SEOUL (UCAN) - Human cloning experiments, capital punishment and abortion must end as they are against human dignity and creative order, the Korean bishops' Justice and Peace Committee says.
"The core of human dignity is that human life and humanity are the last mystical areas that cannot be completely controlled by anyone or anything," the committee said in a message to mark Human Rights Day Dec. 10.
The message "Let us Establish the Community Order Respecting the Human Being" was issued on the occasion of the 19th Human Rights Sunday.
In the message, the bishops asserted that "the death penalty must be abolished as soon as possible." They argued that human life should not be taken away by another human being for any purpose.
"Abortion, conducted in the name of family planning, also seriously violates human dignity," said the Church leaders, while calling for the abolition of a law that practically allows abortion.
They also addressed the political issue of more reasonable relations with the United States, specifically on the status of U.S. forces in South Korea.
The statement was released during negotiations between the two governments on revision of the "unfair" Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) that was going on in Seoul late November to early December.
The bishops also expressed concern for the poor, unemployed, homeless and orphans. They said that these people must be cared for from the viewpoint of human dignity, not from the viewpoint of their economic usefulness.
"A human community finds the true meaning of its existence when human dignity and values are guaranteed for every member," they said.
The statement noted that while scientific technology is developing rapidly today, human dignity and rights are being threatened more seriously than ever.
The bishops said at this time when great efforts are being made to overcome the country's political, economic and social crisis, "we must consider, first of all, human dignity and human rights."
END
UCAN
8. desember 2000