EUROPE/SPAIN - Bishops denounce the birth of the first “genetically selected baby,” saying that “the fact that a healthy baby has been born cannot justify his being used as an instrument, and the destruction of his brothers generated in vitro.”

Madrid (Agenzia Fides) – Following the birth of the first “genetically selected baby” in Seville (Spain), many have begun speaking out against the event, and condemning the way in which he was conceived, as it constitutes a denigration of the human person.
On October 12, the first genetically selected baby destined to cure his older brother who suffers from a hereditary disease, a severe anemia that requires constant blood transfusions. Through the technique that has been used, the pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, the embryos created through in vitro fertilization are examined in order to select those which do not carry the gene that can later develop into a hereditary disease. From among those selected, those embryos that present the most adequate genetic compatibility with the brother with the disease, are implanted in the mother's uterus. The rest are destroyed or frozen.
The Spanish Bishops' Conference has issued a statement affirming that “emphasis has been placed on the happy news of the birth of a baby boy and the chance for a cure for his sick brother,” and with the event presented as such, it becomes a universal cause for joy. “However,” the Bishops say, “the dramatic event of the elimination of the disease-infected embryos, followed by the destruction of those who were not genetically compatible, has been silenced.” Therefore, “the birth of a human person has occurred, accompanied by the death of others, his own brothers, who have been denied the right to life.”
The Bishops mention that the event has been upheld as a success and as scientific progress, but in reality, what it has done is “subject human life to criteria of merely technical efficiency,” which implies “reducing the dignity of the person to the mere value of utility.” Firstly, they have denied life to those of his brothers who were not useful from a technical perspective, “thus violating their dignity and the absolute respect that every person deserves in an intrinsic manner, regardless of any utilitarian notion.” And secondly, they have allowed for one brother to be born, simply because he was more useful in a possible cure, “violating his right to be loved as an end in himself and not treated as a mere instrument for technical use.”
“The fact that a healthy baby has been born cannot justify his being used as an instrument, and cannot be used to classify as progress, what is really a eugenic practice implying the destruction of his brothers generated in vitro,” the statement says. The Bishops conclude that with these clarifications, they do not wish to “judge anyone's consciences. It is simply a means of recalling the main ethical principles that protect the dignity of every human being.”
The Director of “ Fundación Vida” in Spain, Manuel Cruz, denounced the event, expressing his “condemnation for the method in which he was conceived, which is degrading to the dignity of the human person, selecting him as if he were cattle.”
“In spite of the fact that the goal of saving a life is laudable, the ends cannot justify the use of any means, in this case: the sacrifice of other lives, albeit in the embryonic stage, who are just as much brothers as the one who was born,” comments “ Fundación Vida.” Moreover, nowadays, thanks to the medical advances, “there are other alternatives that do not go against the dignity of the person and do not imply the sacrifice of lives,” such as the use of frozen umbilical cords for extracting cellular material, which has proven efficient in therapeutic use. (RG) (Agenzia Fides 20/10/2008)