Wesley Smith: 'This is the picture
of death with dignity'
Canadian-made 'Exit Bag' goes global

Commentary by Alex Schadenberg

The Right to Die Society of Canada has moved into the domain of recklessly breaking the law for the sake of its macabre cause.

Wesley Smith, internationally known anti-euthanasia activist and author of the award winning book The Culture of Death - The Assault on Medical Ethics in America, has uncovered the unsavoury activities of the Right to Die Society of Canada and its leaders.

After several years of research and development, Canada's Right to Die Network has begun worldwide distribution of the "Exit Bag," a customized plastic bag used to suffocate suicidal victims. The bag retails for $32 (US) and its highly recommended suicide guidebook sells for $10 (US), plus postage.

Section 241 of the Criminal Code of Canada, under the title "Counselling or Aiding Suicide," states:

Every one who:
(a) counsels a person to commit suicide, or
(b) aids or abets a person to commit suicide, whether suicide ensues or not, is guilty of an offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 years.

On its official release concerning the Exit Bag, the Right to Die Society of Canada claims that it is not breaking the law because the bag is not capable of causing death on its own and is virtually useless without appropriate medication.

The Euthanasia Prevention Coalition finds this defence to be weak at best. If the Exit Bag is virtually useless, then why would suicide guru Derek Humphrey, in his best-selling book Final Exit, feature in-depth descriptions of the use of plastic bags in suicide? Why would the Right to Die Society of Canada bother to promote and distribute the Exit Bag if it were useless?

Wesley Smith of California ordered the Exit Bag from the Victoria, B.C. head office of the Right to Die Society. According to Smith, the only concern of the Right to Die Society was his credit card number and address. The Right to Die Society claims that it only sells the bag to its members.

While on a speaking tour in Australia, Smith had the opportunity to debate Philip Nitschke, director of the Voluntary Euthanasia Research Foundation in Darwin (and the Australian equivalent to Jack Kevorkian). While debating, Nitschke made reference to his group's endorsement of the Exit Bag. Nitschke made reference to his group's endorsement of the Exit Bag. He added that that the Voluntary Euthanasia Research Foundation wasn't distributing the Exit Bag itself because it is illegal in Australia to counsel or aid someone to commit suicide, but was distributing ordering information to its membership.

Currently, the Australian police are investigating the activities of the Voluntary Euthanasia Research Foundation with respect to its involvement with the Exit Bag.

The Right to Die Society states that: "The Exit Bag program is administered solely in Ontario with Ruth von Fuchs being the official spokesman for the Exit Bag." It also claims that the Exit Bag has nothing to do with the society's operation in B.C. It is interesting to note, however, that Wesley Smith ordered and received his Exit Bag from the society's Victoria, B.C. office.

The Right to Die Society also maintains that "death is only possible through the use of appropriate medication. Death is likely to occur without a bag as barbiturate overdoses have done for decades. However, the bag may play a limited role in reducing the risk of protracted coma. It is therefore not an aid to suicide." It then goes on to state that, "Ironically, the pro-lifers only increase the false hopes of desperate people who are ill - and we (the Right to Die Society) are faced with the tedious task of disillusioning these same people by telling them that the 'pro-life' inspired news coverage was little other than lies."

It is obvious that the only defence that the Right to Die Society can make is to deny that the Exit Bag is what it is.

The Euthanasia Prevention Coalition considers the Exit Bag to be an example of how death-dealing activists blatantly disregard concerns for vulnerable people. What is to stop someone from either using the Exit Bag or following the suicide instructions in order to kill a disabled spouse or child, even against their wishes? Obviously, the only concern the Right to Die Society has is to change the laws to allow assistance in suicide and euthanasia.

We believe that the Right to Die Society is making money off the suicidal despair of men and women by affirming their feelings of having lives not worth living. This is exploitation at its worst and leads to the acceptance of death as the best option for helping the needs of elderly, disabled and depressed people who already feel like they are a burden on society.

Hugh Scher, legal counsel for the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition and a constitutional expert, agrees that it would be hard to prosecute members of the Right to Die Society based on its mailing the Exit Bag to someone who then uses it to commit suicide. "Sending a plastic bag through the mail is not against the law," he said. However, if a person requests an exit bag with a suicide instruction kit which are provided by the Right to Die Society with the intention to aid a person's suicide this indeed could be a crime.

Due to the information provided by Smith and others concerning their experience with ordering and receiving the Exit Bag, the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition is convinced that an investigation by Canadian authorities could only conclude that the Right to Die Society is contravening section 241 of the Criminal Code by promoting, providing and counselling the use of the Exit Bag for the purpose of committing suicide.

For the sake of all vulnerable Canadians, the distribution of the Exit Bag must be stopped and anyone who counsels, aids or assists people to commit suicide should be prosecuted by the full extent of the law. The law exists to protect all Canadians including depressed and vulnerable people and must be maintained.