Dutch Teen Noa Pothoven Dies After Euthanasia Request as She Couldn't Bear The Trauma After Childhood Sexual Assault
Failing to handle the depression of being raped as a child, the young girl, named Noa Pothoven, she decided to leave the world at such a tender age.
Netherlands, June 5: A 17-year-old Dutch girl, who survived rape in her childhood, decided to end her life by requesting for euthanasia. She was unable to bear the trauma of being assaulted in her childhood. The teen wanted to end her life and she stopped eating and drinking. She even refused to take any kind of medical treatment with the understanding of her parents. Failing to handle the depression of being raped as a child, the young girl, named Noa Pothoven, she decided to leave the world at such a tender age. While it was reported as a case of euthanasia, journalists have now pointed out some discrepancies which point it wasn't a case of state-assisted death.
In order to end life with euthanasia, the decision has to be approved by a physician who needs to certify that the individual's pain is indeed insufferable. But the Euthanasia laws in the Netherlands can be performed under two cases: a doctor can give the patient life-ending drugs to administer themselves, or a doctor can administer the drugs.
Check Tweets Which Points Out Noa Pothoven's Death Wasn't Euthanasia:
The Dutch teen had penned an award-winning book Winning or Learning on her battle with depression. Before ending her life, she had written her last Instagram post on Saturday. The post that said "I will die within a maximum of 10 days". The post was read by her 10,000 followers. Noa breathed her last on Sunday, a day after she made her post public. Reports inform that she was assisted to kill herself by a state-authorised clinic that helps with euthanasia. In Netherlands, the process is legal under the Termination of Life on Request and Assisted Suicide Act of 2001. Euthanasia Cases in India: Plight of Aruna Shanbaug & Others Which Led The Law to Recognise The 'Right to Die'.
Take a look at her Instagram Post:
Reports inform that Noa decided not to eat and kill herself eventually, the state decided not to force feed her, which indirectly assisted her in the process. In her last Instagram post, Noa wrote in her native language stating that after years of fighting, it is finished. "I have now stopped eating and drinking for a while and after many conversations and reviews it has been decided that I will be released because my suffering is unbearable. It's finished", she said in her post. While many mourned Noa’s death, several people on social media sparked a debate asking if she was mature enough to kill herself at the age of 17.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 05, 2019 07:33 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).