OCEANIA



AUSTRALIA

 

§          The Research Involving Human Embryos Act No. 145, “An Act to regulate certain activities involving the use of human embryos, and for related purposes.” (2002)

            http://scaleplus.law.gov.au/html/comact/11/6603/pdf/1452002.pdf 

 

Article 11: “Offence—use of embryo that is not an excess ART embryo.

A person commits an offence if:

(a) the person intentionally uses, outside the body of a woman, a human embryo that is not an excess ART embryo; and

(b) the use is not for a purpose relating to the assisted reproductive technology treatment of a woman carried out by an accredited ART centre, and the person knows or is reckless as to that fact.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 5 years.”

 

§          “Prohibition of Human Cloning Act No. 144, “An Act to prohibit Human Cloning and Other unacceptable practices            associated with reproductive technology, and for related purposes” (2002)

            http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/embryo/pdf/prohibit.pdf

            http://scaleplus.law.gov.au/html/comact/11/6603/pdf/1452002.pdf

 

“Part 2—Prohibited practices

Division 1—Human cloning

 

9. Offence—creating a human embryo clone

A person commits an offence if the person intentionally creates a human embryo clone.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 15 years.

 

10. Offence—placing a human embryo clone in the human body or the body of an animal

A person commits an offence if the person intentionally places a human embryo clone in the body of a human or the body of an animal.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 15 years.

 

11. Offence—importing or exporting a human embryo clone

(1) A person commits an offence if the person intentionally imports a

human embryo clone into Australia.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 15 years.

(2) A person commits an offence if the person intentionally exports a

human embryo clone from Australia.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 15 years.

 

12. No defence that human embryo clone could not survive

It is not a defence to an offence under section 9, 10 or 11 that the

human embryo clone did not survive or could not have survived.”

 

“Section 13

Division 2—Other prohibited practices

 

13. Offence—creating a human embryo other than by fertilisation, or developing such an embryo.

A person commits an offence if the person intentionally creates a human embryo by a process other than the fertilisation of a human egg by human sperm, or intentionally develops a human embryo so created.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years.

 

14. Offence—creating a human embryo for a purpose other than achieving pregnancy in a woman.

(1) A person commits an offence if the person intentionally creates a human embryo outside the body of a woman, unless the person’s intention in creating the embryo is to attempt to achieve pregnancy in a particular woman.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years.

 

(2) Despite subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code, a defendant does not bear an evidential burden in relation to any matter in subsection (1) of this section.

 

15. Offence—creating or developing a human embryo containing genetic material provided by more than 2 persons.

A person commits an offence if the person intentionally creates or develops a human embryo containing genetic material provided by more than 2 persons.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years.

 

17. Offence—using precursor cells from a human embryo or a human fetus to create a human embryo, or developing such an embryo.

A person commits an offence if the person uses precursor cells taken from a human embryo or a human fetus, intending to create a human embryo, or intentionally develops an embryo so created.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years.

 

18. Offence—heritable alterations to genome

(1) A person commits an offence if:

(a) the person alters the genome of a human cell in such a way that the alteration is heritable by descendants of the human whose cell was altered; and

(b) in altering the genome, the person intended the alteration to be heritable by descendants of the human whose cell was altered.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years.

(2) In this section: human cell includes a human embryonal cell, a human fetal cell, human sperm or a human egg.

 

22. Offence—importing, exporting or placing a prohibited embryo

(1) A person commits an offence if the person intentionally imports an embryo into Australia knowing that, or reckless as to whether, the embryo is a prohibited embryo.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years.

 

(2) A person commits an offence if the person intentionally exports an embryo from Australia knowing that, or reckless as to whether, the embryo is a prohibited embryo.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years.

 

(3) A person commits an offence if the person intentionally places an embryo in the body of a woman knowing that, or reckless as to whether, the embryo is a prohibited embryo.

Maximum penalty: Imprisonment for 10 years.

 

(4) In this section: prohibited embryo means:

(a) a human embryo created by a process other than the fertilisation of a human egg by human sperm; or

(b) a human embryo created outside the body of a woman, unless the intention of the person who created the embryo was to attempt to achieve pregnancy in a particular woman; or

(c) a human embryo that contains genetic material provided by more than 2 persons; or

(d) a human embryo that has been developing outside the body of a woman for a period of more than 14 days, excluding any period when development is suspended; or

(e) a human embryo created using precursor cells taken from a human embryo or a human fetus; or

(f) a human embryo that contains a human cell (within the meaning of section 18) whose genome has been altered in such a way that the alteration is heritable by human descendants of the human whose cell was altered; or

(g) a human embryo that was removed from the body of a woman by a person intending to collect a viable human embryo; or

(h) a chimeric embryo or a hybrid embryo.”

 

   

NEW ZEALAND

 

§          Human Assisted Reproductive Technology Act No. 92 (2004)

 http://www.legislation.govt.nz/browse_vw.asp?content-set=pal_statutes

 

Schedule 1 - Prohibited Actions

  1. Artificially form, for reproductive purposes, a cloned embryo. For the purposes of this item, a cloned embryo is not formed by splitting, on 1 or more occasions, an embryo that has been formed by the fusion of gametes.
  2. Artificially form, for reproductive purposes, a hybrid embryo
  3. Implant into a human being a cloned embryo.
  4. Implant into a human being an animal gamete or embryo
  5. Implant into a human being a hybrid embryo.
  6. Implant into an animal a human gamete or human embryo
  7. Implant into an animal a hybrid embryo.
  8. Implant into a human being a genetically modified gamete, human embryo, or hybrid embryo.
  9. Implant into a human being gametes derived from a foetus, or an embryo that has been formed from a gamete or gametes derived from a foetus.

 

8.Prohibited actions

(1)Every person commits an offence who takes an action described in Schedule 1

(2)Every person commits an offence who, knowing that an in vitro gamete, an in vitro embryo or an in vitro foetus, or an in vitro being has been formed by an action described in Schedule 1, imports into, or exports from, New Zealand that in vitro gamete, in vitro embryo, in vitro foetus, or in vitro being

(3)Every person commits an offence who, knowing that a gamete, an embryo or foetus, or a being has been formed by an action described in Schedule 1, possesses, without reasonable excuse, that gamete, embryo, foetus, or being.

(4)A person who commits an offence against this section is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or a fine not exceeding $200,000, or both.