Therapeutic Cloning: South Korea

Well, the Asian countries have an advantage over the Land of the Free: it's legal and apparently not even all that controversial. The Financial Times has the story:

Scientists have cloned embryos for the first time from patients with serious diseases and injuries. The research at Seoul National University in South Korea demonstrates the principle of “therapeutic cloning” producing stem cells genetically identical to the patient, which could repair any damaged or diseased tissue.

Hwang Woo-suk, the study leader, called it “a giant step forward towards the day when some of mankind's most devastating diseases and injuries can be effectively treated through the use of therapeutic stem cells”....

In an interview, Prof Hwang said this is partly because of supportive political and social attitudes in Asia in contrast to the US and many European countries, where embryo research and therapeutic cloning are either banned or mired in controversy.

There are serious religious and philosophical issues involved, but anti-cloning legislation doesn't seem to effect the research and implementation, it just drives it out of the US.