South Korean commits suicide over stem-cell case(ZT)



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送交者: fair 于 2006-2-06, 13:12:18:

SEOUL-- A South Korean truck driver killed himself on Saturday by setting himself on fire after distributing leaflets urging disgraced stem-cell scientist Hwang Woo-suk to resume his research, police said.

The man in his late 50s, identified only by his family name Chung, doused his body with paint thinner in front of a historic statue in the center of Seoul in the early hours of Saturday. He died before reaching hospital.

Witnesses saw Chung distribute about 30 leaflets calling for Hwang to carry on his studies before setting himself alight, a police official said by telephone.

An investigation panel at Seoul National University said in January a team led by the once-heralded Hwang had deliberately faked two landmark papers on embryonic stem cells. Hwang resigned his post at the university in December.

According to Yonhap news agency, the dead man was a member of an online chat cafe, "I love Hwang Woo-suk," but had not actively participated in outdoor protests to support him.

He left a memo in an Internet chat room just before killing himself to call for a gathering in Seoul on Saturday in support of the disgraced researcher, the news agency said.

Police said Chung drove trucks in Pusan, the country's second-biggest city, police said.

Hwang, once regarded as a national hero but who now is the subject of a criminal investigation, still has many supporters in South Korea. They are asking for him to have a second chance to prove claims he made in debunked scientific papers.

Hwang's research had raised hopes because it seemed to hasten the day when genetically specific tissue could be grown from embryonic stem cells to repair damaged organs or treat diseases such as Parkinson's.

About 2,000 of Hwang's supporters, including some in wheelchairs, held a rally in downtown Seoul in support of the scientist. Some wrapped themselves with South Korean flags and others with banners that read "Dr. Hwang should resume research."

"The suicide indicated how frustrated we were by the downfall of Hwang who had given us such big hopes," Park So-young, a 32-year-old accountant, said at the rally.

Hwang's supporters have gathered in Seoul every weekend since January to hold candle-lit rallies.

South Korean prosecutors raided Hwang's home on Thursday in an investigation and a government committee said separately his team violated ethical practices in procuring human eggs for research.

Story Copyright © 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.



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