The Health Ministry says an investigation by an internal ethics has found that Hwang Woo-suk’s research team did not violate legal or ethical rules.

An investigation panel under the Veterinary Department of Seoul National University confirmed that the team’s two junior researchers had donated their own eggs for stem cell experiments voluntarily.

The ministry said that since the ova donors had consented to the donation neither under duress nor for any financial compensation, Hwang’s team had not violated any ethical principles.

The ministry also pointed out that the case does not run counter to the Helsinki Declaration—a statement of ethical principles in medical research—which calls for particular caution in cases where the researcher is in a position of power over the test subject.