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Catholic World News News Feature

Scholar suggests universal moral standards for bioethics May 24, 2005

A Georgetown University ethicist, speaking at a conference in Seoul, South Korea, has proposed "international and universal" standards for bioethics, because "being an expert in medical science does not make one an expert in medical morality."

Robert Veatch was speaking at a symposium on bioethics organized in celebration of the 150th anniversary of Seoul's Catholic University. The seminar took place shortly after the announcement that human embryos had been successfully cloned by researchers at a different Seoul institution.

Veatch argued that neither medical faculties nor government bodies should be left alone to set standards, since medical professionals are not necessarily equipped to handle moral problems, and "a national government reflects the cultural, religious, and social interests" of its own people."

Veatch suggested that in the field of bioethics, research should be barred if it is done without the subject's consent, if it kills a human being, or if it shows disrespect for human life.

[For a TEXT see the AsiaNews web site.]