switzerland’s Schaffhausen Canton said a few days back that if anyone is caught assisting someone in using the pods, they can face nearly five years of imprisonment, as reported by Swiss media.
The Last Resort organisation now said it saw no legal obstacle to its use in Switzerland, where the law generally allows assisted suicide if the person commits the lethal act themselves.
Watch | Switzerland: ‘Sarco Pod’- A device to make suicide ‘painless’
“Since we have people indeed queueing up, asking to use the Sarco, it’s very likely that it will take place pretty soon,” The Last Resort’s chief executive Florian Willet told a press conference.
Voluntary assisted suicide is legal in Switzerland, according to Metro; however, Article 115 of the Swiss Criminal Code states that assisting suicide is a crime done for “selfish” reasons.
First use of suicide pod soon
Though no decision has been made over the date and location of the first death, or who the first user might be, there are reports of first usage of the suicide pod this year soon. Such details would not be made public until after the event.
“We really don’t want a person’s desire for a peaceful passing Switzerland to turn into a media circus,” said lawyer Fiona Stewart, who is on The Last Resort’s advisory board.
Asked if the first use would be this year, she replied: “I would say yes.”
The minimum age limit is set at 50, though if someone over 18 was seriously ill, “we would not want to deny a suffering person based on their age”, said Stewart.
A person can simply climb into the machine and after asking a few questions, the software will switch on power and the person can just press a button to die.
(With inputs from agencies)