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Restoring Territory Rights (Voluntary Euthanasia Legislation) Bill 2012

Introduced into the Senate on 26 November 2012
By: Senator Di Natale

1.1        This bill seeks to repeal the Euthanasia Laws Act 1997 which amended the Acts of self-government in the Northern Territory, the Australian Capital Territory and Norfolk Island preventing the legislative assemblies in those territories from making laws providing for voluntary euthanasia.

Compatibility with human rights

1.2        The bill is accompanied by a self-contained statement of compatibility which states that the bill ‘is compatible with human rights as it does not infringe or limit existing rights, but will enhance the rights of Territorians to make laws regarding their own affairs according to democratic processes.’

1.3        The statement refers to the right to self-determination as the principal right engaged by the bill, which it argues promotes the enjoyment of this right by restoring to the democratically elected parliaments of the territories the right to make laws with respect to euthanasia. The right to self-determination is contained in article 1 of both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). This right, embodies a guarantee of internal self-determination and is a right conferred on ‘peoples’. It is not clear that that the populations of each of the territories in question as a whole would constitute a ‘people’ for the purpose of international law (though some subgroups might). More appropriate appears to be article 25 of the ICCPR, which provides for democratic governance and the right of citizens to participate in the political process.

1.4        When it ratified the ICCPR in 1980, Australia lodged the following declaration:

Australia has a federal constitutional system in which legislative, executive and judicial powers are shared or distributed between the Commonwealth and the constituent States. The implementation of the treaty throughout Australia will be effected by the Commonwealth, State and Territory authorities having regard to their respective constitutional powers and arrangements concerning their exercise.

1.5        Given this declaration, the restoration of the power of Territory legislatures to legislate on this matter (a power enjoyed by the States) would be consistent with the promotion of the enjoyment of the rights in article 25.

1.6        The explanatory memorandum notes that it is not the purpose or effect of the bill to legalise euthanasia in any of the Territories concerned, but merely to leave that decision to the democratically elected legislatures of the territories. International human rights law has been neutral with respect to euthanasia laws, neither prohibiting them absolutely (though recognising that the rights of the individual must be respected and safeguards against abuse need to be in place, where there are such laws),  nor requiring that national law provide for the possibility of lawful euthanasia.[1]

1.7                 The committee considers that the bill does not appear to give rise to any human rights concerns.

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