Scientists and Ethicists Gathered at Rome Conference Applaud UN Cloning Decision

March 8, 2005

ROME - Noted scientists and ethicists gathered for the "Global State of Stem Cells and Cloning" conference in Rome broke into spontaneous applause at the announcement that the UN passed a political declaration banning human cloning by a nearly three-to-one margin (84 for; 34 against; 37 abstentions).

In a non-binding yet politically important resolution, 84 nations voted for a comprehensive ban on human cloning as a violation of human dignity.

Two members of the President's Council on Bioethics attending the conference in Rome praised the decision.

Dr. Alfonso Gomez-Lobo of Georgetown University said, "I am very happy to hear the outcome of this vote because it seems to me that human cloning would be passing a barrier that would be detrimental for humanity because in the name of our imposing a genome on other human beings we would be violating their dignity.”

Council member and Stanford professor Dr. William Hurlbut also approved the vote. "I applaud this important declaration. These are truly species issues. We need a global standard on which to ground our biotechnology -- one that respects human dignity and opens positive prospects of scientific developments," he said.

Noted author and ethicist Wesley J. Smith said, "The UN has powerfully demonstrated that naked science is not the be-all and end-all of the pursuit of human progress. Morality matters too. The task for us now is to work together as a world community to develop a thriving and moral biotechnology sector that both alleviates human suffering and remains within proper ethical boundaries."

 Communication from Austin Ruse

RARTL Updated March, 2005