A petition signed by 30 health professionals calling for euthanasia, or medically assisted death, to be legalized was released on Tuesday.

The 30 doctors and nurses call on the authorities to "define with rigor the conditions so that professionals are not penalized".

They want a law which "doesn't force anyone, the patient or professional, but permits each person to face the end of their lives according to their values and patterns, at the same time attributing health professionals new conditions to better respect the wishes of their patients," according to the petition.

The appeal is directed to Portuguese President, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, and President of the Portuguese Parliament Eduardo Ferro Rodrigues.

Euthanasia is penalized by law in Portugal. The Socialist Party's national commission earlier this month approved a motion to de-penalize medically assisted death.

The debate surrounding euthanasia kicked off in Portugal's parliament in February following a public petition signed by over 8,000 citizens. Endit

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