U.N. Won’t Ban Human Cloning

A divided United Nations on Friday rejected a U.S.-led campaign to ban all cloning of human embryos, including for stem cell research, as a General Assembly committee opted instead for a nonbinding declaration.

“The bottom line is that stem cell research will advance,” said Bernard Siegel, a Florida attorney. Siegel led efforts by scientists and patient advocacy groups to defend so-called therapeutic cloning, in which human embryos are cloned as part of research, such as stem cell studies.

Foes of cloning to produce stem cells object to the destruction of the embryos.

Despite Washington’s three-year drive for a broad anti-cloning treaty, the U.N. committee shunted aside the U.S. proposal by consensus.

In its place, the panel adopted a resolution instructing a working group to meet in February for talks on a political declaration put forward by Italy as a face-saving compromise.

Rome suggested that the assembly issue a nonbinding statement calling on nations to adopt laws “to prohibit any attempts to create human life through cloning processes and any research intended to achieve that aim.”

Opponents of the U.S. plan said the majority of the 191 U.N. nations wanted to keep the door open to therapeutic cloning.