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MANNING SUPPORTS DESTRUCTIVE RESEARCH ON HUMAN EMBRYOS

Endorses far more liberal position than that of U.S. President Bush

OTTAWA, September 4, 2001 (LSN.ca) - Canadian Alliance MP Preston Manning, founder of the Reform Party, has sorely disappointed social conservatives with his explicit endorsement of destructive experimentation on human embryos. The former Reform Party leader did not indicate that his endorsement had any conditions such as U.S. President Bush's emphatic limit on experimentation to cell lines derived from previously killed embryos only. In an interview with the Canadian Press released Friday, Manning said he supported embryonic stem cell research, falsely calling it the "lesser of two evils." In related news, the Alliance Party - the Official Opposition - has asked the Liberal government to institute an immediate ban on human cloning in Canada

"The country just can't afford to be behind in this area," Manning said in the interview. "We owe it to our people to be in front and we owe it to our scientists to be in front." Karen Murawsky, National Affairs director of Campaign Life Coalition responded, "Canada can always afford to be behind in immoral and unethical actions."

Manning ignored the fact that the lives of human beings created via in vitro fertilization can be saved by implantation into adoptive mothers' wombs. He also did not mention that the human embryos used in stem cell research are killed when used for research. He said: "(That's) where you get into the moral choice between the lesser of two evils -- either the destruction of the embryo or its use in research that may potentially heal someone . I think most people would concede that (the use of embryos for research) is the lesser of two evils in that case." Jim Hughes, National President of Campaign Life Coalition responded that there is "no such thing as a lesser of two evils when you are killing human beings, all you are left with is evil."

Eric Duhaime, spokesperson for Stockwell Day told LifeSite that while Manning is the critic for the party on these issues, the party has no official position on the matter as it is not part of party policy. Duhaime said the issue would be discussed at the September 14 policy conference in Ottawa and again at next year's policy convention. However, sources inside the party told LifeSite that Manning's views "don't represent anyone but himself" and that many Alliance MPs are at odds with Manning's view. "He really is demonstrating Liberal tendencies with his position. He has no moral justification and no legitimate medical justification either." The matter is expected to be brought up in caucus this week.

In related news, Manning and Alliance colleague Diane Ablonczy, acting on behalf of the Canadian Alliance asked Health Minister Allan Rock to immediately introduce legislation banning "reproductive cloning in Canada and the creation of embryos solely for research purposes." In the letter, the Alliance also requested "Immediate fulfillment of the government's commitment to significantly increase the budget of the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, including increased funding for research into the development of stem cells from non-embryonic sources." And importantly, " Immediate attention by the Health Committee to defining the legal status of the embryo in Canada and the best regulatory mechanism for ensuring that this status is respected in the conduct of related research."

Responding to the request in the media Health Minister Allan Rock's spokesperson said there was no intention to accelerate a ban on human cloning.

For related coverage see the Canadian Press report at:
http://www.canoe.ca/CNEWSPolitics0108/31_manning-cp.html

See LifeSite's Stem Cell News and Resources page
http://www.lifesite.net/features/stemcellembryo/index.html

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