In the name of ethics” “

“The debate on ethical questions, especially in the field of science and research, helps to clarify fundamental values and define a kind global framework of reference which involves particular attention to the dimension and dignity of man in the decision-making processes. It also helps to develop a culture of criticism and doubt that encourages citizens, political decision-makers and EU institutions never to consider the construction of Europe as an accomplished fact, but as a process that needs to be continuously re-thought”. Convinced of this is Christiane Bardoux , secretary of the “European Group of Ethics in the sciences and new technologies” (EGE). Below, some information on the European groups involved in the debate between ethics, science, technology, trade and the environment. Common values and national identities. “Two essential characteristics guide the EU approach to bioethics: first, respect for fundamental rights and for the identities of states. Second, the constant search to strike the right balance between the defence of common values and respect for the historical, cultural and religious identity of each country”. Two concerns already present “both in the Convention on the safeguard of human rights of the Council of Europe, and in the Charter of fundamental rights proclaimed at Nice in 2000, a Charter which, despite the fact that it represents a strong signal in terms of fundamental rights, still does not have any legal force”. The EGE. “A decade ago the European Commission established an independent group, the ‘European Group of Ethics in the sciences and new technologies’ charged with the task of offering advice on ethical issues to the European institutions. The group is composed of twelve members. They belong to various countries and comprise experts in various fields: jurists, scientists, theologians, philosophers. The Group issues opinions at the request of the Commission, but it may also express itself on issues it considers important. Hitherto it has pronounced on the ethical aspects of EU research programmes, cloning, prenatal diagnosis, and human stem cells. It has just published an opinion on the ethical aspects of the clinical research conducted in the developing countries. At present it is tackling the question of genetic tests. These are all issues tackled simultaneously by the national ethical Committees of the various member states, of which the first in chronological order was that of France, founded twenty years ago”. Trade and the environment. Not just science and research: “the ethical questions also concern the sectors of trade and the environment. In trade, the Commission supports a more humanized view of globalization, urging, for instance, greater access to affordable drugs for third countries, as called for by the Doha accords”; as for the environment, “the Union has adopted a strategy for sustainable development, also to meet the needs of future generations”. What Europe? “Enlargement makes a far-reaching institutional reform essential. It also obliges us to engage in a reflection on our common roots and on the links we wish to establish with our neighbouring countries”; a commitment that concerns “the spiritual and cultural dimension of Europe, the model of society, the dialogue between peoples and cultures” and that responds to the need to “identify and redefine the fundamental principles on which to base our rules of life”. Hence “the recent decision of the president of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, to set up three ‘Reflection Groups’: one on European values”, known as the “Michalski Group” from the name of its chairman, one on “European society in the perspective of sustainable development” and the third, the so-called “Group of the Wise”, called “to develop the dialogue of the Union with its neighbouring countries, in particular those of the Mediterranean region. The three groups are supposed to present their conclusions in the autumn”.