The ‘last right’: DignitySA approaches court over medical assistance for the terminally ill
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Read the original article: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-04-10-the-last-right-dignitysa-appr…
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18 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.
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“The legal battle for the right to medical assistance by the terminally ill to end suffering and life has been revived through a motion handed to the Gauteng Division of the High Court in Pretoria by DignitySA.”
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“The approach to the court on Thursday by the non-profit lobby group marks the start of a historic legal process aimed at decriminalising and legalising assisted dying.”
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“It is as a result of 15 years of advocacy by DignitySA for the right of South Africans 'to choose a dignified end when facing intractable and unbearable suffering'.”
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“DignitySA chair, Professor Willem Landman, and his deputy, Professor Joseph Raimondo, held a media conference at the Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation in Cape Town, announcing the legal action on Thursday.”
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“The late archbishop voiced his support for the right of the terminally ill to die with dignity and for the law to be changed after reading of Gqeberha resident Craig Schonegevel’s struggle to die with dignity.”
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“Craig, who took his own life on 1 October 2009, suffered from a vicious variant of neurofibromatosis.”
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“Craig’s application to Dignitas in Switzerland for an 'assisted suicide' suffered long delays and was ultimately declined.”
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“Dieter Harck, who suffers from Motor Neurone Disease (MND), spoke of his desire to see the law change before his own health deteriorated.”
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“The definition proposed in the DignitySA motion is 'Medical Assistance in Dying' (MAiD), a much clearer description of the intention behind new laws.”
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“Parliament has dragged its feet on this 'hot potato' issue since 1998, when it first received, from the South African Law [Reform] Commission, a comprehensive report on legal reform.”
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“South Africa’s common law currently places 'a blanket prohibition on MAiD' in all its forms, placing helpers and others at risk.”
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“The adoption of the Constitution incorporating a Bill of Rights in 1996 enshrined constitutional rights and superseded common law if the two should clash.”
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“DignitySA’s constitutional argument against the blanket prohibition of MAiD draws from, and is supported by, about 30 supporting and confirmatory affidavits.”
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“Proceedings in a motion court required argument based on documentation and DignitySA, as the applicant acting in the public interest rather than an individual applicant, has relied on 11 case studies.”
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“The testimony of 15 foreign experts from six countries spread over four continents would also set out how MAiD operated in these jurisdictions.”
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“Two South African medical practitioners submitted reports considering the desirability and feasibility of MAiD in South Africa and concluded that the public-private healthcare system could implement and manage MAiD핵”
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“Relief sought: declaration of invalidity under section 172(1) of the Constitution.”
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“Parliament would be obliged to write legislation appropriate for South African circumstances within 24 months if the challenge is successful.”
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