Arab states seek backing on the ethics of science
March 25 1999
[LONDON] The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) should help countries to establish mechanisms to address the ethical implications of new discoveries in science, according to a conference of science policymakers from Arab states held earlier this month.
The meeting, which took place in the Lebanese capital Beirut, heard that countries in the region need to develop appropriate expertise in the natural and social sciences to address ethics in science as well as the ethical implications of science, which are already issues of strong public concern.
The meeting also called for efforts to develop a better quality of science education in the region, aimed at equipping the public to participate in decisions on how new scientific knowledge should be applied.
Other priorities highlighted in the draft conference declaration
include the creation of national authorities for risk assessment; more collaborative projects between scientists from developed and developing countries; more opportunities for women to pursue science careers, and better access to research facilities in the developed world for scientists from developing countries.
The meeting also called on scientists to adopt a pledge similar to the Hippocratic Oath in medicine, committing themselves to high ethical standards, rigorous quality control over their findings, communication with the public and sharing their knowledge.
The conference was held to put the finishing touches to the Arab states' contribution to the forthcoming World Conference on Science (WCS) in Budapest in June. The draft conference declaration is expected to be adopted at a meeting of science and education ministers of the Arab League next month.
As expected, the participants steered clear of the issue of indigenous knowledge systems, focusing only on the practice and regulation of modern science.
This is in contrast to WCS regional preparatory meetings in Africa and India, at which the relationship between modern science and indigenous knowledge systems and their potential recognition in intellectual property rights (IPR) has been an important item for discussion.
The meeting did, however, call for a legal framework that protected IPR, but at the same time improved access to scientific data for researchers from developing countries.
The Beirut meeting was not free of its own controversies, which reflected the region's colourful politics, and the opinions of some of its long-serving leaders.
Delegates from Iran, Libya, and Syria, for example, were keen that the conference declaration comment in some way on embargoes on technology transfer, and scientific exchanges between researchers from their countries and those of the United States and the European Union. Syria, along with Libya, Sudan and Iran have been declared terrorist states by the United States.
But most participants, including those from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt, were less enthusiastic. As a result, a compromise form of words had to be found, which reflected the thrust of the Syrian/Libyan message while omitting explicit references to the United States or other countries in Western Europe.
The draft declaration now states: "Scientists should uphold the principle of full and open access to information; scientific research should be subject to public accountability".
It adds that: "All nations should facilitate the free circulation of scientists and recognize their constructive cooperation as a valuable contribution to the peaceful development of human civilization."
EHSAN MASOOD
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Nature © Macmillan Publishers Ltd 1999 Registered No. 785998 England.