Published 12:10 IST, September 6th 2020
Facebook blocks Frenchman from live-streaming his death after euthanasia request declined
Facebook said that it would block the Livestream of a Frenchman suffering from an incurable condition who wanted to broadcast his death on social media platform
Facebook, on September 5, said that it would block the Livestream of a Frenchman suffering from an incurable condition who wanted to broadcast his death on the social media platform. While taking to Facebook, Alain Cocq announced that he was now refusing all food, drink and medicine after French President Emmanuel Macron reportedly turned down his request for euthanasia.
The 57-year-old has been suffering from a rare degenerative disease for 34 years that causes the walls of his arteries to stick together. He had said that he believed that he would die in less than a week and would broadcast his death from Saturday morning from his home in Dijon, northeast France. While taking to the social media platform, Cocq said that ‘the road to deliverance begins and believe me, I am happy’. He also said that he knows that the days ahead are going to be difficult, however, he added that he has made his decision and he is calm.
Cocq wants the law changed in France to allow terminally ill people to die as they wish. Some groups, including the Catholic Church, however, oppose euthanasia on moral grounds. As per reports, Facebook blocked Cocq’s plan to Livestream his death, stating that it did not allow 'portrayals of suicide'. The 57-year-old took to Facebook and informed that the social media platform is blocking his broadcast until September 8.
Macron denies Cocq’s request
Back in July, Cocq had written a letter to Macron, asking the president to allow him to die ‘with dignity’, describing his ‘extremely violent suffering’. The French President wrote back to him, reportedly saying that he was ‘moved’ by the letter, but could not grant the request as he was ‘not suited above the law’.
Euthanasia is a controversial topic in France, with many supporting a right to die with dignity, while others, particularly religious conservatives, have opposed called for its discrimination. As per reports, one of the most polarising was the case of Vincent Lambert, who was left in a vegetative state after a traffic accident in 2008 and died in July last year after doctors removed life support following a long legal battle. The case had reportedly divided the country as well as Lambert’s own family, with his parents using every legal avenue to keep him alive but his wife and nephew insisting he must be allowed to die.
Updated 12:09 IST, September 6th 2020