A human rights lawyer who founded Dignitas has passed away at one of his own assisted suicide facilities.
Ludwig Minelli death occurred just days before his 93rd birthday, with Dignitas confirming he made the decision to end his own life.
The Swiss clinic said in a statement: “Right up to the end of his life, he continued to search for further ways to help people to exercise their right to freedom of choice and self-determination in their ‘final matters’ – and he often found them.”
Mr Minelli's passing marks the end of a polarising career spanning more than two decades in the euthanasia movement.
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The organisation Minelli created has become synonymous with physician-assisted deaths for those suffering from terminal and chronic illnesses.
In 1998, Minelli founded Dignitas with the motto "live with dignity, die with dignity", establishing what would become one of the world's most recognised end-of-life organisations.
Throughout his career, Minelli faced numerous legal challenges and appeared in court multiple times defending his organisation's practices.
Minelli and Dignitas prided themselves on the work done to influence laws in Switerzland after a 2011 European Court of Human Rights ruling recognised the right of a person to decide the manner and time of their own end of life.
Ludwig Minelli founded Dignitas and ended his life at one of his own assisted suicide clinics
Since its inception, Dignitas has facilitated end-of-life services for more than 4,000 individuals as of 2024 and currently has around 10,000 members.
A controversial assisted dying bill was backed by MPs in a historic vote in June and is now in its final stages in the House of Lords, where peers must agree the wording of the legislation for it to become law.
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