By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter
Hwang Woo-suk's fall from a rock-star scientist to national pariah has been quick, and a South Korean court ensured Monday that redemption will come a lot slower, should it ever.
However, as cloning technology re-emerges as an integral part of local biotechnology efforts - with the government setting the tone by recently lifting its self-imposed curfew on embryonic stem cell research - it looks like Hwang will get a chance to prove to the world that his skills are legit.
The Seoul Central District Court ruled the former Seoul National University (SNU) researcher guilty of manipulating his lab results on his two landmark studies on cloned human stem cells published by a peer-review journal, Science, in 2004 and 2005, which were later exposed as fraudulent.
Hwang, who was given a suspended jail sentence, was found culpable for embezzling state research funds based on the flawed data and also for illegally paying women for their eggs.
However, the court cleared Hwang of fraud charges, which were based on allegations that he exaggerated the industrial potential of his research to land funding from private companies Nonghyup and SK Group.
The ruling ends the first chapter in a legal debate that has lasted for more than three years, involving 43 court hearings, 60 witnesses, a judge replacement, and hundreds of picket-waving Hwang supporters showing up frequently.
Some of Hwang's close colleagues had been hinting that he would not appeal the sentence, as he has had little trouble in landing headline-grabbing projects anyway, and would instead recommit fully to his research work.
However, the prosecution also can appeal Monday's decision, which could leave Hwang and his legal team facing several more years of arguments before the debate is settled for good in the hands of the Supreme Court.
Nonetheless, it's hard to deny that the suspended jail sentence may allow Hwang larger freedom to accelerate his research work.
In August, the Gyeonggi Province government reached an agreement with the Sooam Center to work on a project to breed genetically-modified pigs and used them to develop treatments for diseases such as diabetes.
And earlier this month, Hwang met with North Chungcheong Governor Chung Woo-taek to discuss collaboration between the Sooam Center and researchers from the Osong Bio-Health Science Technopolis, a 4.6-square-kilometer industrial cluster that opened late last year.
Sooam's research team provided the technology for a commercial dog cloning service by a U.S. biotech firm, Bio Arts, which recently decided to discontinue the service due to uncertain business prospects.
Hwang's colleagues are also claiming that he is ready to revisit embryonic stem cell research, with Sooam researchers already assigned to a number of projects in the field.
The calls for Hwang's reinstatement have also been growing larger. Taking a cue from civic groups, 55 lawmakers, including the Grand National Party's (GNP) Kwon Young-jin, signed a petition sent to the Seoul Central District Court ahead of Monday's ruling, pleading for a lenient verdict on Hwang.
Although it is becoming apparent that more people are willing to put faith in Hwang, some question what the disgraced cloning expert has done to warrant a second chance.
Even in his better days, Hwang was criticized as coming off more like a Dr. Frankenstein than a serious scientist with a command of facts, a point that was amplified by a postage stamp showing a wheelchair-bound person being able to walk again.