Your Say: Issue of the Week

Posted on 3 December, 2015

In this weekly street series we pick a hot topic of the week and ask for your thoughts…

Greens minister Shane Rattenbury has proposed the ACT lead the nation on growing crops for medical cannabis, a potential new source of jobs for Canberra.

This follows his push to repeal laws regarding euthanasia in the ACT, with the Greens continuing to collect signatures online and in person for a petition seeking to open the way for the possible introduction of voluntary euthanasia in the ACT.

“The people of the ACT should have the right to die with dignity, how and when they choose,” Mr Rattenbury said.

Curious to find out your thoughts on both issues, we hit the streets and asked:

“Do you agree that medicinal marijuana and voluntary euthanasia should be legalised?”

John, City.

“For soft drugs, like marijuana, whether or not they should be legal – I don’t think I’m qualified to answer. I don’t believe that they should be penalised as heavily as they are. I have had a couple of terminally ill family members so I think that the right to end your own life seems pretty fair.”

Phillip, Newcastle.

“I would be more likely to see [both] a positive than a negative, although I am aware that there is obviously a negative side to it. I think that there would be more positives than negatives.”

Mel, Queanbeyan.

“I think that personally with family members who have been very ill and wish that they could end their own life or have something better to ease the pain, I would be all for legalising marijuana – just to help them. It’s bad on the family and puts a lot of pressure on the family and my uncle hated that. He stopped all chemo and everything. He said ‘send me to hospice’ and within two days after stopping chemo he passed away. And that’s what he wanted. So I think that both (medical marijuana and voluntary euthanasia) should be legalised as long as a specialist who takes everything into account has signed it off: the patient, the family and medical advice. They should have an option.”

Bree, Narrabundah.

“It would have to be backed up by evidence, and if it is the case, it’s still hard to say…voluntary euthanasia is a very touchy subject and as well as that, it’s heavily contextually defined. Opinions will differ, but I don’t know? Considering that we’re such a multicultural nation and there are so many different religions, there would be so many different views around it.”

Do you agree?

Photos by Ashley St George.