Dear Editor,

Father Raymond de Souza articulates well the humanity and inherent dignity of the embryos Bill C-13 (now before the House of Commons) misconceives as research objects ('Surplus' Embryos? No Such Thing, Feb. 24). Which is to say he illumines the humanity and dignity of each of our personal and sine qua non geneses.

He also delineates the bill's "muddled philosophy" that sees some human beings like surplus products one may dispose of at cut-rate and at least get some good from (in this case, stem cells) rather than have them just sit on the shelves (of fertility clinics) or go to waste. He notes the "moral difficulty" of supporting legislation that "countenances the destruction of human life."

But the writer then lurches to the opposite conclusion one might expect: voting for C-13 is acceptable! This with no real foundation other than the assumption that by regulating lethal embryonic research "Bill C-13 is clearly better than the current legislative vacuum in which anything goes."

The assumption is false. With a voluntary moratorium on such research now in place, very few embryos are currently having their stem cells harvested. The Canadian Insitute for Health Research has stated, however, that once they receive legislative cover, they will begin funding embryonic research. The reality on the ground, therefore, is that many more little ones will soon die because of C-13 than die currently or if the bill were defeated.

The same day as Father's article, Pope John Paul - Father's hero, we know from past articles - stated, "not only the goals but also the methods and means of research must always respect the dignity of every human being, at whever stage of their development and in every phase of experimentation." The right conclusion on Bill C-13? Remove unborn humans as research targets (per MP Jason Kenney's amendment), or vote against!

Sincerely yours,

Peter Ryan
Past President, LifeCanada
Fredericton NB

(Tel. 1-888-796-9600)