'I feel relief': Dutch woman, 29, granted assisted dying over mental suffering

A 29-year-old Dutch woman who has been granted her request for assisted dying on the grounds of unbearable mental suffering is expected to end her life in the coming weeks, fuelling a debate across Europe over the issue.

- Harriet Sherwood

Zoraya ter Beek received the final approval last week for assisted dying after a three-and-a-half-year process under a law passed in the Netherlands in 2002.

Her case has caused controversy as assisted dying for people with psychiatric illnesses in the Netherlands remains unusual, although numbers are rising. In 2010, there were two such cases; in 2023, there were 138: 1.5% of the 9,068 euthanasia deaths.

An article about Ter Beek's case, published in April, was picked up by international media, prompting an outcry that caused her huge distress. She said it was understandable that cases such as hers - and the broader issue of whether assisted dying should be legal - were controversial. "People think that when you're mentally ill, you can't think straight, which is insulting," she told the Guardian.

"I understand the fears that some disabled people have about assisted dying, and worries about people being under pressure to die. But in the Netherlands, we've had this law for more than 20 years. There are really strict rules, and it's really safe."

Under Dutch law, to be eligible for an assisted death, a person must be experiencing "unbearable suffering with no prospect of improvement". They must be fully informed and competent to take such a decision.