Ethical and Policy Issues of Human Cloning

Human cloning refers to creating an exact genetic copy of a person. Cloning is first discovered by many people in 1996 when Dolly the sheep is cloned by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). And that’s when exchange of views behind the idea of human cloning became an issue that causes many controversies including the positive effect of cloning but as well as the possible danger behind it and the moral problems it may cause, which resulted in human cloning to be banned in many countries.

The problems relying on the idea of human cloning captured concern and resulted for many arguments to uncover. Words such as autonomy, consent, individual rights, together with ethical issue and moral problem is being used in arguing on what is right and what is wrong with regards of human cloning. Religious group, philosophers and many other more is been debating for years on whether it is ethical or not to have human cloning.

“Liberal eugenics” Defenders argue that it is the right of the parents to freely enhance the genetic traits of their children to improve opportunity, but then it should not be forgotten that a child also has the authority to choose what life he would choose to be in his future.

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A child also has a life on its own therefore deciding on what a child should be for just an improvement of prospects can violate their rights as well as affect their possible future.

Human cloning can be a new idea to change the world in a more positive way such as making ways to help avoid problems such as eliminating defective genes, infertility as well as curing some disorders.

Human cloning in terms of reproductive cloning can help not only on problems in infertility but also problems regarding animal extinction. Animals which are most likely endangered can be cloned to save their species.

But aside from that it can also give rise to negative problems such as interfering with nature and the way people value life. By the use of human cloning there is a big possibility that the natural process of creation will not be recognized and be appreciated at all. Children are believe to be gifts from God therefore it should not be changed in any ways possible, it is not just an object that people can change the way they wanted, it is a gift to be cherished not to be transformed or to be designed to make it look perfect in their eyes. It just represented dissatisfaction of what God has given to humankind. And Stated by Pope John Paul II, “Abortion, euthanasia, human cloning, for example, risk reducing the human person to a mere object: life and death to order as it were!”

Also, there are many problems in society that affects many people. Such as Poverty, overpopulation, pollution, waste and waste disposal and many other more keeps arising without further notice. Why not create something that can benefit all people but then also with respect with the God? Instead of focusing on human cloning we should focus more into having solution to problems that’s affecting many people and by that we can decreases the problems.

In addition, an American scientist Fukuyama who studies genetic stated that “it took nearly 270 failed attempts before dolly the sheep was successfully cloned. While many of this failures came at the implementation stage. Nearly 30% of all animals that have been cloned since then have born with serious abnormalities.” For that reason, we can say that until it is not yet proven we cannot assume that human cloning is not dangerous as it may seem.

On the other hand, biomedical research is much more proper than reproductive cloning. Because while reproductive research in human cloning focuses more on making a genetic copy of an existing person to create much better genetic trait for better benefits. Biomedical is much more acceptable for it focuses more on finding new discovery of knowledge to have better understanding to find new methods on curing disorders. In fact the U.S. Senate in 2002 for American debate for cloning, was break into two on deciding on those who want to ban reproductive cloning and not banning cloning for stem cell search and generative medicine.

Also there is an argument on whether it is really immoral to have cloning for biomedical research, and some opponent supported embryonic stem cell research for the reason that it uses spare embryos left over from fertility clinic. That if they consider fertilized egg to be used in fertilization then it should not be a problem to used its spare for after all it will be used in a much more important one like curing devastating diseases.

But then asides from that it is also a right to consider the moral status of the embryo for human cloning for biomedical research to be totally acceptable and ethical. Embryo has been a big help for researchers for the development of stem cell research, that later discovered that can cure conditions such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. An embryo is defined as an unborn offspring in the process of development, for many people they consider embryos as a life, a wonder of appreciation that god has given to human kind, and because of that many people do not agree on using embryos as part of biomedical research. And resulted for controversies arising by the use of embryos for research became a big issue for many.

Furthermore, the human cloning has continued developing for years, and although human cloning for reproductive research has many flaws especially in moral and ethical ways and can take a serious risk for people, Biomedical research should have its consideration. For it can be a tool that can be used in competing to this modern technology and a tool that can be used to have our knowledge widen as well as to help people in diseases to come to an end, But people should also consider to know the limitations on human cloning to avoid making it a danger and making it a blessing.