TY - JOUR
T1 - The Challenges of Governing Biotechnology in Korea
AU - Yoon, Jeong Ro
AU - Cho, Sung Kyum
AU - Jung, Kyu Won
N1 - Funding Information:
7The NGOs in coalition opposed human embryonic cloning as well as human individual cloning. This view was reaffirmed at the consensus conference in September 1999 organized by the Center for Democracy in Science and Technology with the financial support of the UNESCO Korea.
Funding Information:
Acknowledgement The authors would like to thank the Center for Functional Analysis of Human Genome for its support (Grant No. FG08-43-01).
Funding Information:
The legalization was exposed to a power struggle between governmental agencies involved. First, the MOST attempted to preempt the jurisdiction of bioethics by including a section on bioethical issues in the amendment of the pre-existing Biotechnology Promotion Law and contacted the National Assembly members. After the birth of Dolly, the lawmakers at the assembly became aware of, and interested in, bioethical matters. Conflict between the ruling party and the opposition, however, resulted in disagreement on the content of the law, and each party presented its own draft of an amendment; neither was approved. The Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW), on the other hand, strongly opposed the position the MOST was taking. They argued that bioethics is a human issue, and as such, a health and medical responsibility. In 2000, the MOHW submitted a new bill, the Biotechnology Safety Act. This in turn was opposed by the MOST, but was supported by some NGOs (Kim 2001, 2005; Song et al. 2001, 43–59). The jurisdiction of bioethics was deemed to be consequential for their voice regarding biotechnology issues in the years to come.
PY - 2010
Y1 - 2010
N2 - This paper explores the development of biotechnology governance and current challenges to its improvement in Korea. It aims to identify what element would be crucial to foster an effectively working system of biotechnology governance in Korea. The analysis is focused on two cases, the legislation of the Bioethics and Biosafety Act, and the development of ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI) research. Our analysis finds that communication and consensus building between scientists and bioethics advocates in a broader sense is critical for improved governance. During the prolonged dispute over this legislation, the stakeholders advocating scientific advancements and those emphasizing the importance of ethics did not reach an agreement, which was reflected in the limitations of the act. The nascent ELSI research attempted to facilitate interdisciplinary communication and understanding between biotechnology scientists and those in humanities and social sciences, but was met with only limited success. Good governance of biotechnology requires scientists and other stakeholders to willingly comply with regulations and internalize certain norms. Based on our experience in ELSI research, a few suggestions are made to contribute to this end.
AB - This paper explores the development of biotechnology governance and current challenges to its improvement in Korea. It aims to identify what element would be crucial to foster an effectively working system of biotechnology governance in Korea. The analysis is focused on two cases, the legislation of the Bioethics and Biosafety Act, and the development of ethical, legal, and social implications (ELSI) research. Our analysis finds that communication and consensus building between scientists and bioethics advocates in a broader sense is critical for improved governance. During the prolonged dispute over this legislation, the stakeholders advocating scientific advancements and those emphasizing the importance of ethics did not reach an agreement, which was reflected in the limitations of the act. The nascent ELSI research attempted to facilitate interdisciplinary communication and understanding between biotechnology scientists and those in humanities and social sciences, but was met with only limited success. Good governance of biotechnology requires scientists and other stakeholders to willingly comply with regulations and internalize certain norms. Based on our experience in ELSI research, a few suggestions are made to contribute to this end.
KW - Bioethics
KW - Bioethics and biosafety act
KW - Biotechnology governance
KW - Biotechnology in Korea
KW - ELSI research
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77956343180&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s12280-010-9131-4
DO - 10.1007/s12280-010-9131-4
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:77956343180
VL - 4
SP - 335
EP - 348
JO - East Asian Science, Technology and Society
JF - East Asian Science, Technology and Society
SN - 1875-2160
IS - 2
ER -
