The Correlation Between the Right to Death and the Right to Dignified Death

Abstract

In order to examine the object of research, and both to achieve the goal of research and to ensure the completeness, objectivity, reliability and persuasiveness of the results, the author used a set of general and special methods that are peculiar to legal science. In particular, the origin and long historical path of development of certain human rights were studied with the help of the historical method. On the basis of system-structural method there has been formulated the general structure of the study; with the help of dialectical method the author has analyzed the provisions of law and case law on the pecularities of the right to die. The analysis of the legislation of foreign countries has been provided using comparative legal method, which have made it possible to recall their positive experience in terms of analysis of the right to death.
 This article reveals the scientific approaches of researchers to determine the nature of death, the right to die, the right to a dignified death, to identify features thereof and to provide distinction between them. The paper analyzes ways to protect the right to die. Part of the work is devoted to the analysis of the law enforcement practice of the European Court of Human Rights on the possibility and expediency of the existence of certain criteria for restricting the right to life.
 Based on the study, it has been concluded that death and the right to die, the right to die and the right to a dignified death are correlated as primary and secondary, i.e., the right to die includes all these concepts. They cannot exist without each other. In different countries they are interpreted differently, but the main feature thereof is the free will of a person, who has an incurable disease, to die. It has been argued that the term right to a dignified death is the most appropriate to use. It has been noted that a significant number of foreign countries provide for the right to die and euthanasia.