A review of Greek law on human cloning

Abstract

The creation of Dolly, a cloned lamb from adult cells was a major scientific breakthrough, which opened new avenues for many research fields such as reproductive medicine, transplantation and biotechnology. However this achievement brought to public attention the theoretical possibility of human reproductive cloning. Inevitably heated debate occurred on several ethical and legal consequences of the prospect of human cloning. At the present time there is no legal framework in any country to respond to this challenge in a pragmatic way in order to protect human rights and at the same time to allow science to work for the best interests of mankind. Greece is a European Union country with its own traditions, history, culture and beliefs but without political and legislative experience in the handling of medical and biotechnological matters. This paper aims to discuss the legal issues likely to be raised by the prospect of human reproductive cloning in relation to the current state of the Greek legal system.