The EU Parliament recently voted to allow for the commercialisation and sale of human embryos and human foetuses when it passed a new regulation called 'Substance Of Human Origin' (or, SoHO).

The EU Parliament's amendments to the proposed SoHO regulation egregiously define human embryos and foetuses as mere "substances of human origin", not as actual human beings!

Everyone in Europe - including supporters of all political philosophies and parties - should be appalled at this crass attempt to commodify human life, a decision which has "BIG BUSINESS" written all over it!

But, thankfully, this cunning attempt to commercialise the human embryo and the human foetus can be stopped in its tracks!

At the next stage in the EU's legislative process, the proposed regulation goes to the European Council for review where it must be strongly and vociferously opposed with amendments introduced to protect the human embryo and foetus from commercialisation and commodification. OR, it must scrapped altogether.

And, that's where the Irish Government comes in.

But they (and, we) must act fast.

Please SIGN and SHARE this petition which calls on the Irish Government, acting at the European Council level, to introduce an amendment to the SoHO regulation which would protect human embryos and foetuses against being defined as a mere "substance of human origin", but, rather, as human life, which deserves special protection and which should never, under any circumstances, be commercialised or commodified.

If that is not possible, the petition calls on the Irish Government to reject this discriminatory, inhumane proposal.

The SoHO regulation which was initially designed to streamline the purchase, sale, or tranfer of items like human blood, plasma, and tissue for legitimate medical treatment and research within the EU, and which was initially issued by the EU Commission, apparently went horribly wrong at the amendment stage in the EU Parliament.

Now, there is great concern that the adoption of this regulation, as is, could mean human embryos may be created in laboratories solely for the purpose of conducting experimentation on said embryos, ultimately leading to their destruction.

Please SIGN and SHARE this urgent, vital petition, today!

Writing for the Iona Institute about the matter, Dr. Angelo Bottone explains how the amendments to the SoHO proposal thoroughly degrade the human embryo and human foetus:

"...[I]t makes no proper distinction between human plasma, cells and tissue on the one hand, and human beings themselves on the other, in this case embryos and foetuses. They are all regarded as products for scientific and medical use with an embryo put on the same moral plane as a blood cell.

If the proposal becomes law, it will allow human embryos created in laboratories specifically for research purposes, or ‘spare’ embryos left over by the IVF process, to be used for commercial scientific research. In other words, they will be for sale. It might even include naturally conceived unborn children".

And, the Commission of the (Catholic) Bishops' Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) have also expressed their disquiet about how this EU regulation "degrades" the dignity of human life at its earliest stages, and how the same regulation could override national law in EU countries which currently have protections on early human life.

While it is true that this regulation was approved by MEPs who represent political parties that support anti-life policies such as abortion, the fact that most EU countries allow abortion should not translate into the gross commercialisation and the commodification of human life at its earliest stage.

At very minimum, we should be able to agree that no-one should have the right to commodify or commercialise the human embryo or the human foetus, for whatever purpose.

Human life should be protected, never experimented on, never sold to the highest bidder.

SIGN and SHARE this petition calling on the Irish Government, acting at the EU Council level, to introduce an amendment to the proposed SoHO regulation which would distinguish between non-fertilised germ cells and embryos and foetuses, and which would guarantee protection to human embryos and foetuses from commercialisation and commodification.

If that is not possible, the petition calls on the Irish Government to reject this discriminatory, inhumane proposal which has evidently been designed for industrial purposes.

Thank you for acting today!

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

The regulation - https://oeil.secure.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?ref...(COD)&l=en; EU Parliament's amendments to the regulation - https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/TA-9-2023-0299_EN.html

COMECE/German Bishops Statement Regarding the SoHO Regulation - https://www.comece.eu/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/09/Statement-12092023-COMECE-KBB-Joint-statement-on-SoHO-Regulation-EP-vote-EN.pdf

Article from the Iona Institute, 'MEPs launch another attack on the right to life' - https://ionainstitute.ie/meps-launch-another-attack-on-the-right-to-life/