Zurich apartment complex residents are gathering signatures to evict Dignitas, the assisted suicide provider that uses a 4th floor flat.
Describing it as a “house of horrors”, a long time resident of the complex said, “This is meant to be a residential flat, but some days you’d think it was a morgue.”
For many residents, the worst part is seeing these suicidal people in the halls and elevator on their way up to the apartment to die. “The look in their eyes haunts me, particularly if they are young”, said a resident.
For others, seeing the corpses in body bags propped up in the corner of the communal three-person elevator is the most disturbing. Since the elevator isn’t big enough for a coffin, Dignitas uses body bags to transport the corpses to the hearse.
Kelvin L, another resident, said, “It’s very creepy. The floors are thin and when we hear movements upstairs, we know that means they’re up there, and someone’s going to die.”
[British Medical Journal, 3June2006; Daily Telegraph, 4June2006; International Task Force Update, 2006, vol. 20, no. 3, internationaltaskforce.org]