Press Release

For Immediate Release, February 27, 2003
Roy Speckhardt, (202) 238-9088

(Washington, D.C.) Today the House of Representatives passed H.R. 534, the Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2003. If signed into law, this act will halt "any person or entity, public or private" from "performing or attempting to perform human cloning."

"The impact of this blanket ban on cloning will be felt for decades to come as US scientific achievement, once the envy of the world, falls further and further behind. Scientific research exists at the frontier of discovery, and this bill stifles initiative and will outlaw progress," argues Tony Hileman, executive director of the American Humanist Association (AHA).

President Bush's position on this bill is clear. In his State of the Union address on January 28 he stated: "And because no human life should be started or ended as the object of an experiment, I ask you to set a high standard for humanity, and pass a law against all human cloning."

Hileman points out, "Clearly this act is born of misplaced fear, driven by sectarian motives, and mandated by anti-abortion politics. If not for the House's dominant anti-choice position, such a blanket ban on progressive scientific techniques would not pass."

One of the principles of Humanism is defending the value of scientific research, Hileman continues, "We oppose efforts to indiscriminately condemn the advancement of science for the good of humankind, and resist censorship of research based on sectarian or political grounds."

Hileman adds, "We have long expressed our concern over President Bush's failure to see beyond black and white on the human cloning issue and pointed out the potential dangers of an across-the-board ban. We will continue to address assaults on this and other types of scientific research—especially research that can ease suffering."