Do not censor science in the name of biosecurity
Security officials should not be concerned about the publication of mutant-flu research, says bio-weapons expert .
20 June 2012
"The only groups who might logically consider using such a weapon are those for whom humans are the problem, such as environmental extremists and animal-rights activists, or apocalyptic sects, such as the Japanese terrorist cult Aum Shinrikyo, which released sarin gas in the Tokyo underground in 1995. Then there are those who do not care about casualties, such as a state or a regime that believes it faces imminent existential threat, or suicide fighters.
Censorship of the H5N1 papers would not have kept the genie in the bottle. Suppressing such papers or limiting access to their findings might even encourage proliferation by drawing attention to the risks and by provoking those researchers denied access to the results to seek to replicate them."
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