"There is no reason to make a moral distinction between an embryo at the very beginning of his or her life and after implantation in the womb or after 14 days. Human dignity does not depend – and must not be made dependent on decisions of other human beings". It’s the comment of mgr Noel Treanor, secretary general of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community (Comece) about the approval by the European Parliament of funding of research with human embryos and human embryonic stem cells. In a statement released today (see also www.comece.org) Comece affirms that "every human life begins at conception and needs particular protection if it is created outside the woman’s body. Human life must never be instrumentalised. We therefore remain opposed in principle to the destruction of any human embryo and the use of human embryonic stem cells". Recalling that the proposal was adopted by 284 votes to 249 with 32 abstentions, mgr Treanor notes that "the European Parliament itself was divided on the issue" and that "it is a fact that there are divergent views on the anthropological status of the embryo and of the ethical implications of experimentation on human embryos. Yet, since the use and destruction of human embryos is an issue which touches on the inviolability of human life and dignity and thus concerns most deeply held convictions of many EU citizens, the EU has a moral duty to abstain from promoting through joint funding such research prohibited in several member states. Through its funding decision, the EU would interfere with the delicate national decisions made on this matter and would violate the principle of subsidiarity".
