Chinese academic community speaks out on He Jiankui again: Consensus statement on the challenges and responses of science and technology ethics governance

Abstract

At the end of 2019, He Jiankui was sentenced to 3 years in prison for “illegal medical practices”. The Ministry of Science and Technology and the National Health Commission of P.R. China have banned him from engaging in any work related to reproductive science such as in vitro fertilization, and prohibited him from conducting further research in genetic editing.

On November 24, 2022, He Jiankui announced on his personal Weibo account for the establishment of the He Jiankui Laboratory in Beijing's Daxing district, and extensively promoted his rare disease research plan through social media and the press, calling it a “new starting point, a new journey”.

On February 13, 2023, Nature News reported that He Jiankui participated in an online exchange event organized by the University of Kent in the United Kingdom, focusing on life ethics regulation. Many scholars were disappointed with his speech, which they believed was “a publicity stunt” that only “left the impression of a salesperson” [1]. Similar disappointment and criticism were expressed by the Chinese academic community toward He Jiankui's speech.

On March 2, 2023, a Conference on “Challenges and Responses to Ethical Governance of Science and Technology” was held in Beijing. The Conference was organized jointly by Center for Ethics and Morality, People's University of China, Beijing Institute of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, and Center for Bioethics, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences/Peking Union Medical College. Over 200 scholars from all over the country attended the conference.

Xiaomei Zhai: Conceptualization (lead); resources (lead); writing—original draft (lead).

The author declares no conflict of interest.

The author has nothing to report. No patient was involved in the present study.

Not applicable.