The International Bioethics Committee (IBC) of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

is a body composed of 36 independent experts from all

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

s and different

discipline Discipline refers to rule following behavior, to regulate, order, control and authority. It may also refer to punishment. Discipline is used to create habits, routines, and automatic mechanisms such as blind obedience. It may be inflicted on ot ...

s (mainly

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pr ...

genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar work ...

, law, and

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. ...

) that follows progress in the

life sciences This list of life sciences comprises the branches of science that involve the scientific study of life – such as microorganisms, plants, and animals including human beings. This science is one of the two major branches of natural science, th ...

and its applications in order to ensure respect for human dignity and

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

. It was created in 1993 by Dr Federico Mayor Zaragoza, General Director of UNESCO at that time. It has been prominent in developing Declarations with regard to norms of bioethics that are regarded as

soft law The term ''soft law'' refers to quasi-legal instruments (like recommendations or guidelines) which do not have any legally binding force, or whose binding force is somewhat weaker than the binding force of traditional law. Soft law is often contras ...

but are nonetheless influential in shaping the deliberations, for example, of research ethics committees (or Institutional review board) and health policy.

Universal Declaration on Human Genome and Human Rights

In 1993, the IBC was entrusted with the task of preparing an international instrument on the human genome, the Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights, which was adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO in 1997 and endorsed by the General Assembly of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

in 1998. The main purpose of this instrument is to protect the human genome from improper manipulations that may endanger the identity and physical integrity of future generations. To this end, it recognizes the human genome as "the heritage of humanity" (Article 1), and declares "contrary to human dignity" practices such as

human cloning Human cloning is the creation of a genetically identical copy (or clone) of a human. The term is generally used to refer to artificial human cloning, which is the reproduction of human cells and tissue. It does not refer to the natural concept ...

(Article 11) and germ-line interventions (Article 24). In addition, the Declaration intends to prevent genetic reductionism,

genetic discrimination Genetic discrimination occurs when people treat others (or are treated) differently because they have or are perceived to have a gene mutation(s) that causes or increases the risk of an inherited disorder. It may also refer to any and all discr ...

, and any use of genetic information that would be contrary to human dignity and

International Declaration on Human Genetic Data

In 2003, the IBC issued a second global instrument, the International Declaration on Human Genetic Data, which may be regarded as an extension of the 1997 Declaration. This document sets out a number of rules for the collection, use and storage of human genetic data. It covers, among other issues, informed consent in genetics; confidentiality of genetic data;

; anonymization of personal genetic information; population-based genetic studies; the right not to know one’s genetic make up; genetic counselling; international solidarity in genetic research, and benefit sharing.

Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights

The last global instrument drafted by the IBC is the Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights, which has a much broader scope than the two previous documents. It aims to provide a comprehensive framework of principles that should guide biomedical activities, in order to ensure that they are in conformity with international human rights law. The academic

Thomas Alured Faunce Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the ...

has analysed this Declaration's non-binding

social responsibility Social responsibility is an ethical framework in which an individual is obligated to work and cooperate with other individuals and organizations for the benefit of the community that will inherit the world that individual leaves behind. Social ...

technology transfer Technology transfer (TT), also called transfer of technology (TOT), is the process of transferring (disseminating) technology from the person or organization that owns or holds it to another person or organization, in an attempt to transform invent ...

and transnational benefit principles which expressly apply to private and public

corporations A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...

as well as states. He has argued that it has promoted a normative intersection between

international human rights law International human rights law (IHRL) is the body of international law designed to promote human rights on social, regional, and domestic levels. As a form of international law, international human rights law are primarily made up of treaties, a ...

and bioethics as academic disciplines.UNESCO Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Right

(last accessed 18 June 2009)

References

UNESCO Ethics organizations Bioethics