ABSTRACT
In this part it is argued that the right to self-determination implies a right to suicide and it is explained what the latter right contains.
The chapter starts with a summary of what is known about people's conceptions of a good death. Of course, we find a lot of cultural and individual variation but also a remarkable amount of consensus. If we then consider motives why people ask for physician assistance in ending their lives, we again find much convergence. Moreover, there is a clear correspondence between common ideals of a good death and the most common motives for pursuing death.
Some fairly common preferences as regards one's death may, nevertheless, be rationally criticizable. But even in that case the choice for death can be protected by your right to self-determination. That right determines a personal domain of self-regarding decisions that you are authorized to make. And having an authority means that your decision stands, whether it is the right one or not. That personal domain consists of concentrical circles around one's identity as a person. One's existence belongs to the core of that domain. Therefore, if one has a right to self-determination, it implies a right to determine the manner and time of one's own death. This right has been recognized by the European Court of Human Rights in 2011 (Haas v Switzerland).
