THE INTERNATIONAL AND COMPARATIVE LEGAL REGIME ON THERAPEUTIC CLONING

Abstract

Th ere is a global consensus around the fact that human cloning for reproductive purposes is ethically reprehensible, and it is therefore currently prohibited worldwide. However, the admissibility of so-called “therapeutic cloning”, by means of somatic cell nuclear transfer, gives rise to division. Some States have decided to legalise it on the understanding that it facilitates stem cell research and opens the door to the future treatment of currently incurable diseases. However, other States reject any form of cloning that involves the artifi cial creation of a human embryo, seeing this as unacceptable from an ethical and legal point of view as it exploits human life at its inception and violates the principle of the inherent dignity of human beings. In order to get a better idea of how these confl icting views have been refl ected in diff erent policy instruments and national laws, we describe the legal regime currently in force on cloning, both internationally and in comparative law.