The Dynamics of the Bioethical Dialogue in Spain

Abstract

In this essay, the birth and development of bioethics in Spain are presented by distinguishing three historical periods. The first period extends from 1976 to 1984. In those years, the Borja Institute of Bioethics (Instituto Borja de Bioética), the first institute of its kind in Europe, was founded in Sant Cugat del Vallès (Barcelona). In 1984, the third meeting of the International Study Group on Bioethics of the International Federation of Catholic Universities (FIUC/IFCU) was held, also organized in Sant Cugat and with extensive repercussions for different Spanish universities. The second period spans from 1985 to 2000. These were years of expansion, development, and consolidation in Spanish bioethics, when significant legislation pertaining to medical-biological advances and their use was generated. During this time, jurists and philosophers also became acquainted with and interested in bioethical debates. Starting in 1990, diverse approaches and schools of bioethics began to define themselves: the emergence of apparent differences in attitudes and approaches to ethics and legislation could be seen, in addition to the growing division between the approaches of lay and faith-based ethics. The third period extends from 2001 to the present. This period can be considered one of review, projection, and integration, with different propositions being generated from those with polarized political views and strongly determined by techno-scientific, economic, and ethical-religious factors. This period also denotes a situation of greater complexity than in previous periods, due to the unlimited possibilities for scientific and technological advances.