Meetings of the UN鈥檚 legal committee have been packed to the rafters as it once again considers a worldwide ban on human cloning. But like the two previous attempts, the latest effort is likely to end in failure.
All countries support a ban on human reproductive cloning, the creation of babies genetically identical to their 鈥減arent鈥�. The divisive issue, as always, is therapeutic cloning 鈥� using an individual鈥檚 cells to create a genetically identical embryo that could then be destroyed to obtain embryonic stem cells for treating the individual. In September, the scientific academies of 63 countries issued a joint declaration calling for a worldwide ban on reproductive allowing but saying that therapeutic cloning鈥檚 medical promise is too great for it to be included in any ban.
But Costa Rica, Spain and the US, dubbed 鈥渢he axis of medieval鈥� by some insiders, have tabled a treaty that would ban all cloning. It has the support of around 60 countries. Belgium has tabled a compromise treaty that would allow countries to decide for themselves whether to ban therapeutic cloning or allow it under strict regulation. This is supported by only about 30 countries. Many more remain undecided.
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If delegates voted for a total UN ban, it would be a hollow victory, as any treaty would only be binding on signatories. More likely is that a decision will once again be deferred for another year. That would leave many countries, including the US, without any national legislation on cloning.
However, seven US states have laws banning reproductive cloning. Only California, Rhode Island and possibly Virginia (whose laws are unclear on this issue) exclude therapeutic cloning from the ban. Other countries, including the UK, have already passed legislation that bans reproductive cloning but would allow therapeutic cloning, while Australia last year announced a three-year moratorium on therapeutic cloning.