AUSTRALIA BANS HUMAN CLONING

CANBERRA, June 14, 2002 (LSN.ca) – Scientists who try to create a human clone would be jailed for up to 15 years and fined up to $99,000 under a proposed law being put forward by Australia’s centre-right Howard government. The penalties for selling human sperm, human eggs or embryos would be a maximum 10-year sentence and $66,000 fine. Researchers “would face the same stiff penalty,” reports The Age newspaper, “if they tinkered with human cells in an attempt to change the offspring’s physical characteristics, including eye colour, or internal characteristics.” In addition, all research on spare IVF embryos would have to be recorded on a public database, including the number of embryos used.  The proposed law would also prevent scientists from mixing the genetic material of humans and animals, and establish a maximum penalty of 10 years jail and a $66,000 fine for scientists who mixed the genetic material of more than two people.  Government Coalition MPs and opposition Labor MPs have been promised a free vote on the issue. The legislation is expected to pass because most Coalition, Democrat and Labor MPs support embryonic stem-cell research—which the current bill does not seriously restrict. Regarding research on spare IVF human embryos, the government promises to introduce a bill within the next two weeks.  For more details from Austrlia’s The Age newspaper, see: https://www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/06/13/1023864324942.html