No Human Cloning

An Open Letter to Australia's Federal, State and Territory Governments

October 25, 2001

Our community must determine appropriate standards for medical research involving human subjects. We ask our political leaders to have regard for the sacredness of all human beings, of whatever level of maturity, dependency or ability. We ask them to support adult stem cell research and to reject a policy of destroying some to treat others.

Since the production of Dolly the sheep by somatic cell nuclear transfer in 1997, sections of the scientific community have campaigned to be allowed to clone human embryos. Such embryos could then be used to obtain embryonic stem cells for destructive experimentation.

Some also want to use 'surplus' human embryos from IVF programs for such purposes. Despite some inflated claims, the fact is that these IVF stem cells would not be directly useful for therapies as they would not be compatible with the recipient's tissues. But they might be used for drug testing and other experimentation.

We advise our Governments that producing human embryos by a cloning process or any other method of non-sexual reproduction* is a grave offence to human dignity. It produces a laboratory embryo with no parents or guardians, in fact no one concerned to protect his or her interests. It means that all such embryos would be likely to be destroyed, since the advocates of human cloning experiments acknowledge that to allow them to develop would be unsafe.

Much worse than cloning human beings to reproduce children would be the creation or use of human embryos for the purpose of destructive experimentation. The supposed distinction between 'therapeutic' and 'reproductive' cloning must be exposed for the furphy it is: to produce an embryo is always 'reproductive'; to destroy an embryo is never 'therapeutic'. The European Parliament has declared the distinction to be a sleight of hand and the Australian Health Ethics Committee described it as lacking transparency and concealing the truth.

So-called 'therapeutic cloning' involves the manufacture of a new race of laboratory humans with the intention, right from the beginning, to exploit and destroy them as if they were laboratory animals. This would be the worst of all possible uses of the cloning technology.

Cloning humans would also occasion a whole range of new ethical and social dilemmas, because the process radically dissociates procreation from the loving union of a man and a woman, and opens up new possibilities for designing our progeny, controlling their genetic destiny, or exploiting them for the advantage of others.

We urge our political leaders to support the alternative, safer and longer established medical technology of using a patient's own tissues as a source of stem cells for developing therapies, especially as they have much greater direct therapeutic potential in terms of tissue compatibility. We ask them to fund and encourage ethical stem cell research on placental and adult tissue. We urge them to ensure that there are effective nation-wide prohibitions on unethical alternatives such as the production and destruction of human embryos for experimental purposes, and the creation of a market for unethically procured embryonic stem cells.

• Note: Sexual reproduction involves the combining of two gametes - i.e. male and female gametes - as can occur from sexual intercourse or in IVF.

SIGNATORIES:

The Most Rev Dr Peter Jensen, Anglican Archbishop of Sydney

The Most Rev Ian George, Anglican Archbishop of Adelaide

The Rev. Professor James Haire, DD, President, The Uniting Church in Australia

The Rt. Rev. Robert Forsyth, Bishop of South Sydney, Anglican Church of Australia

Rt. Rev. David Silk, Anglican Bishop of Ballarat.

Most Rev. George Pell, DD, Catholic Archbishop of Sydney

Most Rev. Denis Hart, Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne.

Most Rev. Kevin Manning, Catholic Bishop of Parramatta

Most Rev. Ted Collins MSC, DD, AM, Catholic Bishop of Darwin.

Rabbi Raymond Apple, A.M., R.F.D., Senior Rabbi of the Great Synagogue, Sydney

Rabbi Moshe D Gutnick, Judge, Consultant Rabbi, Medical Ethics Committee, Australian Jewish Medical Federation, Sydney Bethdin (Jewish Ecclesiastical Court), Immediate Past President, Rabbinical Council of New South Wales

Rabbi Pinchos Woolstone, The Jewish House Crisis Centre, Sydney

Dr. A.K. Kazi, Director, East Preston Islamic College, Vic.

