Frankfort, KY
(February 20, 2003) – Kentucky’s House of Representatives today passed
legislation (59 to 40)that authorizes the creation of human clones to become the raw
material for medical experiments. House Bill 265, sponsored by Representative
Larry Clark (D-46), will allow research institutions to create clones and then
harvest the human embryonic stems.
"Despite the bill's deceptive label, it authorizes the cloning of human
embryos for research," said Vince Senior, Executive Director of the Catholic
Conference of Kentucky.
In the
human cloning debate, supporters of the bill have attempted to cloud the issue
by suggesting that "reproductive cloning" and "therapeutic cloning" are two
different methods of cloning. Therapeutic cloning, or any other semantic
variant used, is mere illusion. By definition, all cloning is reproductive:
creating and reproducing a new developing human life genetically identical to
the cloned subject.
The exact same process is followed in both
procedures and creates the same product – a developing human embryo. The
bishops’ conference analysis of HB 265 concluded that the bill fails to
prevent the creation and destruction of a human clone. "House Bill 265
supports somatic cell nuclear transfer, which is simply the scientific name
for cloning," Senior said.
Representative Clark made it clear that his bill intends to ban the production
of human clones while allowing for "life-saving" research. "The supposed
medical benefits of human cloning remain unproven, but this bill's threat to
human life and dignity is real and immediate," Senior said.
According
to Senior "If this bill were to become state law, Kentucky would be in the
disgraceful position of mandating the death of a class of human beings before
birth. Such disregard for human life must be rejected, the ends never justify
the means."
CCK is urging members of the Senate to reject this deceptive approach and
amend HB 265 with language banning all human cloning.
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