Fundamentos destacados: 51. A la luz de esta jurisprudencia, el Tribunal considera que el derecho de un individuo a decidir por qué medios y en qué momento terminará su vida, siempre que sea capaz de tomar libremente una decisión sobre esta cuestión y de actuar en consecuencia, es uno de los aspectos del derecho al respeto de la vida privada en el sentido del artículo 8 del Convenio.
[…]
56. Por lo que respecta a la ponderación de los intereses en conflicto en el presente asunto, el Tribunal de Justicia comprende el deseo del demandante de suicidarse de forma segura y digna y sin dolor ni sufrimiento innecesarios, en particular habida cuenta del elevado número de tentativas de suicidio que fracasan y que con frecuencia tienen graves consecuencias para las personas afectadas y para sus familias. Sin embargo, opina que la reglamentación establecida por las autoridades suizas, a saber, la exigencia de obtener una prescripción médica, persigue, entre otros, los objetivos legítimos de proteger a todos de decisiones precipitadas y evitar abusos y, en particular, garantizar que un paciente falto de discernimiento no obtenga una dosis letal de pentobarbital sódico (véase, mutatis mutandis, en relación con las restricciones al aborto, Tysiąc c. Polonia, nº. 5410/03, § 116, ECHR 2007-I).
[Traducción LP]
51. In the light of this case-law, the Court considers that an individual’s right to decide by what means and at what point his or her life will end, provided he or she is capable of freely reaching a decision on this question and acting in consequence, is one of the aspects of the right to respect for private life within the meaning of Article 8 of the Convention.
[…]
56. With regard to the balancing of the competing interests in this case, the Court is sympathetic to the applicant’s wish to commit suicide in a safe and dignified manner and without unnecessary pain and suffering, particularly given the high number of suicide attempts that are unsuccessful and which frequently have serious consequences for the individuals concerned and for their families. However, it is of the opinion that the regulations put in place by the Swiss authorities, namely the requirement to obtain a medical prescription, pursue, inter alia, the legitimate aims of protecting everybody from hasty decisions and preventing abuse, and, in particular, ensuring that a patient lacking discernment does not obtain a lethal dose of sodium pentobarbital (see, mutatis mutandis, with regard to restrictions on abortion, Tysiąc v. Poland, no. 5410/03, § 116, ECHR 2007-I).
[Idioma Original]
CASE OF HAAS v. SWITZERLAND
(Application no. 31322/07)
In the case of Haas v. Switzerland,
The European Court of Human Rights (First Section), sitting as a
Chamber composed of:
Christos Rozakis, President,
Nina Vajić,
Anatoly Kovler,
Khanlar Hajiyev,
Sverre Erik Jebens,
Giorgio Malinverni,
George Nicolaou, judges,
and Søren Nielsen, Section Registrar,
Having deliberated in private on 14 December 2010, Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:
PROCEDURE
1. The case originated in an application (no. 31322/07) against the Swiss Confederation lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by a Swiss national, Mr Ernst G. Haas (“the applicant”), on 18 July 2007.
2. The applicant was represented by Mr P.A. Schaerz, a lawyer practising in Uster (Canton of Zürich). The Swiss Government (“the overnment”) were represented by their Agent, Mr F. Schürmann, Head of the Human Rights and Council of Europe Section at the Federal Office of Justice.
3. Relying on Article 8 of the Convention, the applicant complained that his right to decide how and when to end his life had been breached.
4. By a decision of 20 May 2010, the Court declared the application admissible.
5. The Government filed further observations on the merits (Rule 59 § 1 of the Rules of Court). In addition, third-party comments were received from Dignitas (Article 36 § 2 of the Convention), a Swiss private-law association whose aim is to ensure that its members are able to live and to die with dignity.
[Continúa…]
