Ramón Sampedro
Encyclopedia
Ramón Sampedro was a ship fisherman from Galicia, Spain
, who became a quadriplegic in a diving accident at the age of 25 and fought for his right to an assisted suicide
for the next 29 years.
As a young man he had jumped into the sea from rocks near his home, a fishing village in the northern Spanish region of Galicia. Misjudging the water's depth, he struck his head on the bottom. He sustained a complete spinal cord injury, leaving him paralysed from the neck down.
Ramon tried Spain's lower courts, its higher courts, even the European Commission on Human Rights in Strasbourg to end his life.
His argument hinged on the fact that he was sure of his decision to die. However, owing to his paralysis, he was physically unable to commit suicide
without help. He argued that suicide was a right that he was being denied, and he sought legal advice concerning his right to receive assistance to end his life, first in the courts of Spain, where his case attracted country-wide attention. Eventually, his fight became known worldwide.
, Spain, from potassium cyanide
poisoning. He divided the tasks required for his suicide into small enough pieces that no single person could be convicted of assisted suicide. Several days later, a close friend of Ramón, Ramona Maneiro, was arrested and charged with assisting his suicide but was released due to lack of evidence. No further charges were ever filed in connection with Ramón's death.
Seven years later, after the statute of limitations
had expired, Maneiro, speaking on a Spanish
talk show
, admitted to providing Sampedro with a cyanide-laced drink and a straw. She said "I did it for love." She also said she had turned on the video camera that recorded Ramón's last words before he drank the poison and that she was in the room, behind the camera.
He left an impressive open letter to the judges and the society and caused an ethical turmoil in the Spanish society which lead to a Senatorial Committee on Euthanasia in 1999.
, Mar adentro
(English title: The Sea Inside) (2004), in which he was portrayed by Javier Bardem
. The movie drew international attention and won the Best Foreign Language Film
at the 77th Academy Awards
.
He wrote a book before he died Cartas Desde el Infierno (Letters from Hell). It is in Spanish and includes a collection of poems, short essays, and reflections on life from Sampedro’s point of view. ISBN-10: 8408056328
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, who became a quadriplegic in a diving accident at the age of 25 and fought for his right to an assisted suicide
Assisted suicide
Assisted suicide is the common term for actions by which an individual helps another person voluntarily bring about his or her own death. "Assistance" may mean providing one with the means to end one's own life, but may extend to other actions. It differs to euthanasia where another person ends...
for the next 29 years.
As a young man he had jumped into the sea from rocks near his home, a fishing village in the northern Spanish region of Galicia. Misjudging the water's depth, he struck his head on the bottom. He sustained a complete spinal cord injury, leaving him paralysed from the neck down.
Ramon tried Spain's lower courts, its higher courts, even the European Commission on Human Rights in Strasbourg to end his life.
His argument hinged on the fact that he was sure of his decision to die. However, owing to his paralysis, he was physically unable to commit suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
without help. He argued that suicide was a right that he was being denied, and he sought legal advice concerning his right to receive assistance to end his life, first in the courts of Spain, where his case attracted country-wide attention. Eventually, his fight became known worldwide.
Death and aftermath
Sampedro died on Monday 12 January 1998 in BoiroBoiro
Boiro is a municipality of Spain in the Province of A Coruña, in the autonomous community of Galicia.It is perhaps best known as the small town where famous quadriplegic Ramón Sampedro received euthanasia...
, Spain, from potassium cyanide
Potassium cyanide
Potassium cyanide is an inorganic compound with the formula KCN. This colorless crystalline compound, similar in appearance to sugar, is highly soluble in water. Most KCN is used in gold mining, organic synthesis, and electroplating. Smaller applications include jewelry for chemical gilding and...
poisoning. He divided the tasks required for his suicide into small enough pieces that no single person could be convicted of assisted suicide. Several days later, a close friend of Ramón, Ramona Maneiro, was arrested and charged with assisting his suicide but was released due to lack of evidence. No further charges were ever filed in connection with Ramón's death.
Seven years later, after the statute of limitations
Statute of limitations
A statute of limitations is an enactment in a common law legal system that sets the maximum time after an event that legal proceedings based on that event may be initiated...
had expired, Maneiro, speaking on a Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
, admitted to providing Sampedro with a cyanide-laced drink and a straw. She said "I did it for love." She also said she had turned on the video camera that recorded Ramón's last words before he drank the poison and that she was in the room, behind the camera.
He left an impressive open letter to the judges and the society and caused an ethical turmoil in the Spanish society which lead to a Senatorial Committee on Euthanasia in 1999.
Mar adentro
The story of Sampedro's life and death was made into a Spanish filmFilm
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, Mar adentro
Mar adentro
The Sea Inside is a 2004 film by the Spanish director Alejandro Amenábar. It is based on the real-life story of Ramón Sampedro , a Spanish ship mechanic left quadriplegic after a diving accident and his 29-year campaign in support of euthanasia and the right to end his life.- Plot summary :This is...
(English title: The Sea Inside) (2004), in which he was portrayed by Javier Bardem
Javier Bardem
Javier Ángel Encinas Bardem is a Spanish actor. In 2007 he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as sociopathic assassin Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men, and has also garnered critical acclaim for roles in films such as Jamón, jamón, Carne trémula, Boca a boca, Los...
. The movie drew international attention and won the Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
at the 77th Academy Awards
77th Academy Awards
The 77th Academy Awards honored the best films of 2004 and were held on February 27, 2005, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California. They were hosted by comedian Chris Rock.The nominees were announced on January 25, 2005...
.
He wrote a book before he died Cartas Desde el Infierno (Letters from Hell). It is in Spanish and includes a collection of poems, short essays, and reflections on life from Sampedro’s point of view. ISBN-10: 8408056328