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Law on DNA tests in pipeline
2006-07-13 08:47:07
By Fitina Haule, PST, Morogoro
The government plans to table a Bill in parliament that would allow DNA tests to be conducted so as to hold responsible men who make women pregnant and then abandon them.
This was revealed on Tuesday by the Commissioner in the Law Reform Commission, Judge Edward Anthony Mwesiumo, at the second meeting discussing preparations for the enactment of the Deuxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) law that started here on Monday.
Judge Mwesioumo explained that a committee is preparing the Bill at the request of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and the preparatory committee comprises representatives from the Chief Government’s Chemist Office and three lawyers from the Law Reform Commission, including himself.
Said he: ’’The committee is responsible for preparing the Bill that would oversee the use of DNA technology in the country. The target is to table the Bill in Parliament in November this year.’’
He added that once the technology is put to use, the number of street children is likely to be reduced as it would be possible to identify the man responsible for the pregnancy even before the baby is born.
Apart from the new technology helping women, the government, through the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare would also be able to identify criminals and fatalities of accidents.
’’The enactment of the DNA law would be in line with international requirements that call for the privacy of the individual, ’’ he stressed, adding that the new technology can reveal a lot, including a persons’character and any hereditary diseases he has.
’’All these need to be guarded by observing an individual’s right to privacy so that such a person may be saved from embarrassment and worries,’’ he stressed.
According to Judge Mwesiumo, the government has already bought one DNA machine worth over 300m/-
’’The ABI PRISM 3100 GNTIC ANALYSER has not been put to use much as we have no experts who can handle it because of the absence of legislation that would govern the new ethnology,’’ he said.
Tanzania would be the second country in Africa to own and use the machine after South Africa.
A representative from the Chief Chemist’s Office, Judith Nyanza, explained that results of tests conducted though DNA are correct by 99.99 per cent while those derived on the basis of blood group are not so accurate.
’’The machine can analyse 96 samples at a time and give results between three and five days.
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