The people of New Zealand voted in both referendums on October 17, when the parliamentary elections took place. The Labor Party of the current Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern won them.
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According to preliminary results published by the election commission on Friday, 65.2 percent of voters were in favor of legalizing euthanasia. 53.1 percent of voters rejected the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes.
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Security will be in November
Now about 17 percent of the votes cast remain to be added. These are largely the voices of New Zealanders living abroad. The final results of both referendums should be available on November 6.
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According to the New Zealand media, the result of the vote on euthanasia is practically certain. An additional nearly half a million votes could still change the result of the marijuana referendum, but the chances are relatively low, according to the media.
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A spokeswoman for the New Zealand Prime Minister said in a referendum that Ardern had voted in favor of legalization in both cases. Before the vote, the Prime Minister refused to say how she would vote herself. “After the publication of the final results next week, it will proceed in accordance with the will of the people,” said the prime minister’s spokeswoman.
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The first euthanasia in a year
According to The New Zealand Herald, the first patients could use euthanasia in about a year. According to the plan, only people who suffer from an incurable disease and probably have no more than six months to live are to be entitled to it. These should be patients who are experiencing “unbearable suffering”, which cannot be relieved by any means. The terminally ill could self-administer the deadly substance, or they could be given to them by a doctor or nurse.
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Euthanasia is illegal in most countries of the world, in some form it is made possible by, for example, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Canada and Colombia.
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If marijuana supporters did prevail in the referendum, people could buy up to 14 grams of the drug a day and grow two plants. Recreational use of marijuana has been permitted in the past by Uruguay, Canada or some US states.
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