Madrid, Spain, Feb 13, 2005 / 22:00 pm
Speaking on behalf of the Bishops Conference of Spain, Father Juan Martinez Camino, secretary general of the body, said proposed reforms of the country’s laws on assisted reproduction would permit the conception of “medicinal babies” and consequently the death of many human embryos.
Speaking on Spanish TV, Father Martinez said the creation of health embryos to be used for the purposes of curing illnesses is the equivalent of “eugenics.”
“If I am producing eight embryos to cure a sick sibling…and I chose from them the ones that are healthy and are compatible, and I let one of them develop in a test tube and the rest I throw in the trash can, that is called eugenics,” he warned.
Father Martinez added that, “Trying to cure a sibling at the cost of five of his brothers or sisters who have had their right to life taken away is very grave for the future of humanity.”
He recalled that all embryos have a completely new genetic code, “and if you don’t throw it away in the trash, it develops and is a human being.”
“What is it? A dog, a mineral or a group of genes? It is a human body distinct from father and mother, and it has the right to life, and I can not sacrifice it for anything, even to save the world,” he added.