Surrogacy Bill's draft hits early problems

Surrogacy Bill's draft hits early problems.

An attempt by the Council of State to regulate surrogate motherhood suffered a setback when the first draft of its Surrogacy Bill was strongly criticised by experts.

Concerns about the rights of children born by surrogacy, surrogate mothers, prospective parents, morality and social ethics were raised by some of about 50 doctors, legal experts and feminists who attended a forum.

"Currently, we have many social problems caused by many natural-born children. I am afraid children born through medical technology would create bigger social problems," said Wicha Mahakhun, former chief of the Children and Youth Division of the Supreme Court.

While agreeing that the country needs a law to control the use of advanced medical science, Wicha believes the process to draw up such a law should not be rushed.

The idea to draw up the Surrogacy Bill was initiated by Akrathorn Jurarat when he was secretary-general of the Council of State about five years ago. At that time, the council ruled that a couple were not the legal parents of a child born by surrogacy.

"Don't ask whether it is too fast [for the country to have this kind of law]; the fact is that surrogacy has happened. The law will not only protect surrogate children, but also put order in society," said Dr Witoon Ungpraphan, a senior doctor who was president of the committee to draw up the Surrogacy Bill.

Under the bill, a woman could legally carry a baby for another couple, but payments to a broker and the woman would be illegal and the surrogacy agreement would not have legal standing in court. Only the payments of medical expenses would be allowed.

A couple who asked another woman to carry a baby might not be the owners of egg and sperm but would be legal parents of the child, while the woman who carried the baby has an obligation to relinquish the baby to the couple.

"The purpose was to eliminate commercial surrogacy," said Nandana Indanond, a judge of the Intellectual Property Court, who was the bill drafter. Nandana said before drafting the bill he and his team studied surrogacy law in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Australia.

The bill does not include punishment for those who provide or are involved in commercial surrogacy.

During two hours of discussion about the bill, many concerns and potential problems were voiced. If a couple who asked another woman to carry their baby divorced or died before the baby was born, can the baby be terminated? Can the child have the right to choose who to stay with - the genetic parents, surrogate family, or social parents (the couple who got eggs and/or sperm from donation and asked another woman to carry the child as the couple's own baby)?

Sukanya Rattananakin, an attorney, said the bill only protected the rights of a couple who asked another woman to carry their baby, while ignoring the rights of the surrogate baby.

A Medical Council representative said the bill should provide more details about surrogacy - for example, the qualifications of the couple who can ask another woman to carry their child.

Wicha recommended that a national organisation be set up to control surrogacy.

Nandana said all recommendations and criticism would be considered when he revised the bill before making it available for public hearing in May. The bill must be completed and presented to the Council of State in June.

Pennapa Hongthong

The Nation
Mon, January 15, 2007