Human dignity and human embryo

The bill presented by the Democratic Party of Japan, The Bill Concerning Regulation Relating to the Production and the Use of a Human Clone Embryo and other Embryos (3) , showed some important differences, especially in the following articles. Article 1-1 declares that the bill deals with the regulation of a “human embryo” and an “embryo that has [4/5] characteristics specific to humans.” This stipulation covers larger areas than the government’s bill, which only deals with Specified Embryos. Article 1-1 refers to “preservation of human dignity” and “safety for human life and body,” but does not mention “maintenance of social order.” Article 1-3, Article 2-1-1, Article 3-1, Article 7-1 are as follows.

Article 1-3 (Basic Ideas)

1) A human embryo is a “sprout of human life” (hito no seimei no hōga). No person shall produce or use it without permission.

2) When handling a human embryo, a person must handle it honestly and carefully so as not to violate human dignity.

3) The production and use of an embryo that has characteristics specific to humans must not lead to the production of an individual.

Article 2-1 (Prohibited Acts on a Human Embryo)

1) No person shall produce a human embryo outside a human uterus. However, the production for the purpose of assisted reproductive medicine or medical research on assisted reproductive medicine (hereinafter referred to as “research on assisted reproductive medicine”) can be an exception.

2),3),4),5) omitted.

Article 3-1 (Prohibited Acts on an Embryo that has Characteristics Specific to Humans)

1) No person shall transfer an embryo that has characteristics specific to humans into the uterus of a human or an animal.

2), 3) omitted.

(*Translation and Emphases by Morioka)

The Democratic Party’s bill had some important characteristics. First, it places “basic ideas” in Article 1, and in this provision it is stressed that a human embryo is a “sprout of human life.” The bill sought to put a special value on a human embryo, which was not found in the government’s bill. (The words “sprout of human life” first appeared in the report of the sub-committee on cloning in 1999, mentioned in section 2 of this [5/6] paper, and reappeared in the government report on human embryo research in March 2000.) Second, the bill prohibits the “production” of a human embryo except for the purpose of assisted reproductive medicine ormedical research on assisted reproductive medicine. This means that the production of a human clone embryo for assisted reproductive medicine can be allowed, but the production of cloned ES cells or cloned organs for transplantation is prohibited. Anyway, the basic idea was that a human embryo is a valuable and precious sprout of human life, hence it should be exploited as little as possible. Third, the bill prohibits the transfer of an embryo that has characteristics specific to humans into the uterus of a human or an animal. This means that the transfer of the animal embryo in which human genes or cells are inserted is prohibited and, consequently, that xenotransplantation without the rejection of an organ transplant becomes impossible.

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The Ethics of Human Cloning and the Sprout of Human Life (2004)
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