UN Bans Human Cloning

Ronald Bailey | March 8, 2005

Not really. After a 4 year effort to get the United Nations to adopt a treaty to outlaw both therapeutic and reproductive human cloning, all cloning opponents like the Bush Administration could come up with is a tepid General Assembly resolution. The resolution, adopted today, urges member states to enact legislation "to prohibit all forms of human cloning in as much as they are incompatible with human dignity and the protection of human life." The resolution also demands that countries "adopt the measures necessary to prohibit the application of genetic engineering techniques that may be contrary to human dignity." The vote 84 to 34 with 37 abstentions.

What could be more contrary to human dignity than prohibiting the production of perfect transplant tissues by means of cloning and outlawing the use of genetic engineering to prevent disease, disability and early death?

Comments

|3.8.05 @ 3:36PM|#

Way, way, way off-topic. Over at Sam Smith's website, Undernews, is a story of National Gaurdsmen beating up doctors in Iraq. The subject seems to be: If it's true, will the mainstram media cover it?

It was posted at 2:51 with Sgrana in the title.

CodeMonkeySteve #1|3.8.05 @ 3:38PM|#

What's the big deal?

|3.8.05 @ 3:38PM|#

Sgrena. sorry

CodeMonkeySteve #2|3.8.05 @ 3:40PM|#

What's the big deal?

CodeMonkeySteve #3|3.8.05 @ 3:41PM|#

What's the big deal?

|3.8.05 @ 3:41PM|#

I wish there was spell check on this site.

CodeMonkey, That is point the author is sarcasticly stating.

|3.8.05 @ 3:57PM|#

From the article:
"The document, which has no legal force, passed by 84 to 34, with 37 abstentions. The United States was joined by many African, Arab and Latin American states in voting for it; mostly European and Asian countries opposed."

Opposed by Europe and Asia, eh? It's a good thing those countries don't have the resources to attempt this heinous crime.

Watch the hysterical right manage to criminalize this research here in the US. And then watch sickly righties take off for Switzerland when their liver fails.

|3.8.05 @ 4:33PM|#

What Ron said! Which was:

"What could be more contrary to human dignity than prohibiting the production of perfect transplant tissues by means of cloning and outlawing the use of genetic engineering to prevent disease, disability and early death?

|3.8.05 @ 4:39PM|#

Do what you want, UN.

RESISTANCE IS FUTILE

|3.8.05 @ 8:32PM|#

Perhaps you have not heard, Herr Bush. In Casablanca, human life is cheap.

|3.8.05 @ 10:47PM|#

Alas, Bush seems the only bigshot willing to actually enforce UN resolutions. At least the ones he likes...

Sure, it's not the same level of resolution that Hussein ignored, but we don't have to invade anyone to enforce it in USA.

|3.9.05 @ 12:06AM|#

What else do you expect from the neo-Luddite crowd?

In some ways the Bush administration - and the anti-biomedical research crowd generally - are on par with PETA in their loathing of humanity.

|3.9.05 @ 1:08PM|#

Moreso given that the Bush crowd's idiocy leads to human suffering while PETA's nonsense provides a laugh or two, some nudity some thrown paint and the harrasment of magazine editors.