Colombian Víctor Escobar, 60, became this Friday (7th) the first person without a terminal illness to perform euthanasia in Colombia. He had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and hypertension, in addition to the consequences of two strokes and a car accident he suffered.
Colombia is the only Latin American country where the right to terminate one’s life is legal. The rule, regulated seven years ago, allowed only terminally ill patients to undergo the procedure, but a July decision expanded the right to cover those suffering incurable diseases.
More than 150 Colombians have already asked for access to euthanasia and carried it out, but the matter again generated discussion when, in October, the measure that would interrupt the life of a woman with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which gradually leads to paralysis of all muscles and, consequently, to death, was stopped. The patient recurred, but euthanasia has not yet been rescheduled.
Escobar, who accessed the procedure on Friday, worked as a cargo transport driver throughout his adolescence and adulthood, according to information from the Colombian newspaper El Tiempo.
At the age of 24, he had an accident and underwent three spinal surgeries. In October 2007, he suffered his first stroke and, three months later, the second, after which he had paralysis on the right side of his body. In 2015, he was diagnosed with a lung disease.
A father of four, Escobar thanked everyone who supported him in a video sent by his lawyer, Luis Giraldo Montenegro, to the country’s media. He had scheduled a press conference hours before the procedure, but canceled the event to have more time with his family before the euthanasia.
“Our struggle is to ensure that patients like me, who are not terminal but have degenerative conditions, can have the right to a dignified death,” he said. “Thank you to all Colombians who, in one way or another, have given us support and confidence to move forward.”
Escobar also appealed to businessmen in the country to provide work for his wife, Diana Nieto, with whom he has been married for 15 years, especially in clothing, so that she can support herself.
The Colombian pleaded twice for the right to terminate his life. In the first, in 2020, the committee responsible for permission denied the request, due to the fact that the procedure is guaranteed only for terminally ill patients. When the Constitutional Court expanded the beneficiaries of the right, he asked again and received a positive response.
“This is a very important moment for Colombia; it is the first patient in Latin America to be euthanized without being a terminal patient,” lawyer Luis Giraldo said in a video posted on Twitter. He said Escobar, who died at 9:20 pm (11:20 pm in Brasília), had decided to donate his organs.
The first terminally ill patient to be legally entitled to the procedure in Colombia was Ovidio Gonzalez, then 79, who had mouth cancer in 2015. His defense also had to appeal a decision that suspended euthanasia and, in In the end, the patient’s wishes were fulfilled.
The Foundation for the Right to Die Dignifiedly of Colombia is currently monitoring five cases of people seeking the right to terminate their lives, two of which involve non-terminal patients.
In other Latin American countries, the practice is illegal, but there are signs of change. In Mexico, there is a project under analysis in Congress. In Chile, where 72% of the population approves the appeal, the story of Cecilia Heyder, 52, who has cancer, lupus and sepsis, reached the Supreme Court, and the case moved deputies. Now, euthanasia in the country depends on the Senate — in Argentina there is also a proposal in the works.
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