The CDS-PP, in a statement signed by its leader, Nuno Melo, has reacted to the Constitutional Court’s decision announced on Tuesday. The Court declared several provisions of the assisted suicide and euthanasia law unconstitutional, while emphasizing that the majority of the legislative document complies with the fundamental law.
The party expressed its approval, stating, “The CDS-PP welcomes the decision of the Constitutional Court that declared various provisions of the assisted suicide and euthanasia law unconstitutional. We warned about the unconstitutionality of the law and we were right.”
Under the leadership of Nuno Melo, the party claims to have played a decisive role in preventing the legalization of assisted suicide and euthanasia. It has opposed various radical and legally unacceptable legislative attempts.
Further, the statement reflects, “This ruling from the Constitutional Court, carrying mandatory general effect, supports the AD Government’s stance that it was prudent to await the final decision of the Constitutional Court regarding the conformity of the euthanasia and assisted suicide law with our Constitution, before regulating a potentially unconstitutional law, as has been confirmed.”
The centrists recall that in June 2023, they requested the Ombudsman to challenge the constitutionality of this law, an action that the Ombudsman undertook in March 2024.
The statement argues, “The good alternative to euthanasia is high-quality palliative care, universally available across the territory and accessible to all families in need.”
Noting that “much remains to be done” in this area, the CDS-PP advocates that the electoral program presented by the AD for the elections on May 18 supports strengthening the country’s network of continuous and palliative care sustainably.
The legislation regulating the conditions under which medically assisted death is not punishable has once again faced a setback in the Constitutional Court, although the judges at Ratton Palace reiterate that the majority of the document is compliant with the fundamental law.
This decision by the Court responded to two subsequent reviews of the legislation: the first submitted in November 2023 by a group of PSD deputies, and the second by Ombudsman Maria Lúcia Amaral in March of the previous year.
The issue has already been subject to four vetoes: two political ones from the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, and two due to unconstitutionality rulings by the Constitutional Court.
