Couple die hand in hand next to letter calling for legalised euthanasia

A dramatic double suicide in one of Paris’s most romantic hotels today led to renewed calls for euthanasia to be legalised in France.Georgette and Bernard Cazes, both 86, checked themselves into the Lutetia last Thursday and ended their days holding hands.The married couple, who had been together for more than 60 years, left a letter to the authorities 'demanding the right to die in a dignified manner'.Mr Cazes wrote that 'it was cruel' that society did not allow law-abiding tax payers the 'freedom' to die when they wanted.One of their sons today said they had been 'planning their deaths for years' because they did not want to become a burden on their family, or the state.They also wanted to end their days united in happiness, rather than suffering a painful death alone.The Lutetia, one of the most upmarket hotels on Paris’s hugely romantic Left Bank, was chosen because the couple first stayed there in their youth.When found, the couple's room was perfectly made up, as they had found it when checking in.The couple, from the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Moulineaux, had asked staff to bring them breakfast in bed, ensuring their bodies would be found quickly.All their affairs were in order, including documents containing their final wishes, although it is not known whether they were suffering from any disease.The Lutetia was a favourite of great artists and writers including Pablo Picasso and James Joyce, who loved its romantic setting and architecture. Mrs Casez first visited the hotel in the 1940s when she met her father there when he was released from a prison camp after the Second World War.Euthanasia is currently illegal in any form in France, although in 2005 France approved a law that allows people to decline extreme medical treatment.Recent opinion polls show that between 56 and 92 per cent of French people want assisted suicide made legal for those suffering from an incurable or terminal illness.President Francois Hollande commissioned a six-month study on euthanasia last year, and has recommended that the government acknowledge public opinion on the issue.If attempts are made to introduce it, then the government can expect fierce opposition from conservatives, including the religious groups who protested against France’s same sex marriage bill.(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az