Penal provisions of Bioethics Law: problems and improvements

Chapter 9 of the Bioethics Law has several problems due to strict research standards and strong penalties. Therefore, biomedical researchers in Korea have raised several objections to this Law. To make matters worse, the normative power of the Law is significantly diminished because norms and penalties are divergent. Articles 2, 24, 26, 27, 28, and 32 of the Law require amendment because the current regulations on sperm retrieval, sperm management, and sperm use are insufficient. At a minimum, legislation for artificial insemination and in vitro fertilization should be consolidated. It is also necessary for sperm researchers and donors to be notified of their rights and duties. Section 9 of the Bioethics Law should therefore be amended. In particular, its legal formulation should be modified in order to enhance the effectiveness of bioethics law. This is in accord with the spirit of the Constitution. The principle of proportionality should be maintained. The statutory form should be revised to the level of abortion. Not only are the actors in embryo research diverse, including medical personnel, medical institutions, donors, veterans, and mediators, but embryo research involves multiple behavioral aspects, including intentional acts and negligence (violation of state duty). Excessively free-form activity is prescribed. Although the value of life is important, heavy punishment violates human dignity and human values. This legislation should not reflect to be grounded in emotional reactions such as anger.

La bioética y los derechos humanos: una perspectiva filosófica sobre la justicia en la investigación científica y experimentación clínica con seres humanos / Bioethics and human rights: a philosophical perspective on justice in scientific research and clinical human experimentation

El artículo explica la relación que debe existir entre la bioética y los derechos humanos para preservar la dignidad humana, específicamente en los casos de investigación científica y experimentación clínica con seres humanos; en tal sentido este analiza el Proyecto de Ley del expediente 17.777. A fin de legitimar la función crítica de la bioética, la filosofía ofrece una argumentación racional sobre la justicia que vincula ética y derecho.

This article explains the link that must exist between bioethics and human rights to preserve human dignity, especially in cases of scientific research and clinical experimentation with human beings; in this sense it analyzes the Proyecto de Ley del expediente 17.777. In order to legitimize the critical role of bioethics, philosophy provides a rational argument about justice that links ethics and law.