The Socialist Group in the Cabildo of Lanzarote will present an urgent motion to the next Plenary session to urge the Government of the Canary Islands, through the Ministry of Health, to reinstate the Lanzarote geriatrician Elisa Corujo as President of the Commission for Guarantee and Evaluation of the Aid-in-Dying Service in the Canary Islands. The motion stems from Corujo's dismissal by the Ministry of Health, based on an alleged incapacity to exercise her functions, despite the resolution not specifying the circumstances that would justify this decision.
The deputy spokesperson for the Socialist Group, Ariagona González, stated that “it is unacceptable to remove the president of a guarantee body with a generic explanation and without concretely proving the reasons for the dismissal. If there is no duly justified cause, the Government of the Canary Islands must rectify and reinstate Elisa Corujo”.
The socialist initiative also maintains that, from the information known, the real reason for the dismissal appears to be related to the publication of the first report on the evolution of the application of the Euthanasia Law in the Canary Islands. “If behind this decision is the publication of a report prepared in the exercise of the Commission's own functions, the gravity is even greater. Guarantee bodies must be able to work independently, without interference and without fear of political consequences for exercising their responsibilities,” stated González.
The PSOE recalls that the Commission for Guarantee and Evaluation performs an essential function to ensure the correct application of the aid-in-dying service, and therefore considers it essential to preserve its autonomy and impartiality. Ariagona González insisted that “what is at stake goes far beyond an appointment. The independence of a body that must guarantee citizens' rights is at stake. The Government of the Canary Islands must respect this independence and avoid any action that could be interpreted as political interference”.
The motion expressly proposes that the Plenary of the Cabildo of Lanzarote urge the Government of the Canary Islands to reinstate Elisa Corujo as President of the Commission and reject political interference in the oversight bodies that must ensure the correct provision of citizens' rights.
“The Government of the Canary Islands still has time to correct this decision. What we ask is that Elisa Corujo be reinstated and that scrupulous respect for the independence and impartiality of the Commission be guaranteed,” González concluded.
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