Recently, the Archdiocese of Seoul (South Korea) announced a donation of 10 billion won (approximately 9.6 million USD) for adult stem cell research, despite opposition from the Roman Catholic Church regarding this type of research.
The majority of the 10 billion won will come from the Archdiocese of Seoul’s funds and will be allocated to a newly established committee supporting adult stem cell research, headed by Bishop Yeom Soo-jung. According to Bishop Yeom, the committee aims to uphold human dignity above all else and to raise awareness about respecting life. He stated that this 10 billion won donation is the largest ever made by a church in any country for stem cell research.
Two Opposing Views on Stem Cell Research
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| Prof. Hwang Woo-suk (Image from foreign press) |
In fact, in the land of the morning calm—home to one of the world’s leading scientists in stem cell research, Professor Hwang Woo-suk, renowned for his work in human cloning and stem cell extraction—debates surrounding stem cell research are always heated.
The South Korean government has provided substantial funding to Professor Hwang and his team. In February 2004, his research team created the world’s first cloned human embryo and successfully extracted a stem cell line from it.
By the beginning of this year, Hwang and his colleagues successfully produced the first embryonic stem cells genetically matched to patients suffering from critical diseases or disabilities.
In October, Professor Hwang will inaugurate a stem cell bank in South Korea.
However, the Christian community strongly opposes experiments involving stem cells, particularly those led by Professor Hwang, arguing that his research violates fundamental human ethics, equating the creation of cloned embryos to “murder.” They believe that embryos represent human life. Christian followers have criticized Professor Hwang and his notable research for requiring human eggs and destroying embryos to obtain stem cells.
Bishop Yeom, on the other hand, asserts that preserving and safeguarding life is a mission of our era that the Korean Church must fulfill, regardless of the difficulties involved. He revealed that the Archdiocese of Seoul also plans to award an annual prize of 300 million won (approximately 290,000 USD) to a scientist researching stem cells.
Continuing Support for Stem Cell Research…
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| Prof. Hwang (left) presenting his research on stem cells to South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun (center). (Image from foreign press) |
Meanwhile, the South Korean Government Information Agency has stated that the government is working on several measures to support leading national stem cell researchers like Professor Hwang.
Kim Chang-ho, the director of the South Korean Government Information Agency, mentioned that establishing a research institute similar to the National Cancer Center for stem cell researchers is one of the measures under discussion.
He noted that it has yet to be decided whether this research institute will receive 100% government funding or be established as a non-profit social organization.
The South Korean government will continue to explore measures to support stem cell research in the future, with the involvement of the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
Mr. Kim also indicated that the government will continue to collaborate with other agencies, including the Ministry of Health and Welfare, to discuss this issue along with other related matters.
Minh Thuong (According to Korea Times/Korea Herald/UPI)
