Ever since embryologist Ian Wilmut cloned Dolly, the sheep, which represented an unprecedented breakthrough in cloning technology, the media have been awaiting the time when they would announce what some consider to be the next logical step ? human cloning. While many suspect that human cloning has already taken place, there is no conclusive evidence to vouchsafe a scoop. In the meantime, the controversy runs loose with regards to ethical issues.

One school of thought believes that human cloning will be one more option among the many specialized medical interventions in human reproduction. If humans have a right to reproduce, what right does society have to limit the means, they argue. After all, cloning would only copy the genetic aspects of humans who already walk on the earth. Clones already exist ? identical twins have the same DNA. Though they share many characteristics, they are different persons in the most fundamental sense, with their own identities, thoughts and rights.

No doubt, there are many ways human cloning is expected to benefit mankind. Heart disease victims could be treated by cloning their healthy heart cells and injecting them into damaged areas. Embryonic stem cells can be grown to produce organs or tissues for transplant and repair. Conditions like Alzheimer?s disease, Parkinson?s disease, diabetes and other degenerative diseases may become curable if human cloning technology is not banned. Many more infertile couples could experience the joys of child bearing. Doctors would be able to manufacture bone fat connective tissues or cartilage to match patients? tissues, thus avoiding silicone breast implants or other cosmetic procedures, which involve using foreign materials. Once man learns how to clone livers, bone marrow and switch cells, liver and kidney failure, leukemia and different sorts of cancers will become curable. Scientists think that human cloning technology could one day even reverse the ageing process.

Yet, many scientists raise strong objections to human cloning, namely on the grounds that it is dangerous and morally unacceptable. They believe there are powerful commercial interests waiting to take huge advantages out of the research. They vehemently put forward that human cloning is totally unnecessary, given the promise, by research, of adult stem cells from patients themselves that can be most effectively used for cell and tissue replacement. Besides transplant cloning has very low success rates and generates many abnormalities. How would man deal with these when abortion itself is still a highly debated issue? Finally, the socio-economic impact of the increase in life expectancy is so far-reaching that even politicians would think twice before attempting to draw capital from it.

It is a fact that the human species is the first to influence its own evolution. As such, genetic engineering will be the most exciting scientific challenge facing mankind in the years to come. Cloning research cannot be ceased because it entails benefits that cannot be scrapped outright because of perceived risks. However, research cannot be allowed to run loose without being harnessed by guidelines and codes. There lies the crux of the matter.