#Euthanasiasinsecretos #EuthanasiaWithoutSecrets
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In Colombia, dying with dignity is a right, but accessing it remains a privilege.
Since 2020, at DescLAB, we have had to resort to legal action to access official data on euthanasia. Although various court orders have forced the Ministry of Health to provide it, the information has been fragmented and limited, making it impossible to analyze the response times of the dignified death committees, the clinics where the procedures are performed, and the health authorities that deny or authorize them.
In 2025, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection also denied us full access to the figures, saying it was classified information and not in the public interest.
With the #EuthanasiaWithoutSecrets campaign, we aim to fund the third edition of Slow Death, the only independent report that reveals—with official evidence—the barriers people face in exercising their right to die with dignity in Colombia.
Why are euthanasia figures in Colombia important ?
One of the main barriers to accessing euthanasia in Colombia is lack of awareness. People don’t know what they’re entitled to, they don’t know that they can request the procedure free of charge from their EPS, regardless of their location. They don’t know that doctors must receive their requests, that clinics must activate committees, and that all of this must happen within a maximum of 10 business days.
All stakeholders in the health system are required to keep records, and that’s where the figures come from. But the Ministry of Health hides them and, year after year, makes it more difficult to access, analyze, and make them available to people. The Ministry wants people to believe that euthanasia is not legal in Colombia, that it is very difficult to perform, and that very few people request it. But that is false. It is nothing more than a barrier intended to prevent people from accessing their right to die with dignity.
Knowing how many people undergo euthanasia, what illnesses they have, their ages, where they live, what their social security number is, among other data, is vital so that people know how common this procedure is, how simple it is, and to reveal the clinics and social security numbers that impose unconstitutional barriers.
What have we done before?
In 2023, we published the second edition of Slow Death, using official data obtained through litigation and public pressure. This edition has been used by journalists, doctors, judges, and universities to demand better responses from the health system and expose bureaucratic and illegal barriers.
What is the goal?
The goal of this campaign is to raise 15,000,000 Colombian pesos. This amount will cover the costs of accessing information, data analysis, writing, designing, and disseminating the third edition of the Slow Death #3 report.
What will we do with your contribution?
With your contribution we will achieve:
- Obtain official information through requests and legal actions against the Ministry of Health.
- Analyze and refine data using independent technical criteria to understand what euthanasia looks like, where it exists, and how it is accessed in Colombia.
- Write, design, and publish a free and open-access report.
- To expose hidden barriers that prevent access to the right to a dignified death in all parts of Colombia.
- Disseminate the findings so that they can be used by journalists, individuals, families, health professionals, and decision-makers.
- Influence and pressure public policies with quantitative evidence and rigor.
Colombia