Earlier we used to believe that our fate was written in the stars. Now we know that it's in our genes. 
- James Watson (Time, 20 March 1989)

The twentieth century marked an era of discovery, with space exploration being arguably the most revolutionary of all. In this DNA century, man is beginning to look within the very core of himself to retrieve answers to some of life's mysteries. Unlocking these mysteries for the betterment of humanity could well revolutionise human evolution.

In the last decade or so, we have witnessed unprecedented advancements in the fields of biomedical technology or life sciences and such research has unravelled amazing truths about the human genome and all other living beings. It also has opened up the doors of hope with the promise of identifying the causes and perhaps the eventual cure for diseases such as Huntington's Disease, Cystic Fibrosis, Alzheimer's, Cancer and Tay-Sachs Disease. The Human Genome Project was an initiative devised to provide a detailed mapping of the variations in human DNA and eventually cracking the code to understand why people are susceptible to certain diseases or crimes and the best possible way to treat them. This will inadvertently pave the way for a new genetical anatomy that is set to transform medicine and mitigate suffering in the 21st Century.

An avenue of research that developed as a result of biomedical advancements is cloning. In February 1997, the world was introduced to the first sheep to be cloned. 'Dolly', as it was named, was the exact replica of her mother, both genotypically and phenotypically - but not yet the endangered Indian cheetah. Cloning as a result of genetic engineering is a medical breakthrough, especially in areas of organ replacement for transplant patients, propagating endangered species and eliminating inherent diseases in a foetus.

Conversely, genetic engineering plays an instrumental role in the agricultural industry which is set to boom since genetically modified food is considered to be healthier and less resistant to drastic climatic changes. Scientists are able to identify a particular 'bad' gene and replace it with a 'good' one. A good example of this is involves extracting the anti-freeze gene from winter flounder and injecting it into tomatoes, or replacing a flawed gene with normal DNA, thus eliminating the possibility of a baby being born with a debilitating disease. No more dilemmas of conjoined twins for the court to make the cruellest of choices, like the recent Mary and Jodie case where Mary lived on borrowed time from her sister.

As Singapore aims to become the biomedical or life sciences hub in Asia, there is potential for attracting investment into the economy to boost research, particularly in diseases that commonly affect Asians. Deputy Prime Minister Dr Tony Tan has revealed that Singapore has set aside S$2billion for its life sciences initiatives, of which half is set aside to encourage start-ups and joint ventures, while the other half is set aside to attract high-class international corporations and venture capitalists from Germany and Scandinavia.

With so much good to be gained as a result of genetic engineering and biomedical technology, we cannot afford to be complacent in thinking there is no possible harm in this. With such advancements, we run the risk of unleashing Pandora's box on the various ethical and moral issues that come with this kind of research. The current gap between diagnostic and therapeutic capacity will continue to cause problems of both a clinical and an ethical nature.

In all this, are we allowing ourselves to play God? Given the benefit of gene replacement, we have to ask ourselves where we should draw the line. Will parents start by creating the perfect baby free from disease and emotionally flawless? By encouraging more research in these areas, are nations looking to create the perfect human race? What are the repercussions of such advancements on natural human evolution?

In part, this is probably what drove over 19 European nations to sign an anti-cloning treaty.

As lawyers and legislators, we are faced with a barrage of issues: human rights, legal, social and even religious. Justice Michael Kirby of the High Court of Australia opines that the difficulties of securing a consensus about such a topic are only too obvious as they include the different religious, cultural and legal traditions that must be brought into harmony and the different economic interests of different countries involved in the development of therapies.

Article 6 of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) states that:

No one shall be subject to discrimination based on genetic characteristics that is intended to infringe or has the effect of infringing human rights, fundamental freedoms and human dignity.

The World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki (June 1964) states that it is the duty of the doctor or physician to ensure and safeguard the health of his patient. It is also quick to point out the present dangers in biomedical research involving human subjects, despite its aim to increase knowledge. Moreover, in terms of non-therapeutic biomedical research, it is still the duty of the physician to remain the protector of the life and health of that person.

Other competing rights include the right to privacy and confidentiality, third party interests; intellectual property rights also impinge on this discourse.

With no or no clear-cut laws against cloning, leaving aside issues relating to life sciences, lawyers face the challenge of not only keeping abreast of the latest genetic technology, but also in knowing its limitations and how it affects the individual. A sound scientific or mathemetical grounding may be essential for a lawyer in understanding the mechanics of such issues before dealing with its jurisprudential dilemma.

As advancements in biomedical technology and genetic engineering accelerate in speed, we have to hope that gene mapping and cloning will be used to save lives and not to endanger or be abused in any form.

And a day may come when all our emotions can be transplanted into a laptop in not a two-dimensional, but a three-dimensional chip - with our behaviour and decisions open to analysis through the means of the computer - from genesis to genes.

Palakrishnan
President
The Law Society of Singapore