Disgraced cloning scientist flees to Thailand

0 Comments | AFP, September, 2007

SEOUL (AFP) — Disgraced South Korean cloning scientist Hwang Woo-Suk has fled to Thailand to escape controversy and continue his research, associates said Tuesday.

Hwang and some 10 other researchers have been in Thailand for two months, focusing on research into the cloning of pet animals and the production of stemcells that could be used for cell treatment, they said.

The South Korean government banned Hwang from research using human eggs after his claims that he created the first human stem cells through cloning were ruled to be bogus last year.

Hwang was stripped of all government honours and funds, including his title of "Supreme Scientist," after Seoul National University concluded that his claims -- first made public in a 2004 science journal -- were...