The family of Sudiksha Thirumalesh spoke outside the Royal Courts of Justice this afternoon, after finally being allowed to speak her name publicly.
You can watch their statement and read a transcript below:
“After a year of struggle and heartache we can finally say our beautiful daughter and sister’s name in public without fear: She is Sudiksha. She is Sudiksha Thirumalesh not ST.
“Despite our grief and the continuing shock over everything we have been through, today a part of us is at peace.
“Sudiksha was a wonderful daughter and sister who we will cherish forever. We cannot imagine life without her.
“We seek justice for Sudiksha today, and for others in her situation.
“We are deeply disturbed by how we have been treated by the hospital trust and the courts. We have been gagged, silenced and most importantly, prevented from accessing specialist treatment abroad for Sudiksha. Had she been allowed to seek nucleoside treatment six months ago it may well be that she would still be with us and recovering.
“Sudiksha said she wanted ‘to die trying to live’. This is what she did. We are so proud of her.
“We did not look for this fight, this fight came to us from a ‘system’ that too readily gives up on life. We were brutally silenced, intimidated, and taken to court in the hour of our need.
“It is shocking that a family in the middle of stress and tragedy had a threat of imprisonment hanging over their heads.
“Sudiksha was called ‘delusional’ for saying she wanted to live. The ruling from Mrs Justice Roberts was cruel, and no patient and family should be treated in this way.
“We have never been out for revenge, we just want justice and to be able to tell our and Sudiksha’s story.
“We want to thank the medical practitioners who did their best for Sudiksha. To those few clinicians who seemed only to care about Sudiksha dying, we forgive you.
“We are a Christian family who believe in life, love and forgiveness.”