The Battalion Thursday - June 5,1997^ " ■ I _3mH k& ill , -SSSiS "in.. . . >■ mmm ~ ■ j— m Human cloning proposals trigger outcry from anti-abortion groups H *'/ Wmf WASHINGTON (AP) —A propos al to allow lab experiments on hu man cloning but forbid the actual replication of a person drew imme diate outcries Wednesday from anti abortion groups, who say that would permit “grave evils.” However, the partial-cloning recommendation from a federal advisory panel brought praise from biotechnology groups, who say it would allow valuable re search while essentially calling a timeout on efforts to actually make cloned humans. The panel, the National Bioethics Advisory Commission, meets Satur day to draw up final recommenda- ^ ^ This means it is OK to clone as long as you kill.' >5 •sr A ■Ml—k 1,, : : N81r% m :p|: : 41 iiigf 1 '' John Cavanaugh-O'Keefe Director, American Bioethics Advisory Commission tions for President Clinton on the stance the federal government should take on human cloning. Despite a basic consensus, mem bers still disagree on many details of their recommendations, said one member of the advisory group, who spoke on condition of anonymity. He said those differences may not be re solved until Saturday. At the White House, the Clinton administration declined comment until the commission issues its fi nal report. Cloning became an issue of gov ernment concern after a Scottish sci entist cloned a sheep, named Dolly, from cells taken from adult sheep. The experiment was the first to suc cessfully clone a genetic duplicate in dividual from an adult mammal. The effort’s success prompted a call for legislation to forbid human cloning. Clinton asked Congress to wait on considering cloning laws until the group of scientists and ethicists could study die issue. Although final points remain un resolved, a consensus of the 18- member group will call for laws to forbid human replication through cloning, but to not address experi mentation with cloned human cells that go no further than a laboratory dish, said the panel member. The group’s position means that research could continue on the “Dol ly technique,” the panel member said — research in which a human embryo is made from the nucleus of a mature cell joined in a lab dish with a human egg without its nucleus. However, such embryos could not then be placed into a woman’s womb for development into a baby. Such a recommendation by the commission permits “two separate grave evils,” said John Cavanaugh- O’Keefe, director of the American Bioethics Advisory Commission, a part of the American Life League Inc. anti-abortion group. What the scientific PANEL AGREES ON: Human cloning that leads to the birth of a child should be strictly forbid den in all U.S. labs, both private and public. Human embryo research,! ifNl including cloning re- 'W| search, that stops short of] tan| producing a child shouldi jisa not be addressed by fed- ffle era I law. But the morato rium on federal money for such embryo research would continue. The first, he said, was the creatioi" in a lab of a cloned human embryi the second was to prohibit implanta tion and development of the embryo, which eventually would be killed. ’ “This means it is OK to clone as long as you kill,” he said. His group considers any human embryo to be a human, he said. But Carl Feldbaum, president of the Biotechnology Industry Organi zation, which includes 700 compa nies, applauded the proposed rec ommendation. "What we had hoped is that the commission will draw a bright line distinguishing between whole hu man research and research which uses only tissue that has been cloned,” he said. Mil Weather Outlook SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY Rooting Around Photograph: Tim Moog A.C. Mitchell, a landscape maintenance worker of four years, removes weeds from the landscape in front of A&M’s main entrance. Partly cloudy High: 94° Low: 72° A Partly cloudy High: 93° Low: 70° Thunderstorms High: 94° Low: 73° Tl ic Texas A&M Universiti) College of Libera I Arts in cooperalion willi the Universifuj of H ouston Moores Sclioo I of M usic presents the 1997 TEXAS MUSIC FESTIVAL Texas CHAMBER COMCERTS S*/L/k**te4C if: A,-Is Council ol llir B,xi/ns Valle, Morwcsl Bant Irxas C'ommiNsinn on (lie Arls I irsl American Bant UniversiK, Honors Piixp-am A.C-. Ltlwcmls & .Sons Universil,, lillr Co. I mil and CU< nline Ogden C -ompass Bant Foxas AtVM Bootslore Insil#' Maga/inr Oolunil.ia Medical Coder l lie Aslin Imsls (Morwesl Bant. In,sloe) SATURDAY EVEMIMG JUME 7- 7:30 P.M. RUDDER TEfEATRE M usic F est ival O rchestra Sidneg Harth, conductor Richard Dowling, piano nfc Ts hi perlormmg works Dg Brahms, Ravel, and Tchaikovslaj The Eagle Flying higher every day "7icict