LifeCanada
c/o 102 - 355 Wellington St.
Ottawa ON K1Y 3C2

News Release March 29, 2001

LifeCanada president Peter Ryan made the following comments on today's discussion paper release by the the Canadian Institutes of Health Research:

"Once again the Canadian government chooses to turn a blind eye to the humanity of children before birth. This time it is the Canadian Institutes of Health Research recommending the funding of research on stem cells harvested from living embryos.

Any research that involves killing an unconsenting child after his or her conception is morally abhorrent.

As todays' CIHR discussion paper indicates, the recommendation on using embryos up to 14 days is based on the premise that the embryo does not have the moral status of a human being. This premise is arbitrary and reflects prejudice against the earliest stage of a child's life.

The CIHR should concentrate on funding research in the extremely promising field of adult stem cells. It is a relief that, unlike the British government, the CIHR has not called for funding the creation of embryos for research purposes; nor does it support the cloning of embryos."

Contact: Peter Ryan (506) 459-8990

LifeCanada is the national coordinating body for Canada's pro-life educational groups.