The first American woman to end her life in a new Swiss “suicide pod” received terrifying commands from the dismal machine before taking her last breath.
After entering the Sarco suicide pod on Monday, the machine allegedly asked the 64-year-old woman, whose name has not been released, to press the euthanasia button.
“If you want to die, press this button,” the machine told him, according to AFP news agency.
The 3D-printed chamber, called “Sarco” (short for “sarcophagus”), floods itself with nitrogen gas, causing the user’s oxygen levels to plummet to lethal levels.
This process causes the person to lose consciousness and die within 10 minutes. The pod is equipped with an emergency escape button.
However, the controversial pods have yet to be approved for use, and local police have announced that several arrests have been made in connection with the death of an American woman in a forest cabin in Mellisshausen.
Florian Willet, co-director of Last Resort, the Swiss branch of assisted suicide organisation Exit International, was the only person to witness the woman’s death, which he described as “peaceful, quick and dignified”, the organisation said in a statement.
“We are pleased that Sarco will work as designed, enabling him to die peacefully and drug-free, at a time of his choosing,” Exit International director Dr. Philip Nitschke said on Tuesday.
Switzerland is one of the few countries where foreigners can travel to and legally end their own lives through assisted suicide, which does not require the involvement of a doctor but does include outside assistance.
The law states that suicide must be carried out without “outside assistance” from a doctor, and that those assisting someone to commit suicide must not do so with “selfish motives”.
AFP via Getty Images
But unlike the Netherlands, where Exit International is based, Swiss law still strictly prohibits the practice of euthanasia and requires the involvement of a doctor or other medical professional.
Amid signs that the Sarco-Pod may be approved in Switzerland, Health Minister Elisabeth Bohm-Schneider suggested on Monday that the capsule will not gain legal status.
“It does not meet the requirements of the Product Safety Act and therefore must not be put into circulation,” she said, adding that “the corresponding use of nitrogen is inconsistent with the objective provisions of the Chemicals Act.”
If you or someone you know is experiencing any of the issues discussed in this article, please call the Suicide Crisis Lifeline at 988 or visit 988Lifeline.org.
With post wire