Our Vision
Objectives and purpose
In accordance with its constitution, “Dying with Dignity – To live with dignity – to die with dignity” has the objective of ensuring a life and a death with dignity for its members and of allowing other people to benefit from these values. Dying with Dignity pursues this objective by assisting its members everywhere in word and deed, within the limits of the possibilities available to the association and as appropriate in individual cases.
In accordance with this purpose the activities of Dying with Dignity comprise, amongst others:
- Advising in regard to all end-of-life issues
- Cooperation with physicians, clinics and other associations
- Carrying out Patient’s Instructions and patient’s rights with regard to doctors and clinics
- Suicide and suicide attempt prevention
- Support in conflicts with the authorities, with the management of nursing homes and with doctors not chosen by the patient
- Further development of law in regard to questions about “last matters”
- Accompaniment of dying patients and assistance with a self-determined end of life.
Principles / Philosophy
From a philosophical and political perspective, the fundamental values of Dying with Dignity are based on values that the Swiss state has upheld since the founding, in 1848 of the modern federation, and the further development of these values on a national and international level since then.
The starting point must be the liberal position that in a free state any freedom is available to a private individual provided that the availing of that freedom in no way harms public interests or the legitimate interests of a third party. These values are:
- Respect for the freedom and autonomy of the individual as an enlightened citizen
- Defending this freedom and autonomy against third parties who try to restrict those rights for some reason, whether ideological, religious or political
- Humanity which seeks to prevent or alleviate inhumane suffering when possible: probably the most shining example of this in our history, on a national and international level, led to the founding of the Red Cross
- Solidarity with weaker individuals, in particular in the struggle against conflicting material interests of third parties
- Defending pluralism as a guarantee for the continuous development of society based on the free competition of ideas
- Upholding the principle of democracy, in conjunction with the guarantee of the constant development of fundamental rights
Respect for the freedom of individuals
Freedom from the expectations of a third party
Respect for the freedom of individuals in the form of an enlightened citizen who takes on personal responsibility (a «citoyen» in the sense of the political philosopher from Basel, ARNOLD KÜNZLI, who died in 2008; in his essay «Bourgeois und Citoyen: Das Doppelgesicht unserer Gesellschaft», in: Michael Haller, Max Jäggi, Roger Müller (Ed.), Eine deformierte Gesellschaft, Die Schweizer und ihre Massenmedien, Basel 1981, p. 299 ff.) he also reveals, among other things, that – in contrast to earlier law – constructive law valid today no longer punishes a suicide attempt.
What Gertrud, the wife of Werner Stauffacher in Schiller’s magnificent epic tale of freedom «William Tell», considered to be freedom – «A leap from this bridge will make me free!» – is most assuredly applicable to every Swiss resident today.
It is also clear that every person on Swiss soil is entitled
to the freedom to live his or her life independent from the individual
ideological, religious or other types of ideas of a third party.
No one has the right to impose or even attempt to impose his
or her individual ideological, religious or political beliefs on another.
Muslims should not do it to Christians, Jews or Buddhists. Christians should
not do it to Jews or those of other beliefs and a believer should not do it to
an unbeliever – not even using the indirect method of a governmental
regulation.
In this case, the state should be the guarantor for a pluralistic society and must forbid anything that would restrict this pluralism or lead it in a certain direction in the interest of a specific ideological viewpoint.