By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
A network of Christian lawyers has vowed to launch a vigorous defense of Luxembourgh’s Grand Duke Henri who will be stripped of his veto power because he refuses to support a law legalizing euthanasia.
As we previously reported on Breaking News, a proposal was made by Luxembourg’s Minister of State, Jean-Claude Juncker, to change the constitution in order to remove the veto powers of the Grand Duke. The country’s Constitutional Commission has approved the proposal which will eliminate the need for the Grand Duke’s signature in order for a law to take effect.
The Grand Duke, a devout Catholic, has refused to sign the bill, saying that for him the issue is a “question of conscience.” Should the euthanasia law come into effect, Luxembourg will become the third country in the European Union to legalize the practice. The proposed law will allow doctors to kill patients diagnosed as “terminally ill” if the patient requests it and two doctors and a panel of “experts” agree.
News of the parliament’s decision to strip the Grand Duke of his power has caused outrage and consternation around the world.
As a result, the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) announced today that its attorneys are offering pro-bono legal assistance to any Luxembourg physicians who are willing to challenge the constitutionality of the parliamentary action.
ADF Legal Counsel Roger Kiska, who is based in Europe, told LifeSiteNews.com, “Everyone deserves a chance to recover. The proposed legislation does not allow for that, and we believe it is unconstitutional.”
Kiska warned Americans that the “culture of death does not stay contained within foreign borders.”
“American courts are increasingly pointing to the laws of foreign countries in their own decisions.”
Although Luxembourg has a population of under half a million people, it is significant for its historical importance. Officially a secular state, 87 percent of the population is Roman Catholic. Grand Duke Henri, who enjoys high popularity in the country, is one of the last European monarchs to hold ruling power.
The Grand Duke’s resistance has won him accolades from pro-life groups around the world. Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer, STL, president of Human Life International (HLI), said that the action of His Royal Highness is a courageous one in the face of international opposition.
Fr. Euteneuer wrote, “Please accept on behalf of all the associated member organizations of Human Life International in eighty countries our greatest admiration for your courage in refusing to sign the legislation legalizing euthanasia in Luxembourg.”
“Your well-formed Catholic conscience is a precious gift that honours the Royal Family of Luxembourg, as one of the greatest responsibilities of the monarchy is the duty to resist demagoguery and all attacks on public morality.
“You have our deepest admiration and support in this battle to respect life. Thank you for the magnificent example that you have given to all the heads of state in this difficult period of history.”
This week, Monsignore Ignacio Barreiro, the head of the Rome office of Human Life International, attended a demonstration in support of the Duke’s decision at the offices of the Luxembourg embassy in Rome. He told LifeSiteNews.com that the issue is important because it is an example of a man acting according to a “rightly formed conscience.”
“His Royal Highness should be praised,” he said, “for having taken a stand in defence of life, and acting according to his rightly formed conscience.”
“It’s very, very important to insist that the only conscience that has rights, that has to be followed, is one that is rightly formed,” in accordance with objective moral norms.
The last time a similar “constitutional crisis” occurred was in Europe was in 1990 when Belgium’s Catholic King Baudouin refused to give his consent to a law legalizing abortion. The deeply religious man allowed himself to be declared “unable to reign” for one day, during which time members of government hurriedly signed the bill, thus allowing it to pass.
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