Dignità umana e bioetica. Sui rischi correlati all'asserito "diritto di morire"

Affirming human dignity implies overcoming the idea that one is entitled to act negatively towards another human being, on the basis of a corresponding negative judgment on his/her personal conditions or qualities, or on the basis of how useful the relationship with him/her might be. Consequently, the opposite idea has to be fostered, i.e., the idea that interpersonal relationships are grounded in the recognition of every “other” person as someone who carries all the relational needs specifically linked to the communitas humana. This said, given the inseparable connection between all aspects of humanity and our bodily dimension, only the full respect of the human life throughout its course can safeguard the principle of equality, which is a fundamental condition for democracy. The decision to act against one’s own life is in itself not coherent with human dignity, since it terminates the individual as a moral agent. From the juridical point of view, allowing patient-doctor relationships aimed at causing death (accepted that disproportionate clinical treatments are not due) endangers the warranties played by the legal protection of human life, and therefore it substantially affects the dignity of those who are weak.