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Reply to Recommendation | Doc. 14503 | 16 February 2018
The use of new genetic technologies in human beings
1. The Committee of Ministers has carefully
examined Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 2115 (2017) on “The
use of new genetic technologies in human beings”. It also communicated
it to the Committee on Bioethics (DH-BIO), as well as to the Steering
Committee for Human Rights (CDDH), for possible comments. The Committee
of Ministers considers it important to be highly vigilant with regard
to the human rights implications of developments in biology and
medicine. It welcomes the interest and work of the Assembly in this
area.
2. Referring to paragraph 1 of the recommendation, the Committee
of Ministers agrees with the Assembly regarding the “potential to
diagnose, prevent and eventually cure diseases in the future” offered
by new genetic technologies. However, it also shares the concerns
expressed about the risks of certain technological developments
and their possible applications to human beings. In this context,
it recalls, as does the Assembly, that Article 13 of the Convention
on Human Rights and Biomedicine (Oviedo Convention) limits the purposes for
which interventions on the human genome may be undertaken and prohibits
intervention intending to introduce any modification in the genome
of descendants.
3. With regard to paragraph 5 of the recommendation, the Committee
of Ministers would draw attention to the Statement on Genome Editing
Technologies adopted by the DH-BIO in December 2015 which underlines that
the Oviedo Convention provides a framework and principles that could
be used as reference for the debate called for at international
level on the use of new genetic technologies in human beings. In
line with this statement, the Committee of Ministers would invite
those member States which have not yet ratified the Oviedo Convention
to consider doing so or to consider, as a minimum, putting in place
a national ban on establishing a pregnancy with germline cells or
human embryos having undergone intentional genome editing.
4. The Committee of Ministers agrees with the Assembly (paragraph
3 of the recommendation) that there is a need to “foster a broad
and informed public debate on the medical potential and possible
ethical and human rights consequences of the use of new genetic
technologies in human beings”. These considerations also find their
expression in Article 28 of the Oviedo Convention, which calls to
Parties to see to it that “the fundamental questions raised by the
developments of biology and medicine are the subject of appropriate
public discussion in the light, in particular, of relevant medical,
social, economic, ethical and legal implications, and that their possible
application is made the subject of appropriate consultation.” In
view of this undertaking and as part of its initiatives to address
human rights challenges raised by emerging technologies, the DH-BIO
will develop guidance on how to promote public discussion and consultation
on fundamental questions raised by the developments of biology and
medicine.
5. With regard to the paragraph 5.4 of the recommendation, the
Committee of Ministers can inform the Assembly that the DH-BIO has
already started to examine developments in this area, which has
led to the adoption of the above-mentioned Statement on Genome Editing
Technologies where it agreed, “as part of its mandate, to examine
the ethical and legal challenges raised by these emerging genome
editing technologies, in the light of the principles laid down in
the Oviedo Convention.”
6. Finally, the Committee of Ministers notes that the DH-BIO
will continue to address human rights issues raised by genome editing
technologies and will develop a Strategic Action Plan addressing
human rights issues raised by emerging technologies and developments
in the biomedical field. The Strategic Action Plan will be based
on the outcome of the Conference organised on the occasion of 20th anniversary
of the Oviedo Convention under the auspices of the Czech Chairmanship
of the Committee of Ministers, which covered, inter alia,
human rights challenges raised by new technological developments
in the fields of genetics and genomics.