Francesc Augé’s first major health crisis came in 2010, when he suffered a heart attack. He later had another heart attack and four strokes. The 56-year-old, who lives in Vallirana, Barcelona, is scheduled to receive euthanasia on 26 November 2026, after the Generalitat authorised the procedure in 2024. In an interview with El Periódico, Augé described difficulty writing and intermittently finding words. He said that in his daily life he had no quality of life and no longer felt like himself.
Augé says he is looking forward to the date and does not want his decision mistaken for sadness. Daily life is difficult, he says, and he has lost his independence. He has thought about death since his first stroke. He has said the request was not impulsive, but followed a long process shaped by his disability and dependence, alongside his sense of losing his quality of life and identity. He considers euthanasia a way to avoid another suicide attempt. He says he tried to take his life, after which his case began moving forward.
The legal dispute lasted two years. The Generalitat’s Guarantee and Evaluation Commission reactivated the case after the court proceedings were definitively archived, following his 96-year-old father’s decision to withdraw his challenge to the procedure. Augé says he understands his father’s position, citing his age and the family’s Catholic beliefs. He also said former friends had persuaded his father to intervene. The Generalitat has also featured in RUSSPAIN’s coverage of Catalan rail policy.
Augé has said he will not identify the hospital where the procedure is due to take place. He wants to protect his privacy and avoid a public spectacle. He said he wanted to avoid the media attention surrounding the case of Noelia Castillo, a 25-year-old woman who received euthanasia in March 2026 at a social-healthcare facility in Sant Pere de Ribes, in the Garraf area, after more than two years of court appeals by her father. Augé criticised the treatment of Castillo and the role of Abogados Cristianos in her case. He also said he would not donate his organs.
He hopes his experience will help others seeking to have their decisions respected. The Association Derecho a Morir Dignamente (DMD) supported him during the process. A friend is writing a book about his experience, which Augé says will be published posthumously. He plans a farewell party with music the weekend before 26 November.
Augé says he can still change his mind on the day. In a statement translated from Spanish, he described himself as waiting on a runway for an unknown destination and added: “I do not want to suffer any more.”
