On human cloning
Mohamed Sid-Ahmed reflects on the significance of this controversial breakthrough for humankind as a whole
"More important than discovering the wheel, exploding an atom bomb, or travelling between the planets, human cloning should be regarded as the greatest scientific achievement in human history. For the first time, human beings have made it possible to stretch life beyond any given generation without resorting to sex. Not by giving birth to new children, but by infinitely regenerating already existing ones." Thus spoke Michael Guillen, the former ABC News science editor who enjoys enough credibility to justify his appointment by Clonaid's director, French scientist Brigitte Boisselier, to confirm the success of the experiment allegedly conducted by the company to clone a girl using a skin cell from her mother. This astounding statement was made as the Christian world celebrated the birth of Jesus over a week ago. According to Boisselier, evidence confirming the truthfulness of the statement is to be expected any time. Last Sunday, a second clone was announced, but information concerning the first was not given.
Not all living creatures live and die. Amoeba, for instance, which have existed for at least 30 million years, reproduce through subdivision and proliferation. As such, they represent an infinite continuum that can be described as immortality. After amoeba came sexual relations between male and female to ensure reproduction for more complex, multicellular creatures whose cells had acquired differentiated functions. Is it now possible to say that complexity has reached a new threshold, where ultra-developed creatures with brains, namely, our human species, have became able, once again, to ensure for themselves immortality?
Brigitte Boisselier asserts that cloning is a means to bring about immortality. By creating a cloned brain that would be the exact replica of an original one, personality, character and even memory will be transmitted from one body to another. In this way, the first step towards immortalising humans will have been taken. But we are entitled to ask: how can memory be displaced from one individual to another? Memory is the reflection in the mind of experiences lived by a given individual, not by any other. Even if we assume that the brain can store cloned memories, this would apply only to memories prior to the time cloning is performed, and cannot be extended beyond that time. Moreover, the clone comes to live a life of its own and, as such, goes through experiences different from the ones experienced before becoming a clone. Is this not enough to distinguish a clone from its original? To what extent are we talking about two distinct identities, when a personality of its own has thus been generated for the clone?
It has been argued that a clone is an artificial identical twin. Eve, the girl who was cloned from an embryo carried by a 31-year-old woman with a sterile husband, is both the daughter of that woman and her identical twin! Thus, clones do not only disturb family relations, but produce disorders that extend to society as a whole, bringing about relations that could eventually be regarded as incestuous. The second cloned child has been created by two lesbians. As men are no longer necessary for the perpetuation of the species, their social necessity is also on the way of disappearing. This, however, does not apply to women, whose womb is indispensable to the process.
But even if we assume that cloning could be conducted in an impeccable manner with no defects, a cloned child will carry the hereditary characteristics of its mother with no need whatsoever for a father. The child will not be the product of the merger of the hereditary characteristics of two distinct individuals, but only of one. This will affect that child's ability to develop a personality of its own, bringing about standardisation rather than diversity, even if a clone will not necessarily be totally identical to its original because it will ultimately be compelled to have life experiences of its own.
History has demonstrated that certain primitive societies, prior to private property, were matriarchal and ruled by women. Probably because it is women who carry children, motherhood has not been the subject of doubt, while this has not always applied to fatherhood. Are we now facing similar circumstances, but in societies at a different level of civilisation?
At present, the circumstances of Eve's birth are still bewildering for many clone experts, to the extent that some are openly talking of fraud. Why has there been no press conference so far giving more specific information? Why this conspiratorial atmosphere, so uncharacteristic of scientific endeavour? Moreover, what is this sect to which Brigitte Boisselier belongs, a doctor in chemistry whose expertise in cloning has not been vindicated by any previous research? The Rael sect, headed by French journalist Claude Vorilhon, a guru who calls himself Rael, claims that life began in outer space. He too lacks any history that could be described as scientific.
Furthermore, it cannot be expected that human cloning will be easier than animal cloning. So far, the percentage of success with animal cloning has not exceeded 1 to 5 per cent, but there has been no suggestion that Eve's cloning was not entirely successful. Is this logical? There were 277 failures before the successful cloning of Dolly. It should also be remembered that while Dolly survived, the operation was not a total success. Dolly is overweight and is aging three times faster than other sheep.
A further question: where did Eve's birth take place? In a vessel, at sea? Was this to avoid legal complications, or was it because of accusations of acting unethically? Previous animal clonings have established that clones are exposed to dangers of death even after birth, because of defects in their respiratory and immune systems. Despite these facts, Clonaid has declared that a number of clones are expected to follow Eve. One purportedly already has.
Many scientists are sceptical of the scientific value of Clonaid's assertions. But they do not find themselves in a position to deny the significance and promise for the future of Dolly's birth, as well as that of Eve or of any other human clone. Human cloning seems to be a solved problem from the theoretical point of view, but implementation still faces formidable difficulties. Many specialists are confident that human cloning will ultimately succeed, and that now it is only a question of time and of refining the technology. Once a key discovery has been made, it is only a question of time before it is exploited. It is therefore unlikely that human cloning will not find positive applications, especially since such cloning has positive aspects in the field of therapeutical treatment, if not in that of reproduction, which is seen as demeaning to human dignity.
So far, human cloning has been condemned everywhere, but criminalised only in a few states. Further criminalisation could prevent its use in cases where it is the only chance to cure specific maladies, for those facing sterility, for example, or in cases where the replacement of a defective organ is unavoidable. Legislation on such issues still remains undecided. Many legislators are aware that cloning for therapeutic, not reproductive, aims could one day become standard medical practice, which is why despite the formal condemnation of human cloning as a "criminal practice" by a number of states, such as the US, and, above all, France, the UN so far has avoided adopting a categorical stand. Clonaid's activity will certainly be a stimulus for reviving the debate over this complex issue.
Boisselier has said that "cloning is not more dangerous than weapons of mass destruction. Why all the fuss?" Cynics could even claim that it could be used in a practical manner to repopulate our planet in case such weapons ever come to be used! However this may be, humanity now faces challenges the like of which it has never faced before, challenges which will soon decide what our species will become in the future. 11 September has already emphasised the challenge of terrorism and counter- terrorism. Now we face the challenge of cloning. Do we still have the means to stay in command?