Rev. Tim Costello, President, Baptist Union of Australia

Paul Madden, Executive Director, Baptist Community Services (SA) Inc

John Field, General Superintendent of the South Australian Baptist Union Inc

Rev. Mike Semmler. President, Lutheran Church of Australia

Rev. Alun Davies, State President, Assemblies of God, Victoria

Rev. Stan Baker, National Superintendent, Wesleyan Methodist Church of Australia,

Rev. Dr. James M. Ridgway, Wesleyan Methodist Church Social Justice Commission

Dr Douglas Milne, Principal-elect, Presbyterian Theological College, Melbourne

Rev Dr John Davies, Principal, Presbyterian Theological Centre (Sydney)

Rev Dr Peter Barnes, Revesby Presbyterian Church

Mr Robert Leane, State Minister of Churches of Christ, SA & NT, Inc

Pastor Mark Conner, Victorian State Director of Australian Christian Churches

Pastor Brian Birkett, Waverley Christian Fellowship, Melbourne

Major General W.B. "Digger" James and Barbara James

Associate Professor George L. Mendz, School of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, The University of New South Wales, Sydney

Dr Amin Aboud, Director, Australian Bioethics Information

Dr Kevin Hume, President, Australian Branch of the World Federation of Doctors Who Respect Human Life

David van Gend MB BC FRACCGP Dip Pall. Med (Melb), Qld. Sec., World Federation of Doctors who Respect Human Life.

Dr Catherine Lennon FRACGP, NSW President of Doctors for Life

Dr David Gawler, MB BS FRACS FRCS, vascular surgeon, Melbourne, Vic

Dr Veronica O'Connell FRACGP

Dr Samantha McLoughlin, MB BS (Syd) MPH (Syd).

Dr Roberta Augimeri, MB BS Honours (Syd) Dip Obs, Family GP

Dr Simon McCaffery, Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, Liverpool Hospital, Sydney

Dr. John James, MB BS., FRACGP.

Dr Geoff Francis, MB BS.

Dr K.L. Tan, MB BS (Melb)

Dr T.H.Goh, MB, FRACP, DDU - Royal Children's Hospital

Alison Hope, President of the ACT Right to Life & Spokesperson for the Australian Federation of Right to Life Associations

Greg Smith, LL.B, Barrister, President, NSW Right to Life

William Dawe QC, Barrister, Sydney

Lou Lamprati, Barrister, Sydney

Brian Roach, Barrister, Sydney

Janet Coombs, Barrister, Sydney

Dr John I Fleming, Foundation member of Unesco's International Bioethics Committee; Director, Southern Cross Bioethics Institute.

Dr Gregory K Pike, B.Sc Hons., PhD. Physiology; Deputy Director, Southern Cross Bioethics Institute.

Dr Nicholas Tonti-Filipini, PhD. Bioethicist.

Dr Peter McCullagh, MD (Melb), DPhil (Oxford), MRCP.

Very Rev. Prof. Anthony Fisher, O.P, Director of John Paul Institute for Marriage and Family; Episcopal Vicar for Health Care, Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne

Dr Joseph Santamaria, OAM, FRACP, FAFPHM, MMED., F.RSM.

Marcia Riordan, B.Sc., Executive Officer, Respect Life Office, Archdiocese of Melboune

Anna Krohn, B.Th. Bioethics educator, Fellow of Southern Cross Bioethics Institute.

Dr N M Mitchell, MBBS, and Mrs. Jill Mitchell,

Dr Joanne Shaw, MBBS (Hons) DPHIL Oxford, FRACP, Brisbane, Qld.

Dr H R Downey, Brisbane, Qld.

Sir James Killen, retired Federal MHR, Queensland

Dr A Hartwig, M.B.B.S, Brisbane, Qld

Dr C Elliott, BMBCh, (Oxford) M.A.(oxford); RACOG; RACOG; Brisbane, Qld.

Dr F Schubert, MB BS, FRACR, BSc, Brisbane, Qld.

Dr T B Lynch, OAM, MB BS, FRACPA, Anzac House, Rockhampton, Qld.

Lady Mary Scholtens, Patron Australian Family Association, ACT.

Peter Breen, MLC (NSW)

The Honourable Elaine Nile MLC (NSW)

The Rev., the Honourable Fred Nile MLC (NSW)

Dr Peter Wong, MLC (NSW)

Babette Francis, National & Overseas Co-ordinator, Endeavour Forum Inc, Toorak, Vic.

Charles Francis QC, Owen Dixon Chambers, Melbourne, Vic.

Margaret Tighe, President, Right to Life Australia

Denise Cameron, Secretary, Pro Life, Victoria

Colonel Donald. Quinn, A.M., & Mrs. E.J. Quinn, Brisbane, Qld.

Melinda Tankard Reist, Researcher, Author.

Prue Oldham, Melbourne, Vic.

Margaret Butts, Melbourne, Vic.

The Rev. Philip Hills, Senior Pastor, Assembly of God Church, Richmond, Vic.

Rev. Irene Shand-Len, Melbourne, Vic.

Rev. Kent Ridgway, Southern District Superintendent Wesleyan Methodist Church, Melbourne, Vic.

Rev. Dr. David R. Wilson, Melbourne, Vic.