The Secretary-General of UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization, calls for caution in human cloning due to Dolly's untimely death
Koichiro Matsuura
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Dolly is dead. The world's most famous sheep, the first mammal cloned from the cell of an adult sheep, was euthanized in February. This happened shortly after an announcement was made to the public, which was never verified, about the birth of a cloned baby girl. Dolly's death caused less of a sensation than her birth. Even if the exact causes of her death have not yet been clarified with certainty, it raises the question of the long-term consequences of the cloning process on the cloned organism. And to some extent, her death also granted a certain extension to humans.
Medical research regulations forbid trying on humans a process whose safety and effectiveness have not been proven through animal experiments. But what will happen when the precautionary argument is no longer valid? The possibility of a human tribe presents us with a supreme ethical, cultural and political challenge. The organization of which I serve as the general director, celebrating the tenth year of the establishment of the International Bioethics Committee (ICB) by him, will continue to play an active role in discussions on this issue.
As far as bioethics in general and cloning in particular, we must make sure that fears and fantasies do not influence our judgment. Human cloning today refers to two technical procedures, which differ from each other in terms of purpose and performance. The goal of medical cloning is to derive stem cells from an embryo created by replacing a nucleated cell with an egg. It is known that the use of these stem cells may dramatically change the field of rehabilitation medicine. Why hesitate then? But the status of the fetus rests on the scales. Do we risk turning human embryos into stalls for selling organs?
Is it legitimate to create embryos whose development will not reach completion? And who will provide the eggs? Poor women? These questions can only be resolved by creating a strict legal framework, and for that further discussions are still needed.
The purpose of reproduction through cloning is, on the other hand, to allow the birth of a child, who will be the chromosomal copy of another person. But cloning an organism is not the same as copying a person. There is evidence of this in the mechanisms of natural reproduction. True twins, for example, are different individuals, but they are still more alike than two clones would be. Those who hope through cloning to fulfill their impossible quest for eternal life are using genetic concepts that are both misguided and dangerous. Human clones will certainly not be monsters, but the motivations behind this project and the human and social vision it relies on must continue to be examined.
Nature provides each individual with a unique genetic identity, the result of an interplay between chance and necessity. Giving up this natural wealth could lead to the creation of an artificial genetic separation between humans with original genomes and those with cloned genomes. Doesn't humanity suffer from too many forms of discrimination? The idea of human cloning rests, at best, on misunderstandings and fantasy; In the worst case, it is based on the desire to use genetics for dubious, commercial or ideological purposes. The ban on human cloning is therefore medically, legally and morally justified.
This ban, which was first recommended in the "Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights" accepted by UNESCO in 1997 and approved by the UN General Assembly in 1998, is irreversible.
The risks inherent in bioethics touch the deepest cultural, philosophical and spiritual foundations of various human communities. The need to reconcile an attitude of respect for human diversity and the pragmatic ambition for scientific progress is a prerequisite for any joint research in the field of bioethics. This is the spirit in which we are now engaged in drafting a statement on genetic data. Because the use of this data - if not managed correctly - may give rise to new and frightening forms of discrimination and denial of rights.
It is impossible to produce humans to order, even if it is an ideal genetic order. UNESCO recognized the importance of this challenge, which goes beyond any national frame of reference and requires the active involvement of scientists, politicians and economists. It was the first intergovernmental organization to propose a coherent plan to address these questions, by establishing the IBC and the Intergovernmental Bioethics Committee. Ethics of science and technology is at the top of UNESCO's list of priorities. Therefore, the topic of the next session of the 21st Century Talks, which will be held in Paris on September 10, will be: "Should human cloning be banned?"
Man is not just a mammal. Animals can be reproduced by cloning. But humans are shaped by education, science and culture. Not by cloning.
The writer is the Secretary General of UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization
They knew how to clone humans
They knew how to clone animals
They knew the stem cells
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