THE Attorney-general has decided to hand over to the police the investigation of a geneticist whose Cyprus company is allegedly involved in the study of controversial cloning technology.
The Reprogen Organisation, the international centre for the study of reproductive DNA cloning technology, is registered in Limassol and hit the headlines earlier this month when Health Minister Charis Charalambous said that, “Reprogen’s practices appear not to be in line with Cyprus law”.
At the heart of the project is internationally renowned geneticist, Professor Panayiotis Zavos, a Cypriot living and working in the United States.
Attorney-general Petros Klerides and the Health Ministry’s Bio-Ethics Committee were asked to look into the matter, with the Registrar of Companies instructed to establish exactly how Reprogen is set up.
On Thursday, Klerides briefed Charalambous with the Minister saying: “The Attorney-general has sent me a letter informing me that after examining the case, he has decided that it must be referred to the police for further investigation.”
The Minister said the Attorney-general had made the decision, “after studying Reprogen’s registration as well as the content of Zavos’ website and taking into account the opinion of the Bio-Ethics Committee.”
The Committee has not only stressed the illegality of cloning, but also a violation of specific legislation, which carries a sentence of up to six years in prison.
It has also made specific recommendations to citizens to be careful and not to be misled by Reprogen.
According to Reprogen’s website, “the significant advances being made in reproductive cloning technology will afford an opportunity for those who are suffering from infertility and have exhausted their opportunities for having a child, to create through DNA reproductive cloning technology, a biological child of their very own.”
Speaking out on the possibility of human cloning, Charalambous said: “It is unacceptable, as it is purely a business trade and is not how we create life.”
Now the case is with police, the way Reprogen carries out its work and its activities will be under scrutiny.
When we called the Limassol number listed on the Reprogen website, a spokesman told us: “The Cyprus address which appears on the website is simply the registered address for one of Dr Zavos’ Cypriot companies. We only represent Reprogen’s registered office in Cyprus and have no involvement whatsoever with Dr Zavos or his company’s activities.”
Police spokeswoman Christalla Demetriou told the Mail that the force, “has only just received directions from the Attorney-general, instructing CID to investigate the matter.”
The cloning issue will be discussed on Thursday by the House Health Committee.
