When a wife suggested to her husband that they start a family, he said, “Let’s try getting up every night at 2 a.m. to feed the cat. If we enjoy doing that, then we can talk about having a baby.”
However there are many Canadian couples who desperately want a baby but can’t conceive. Some of those couples may look into surrogacy (the carrying of a child for another person and surrendering the child to the couple at birth).
In 2004, the Assisted Human Reproduction Act prohibited the sale of eggs and sperm and commercial surrogacy; however voluntary surrogacy was permitted. But on May 28, 2018, a Liberal MP from Quebec proposed amendments to the act to permit the sale of eggs and sperm, and permit commercial surrogacy.
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So what are the complications arising from commercial surrogacy?
• Underprivileged women in need of money would be tempted to essentially rent their womb, and underprivileged men to sell sperm, while possibly hiding drug addictions and infectious diseases.
• These children will be genetic orphans, unable to discover half of their biological origins.
• If the parents split up, a professor of law says, “In a custody battle the father will often have parental rights as the one who supplied the sperm, but the mother may not be regarded as the parent if the egg has been provided by a third party.”
• This lucrative industry could be abused by profiteers.
• Overall, the fertility industry is largely unregulated, yet generates billions of dollars.
• It only benefits couples who can afford the costs that range from $45,000 to $100,000, with western countries inflicting the highest price.
A few years ago, a baby with Down syndrome was born to a Thai surrogate mother and left behind by the intended parents. The couple had been told prior to the birth that their son has Down syndrome, and they told the surrogacy agency to give them a refund and find a solution.
In Australia, an altruistic surrogate mother (where the mother’s medical expenses and care are paid), protested that she was doing all the heavy lifting but other professionals were making all the profits. Though she claimed helping those who were unable to conceive was a beautiful experience and gave her great joy, in the end it appears that money became the major factor, and the reward of benevolent joy was not enough.
This may be why Thailand has drafted legislation requiring surrogates to be blood relatives of the intended parents. It’s also the reason why our Assisted Human Reproduction Act came to the conclusion that prohibiting the sale of sperm and eggs and commercial surrogacy would prevent the sale of human life, which is contrary to the public interest.
The Liberal MP’s proposed amendment sends a confusing message. On the one hand the federal government is a strong advocate for abortion, and on the other they offer commercial surrogacy as a solution for parents who can’t conceive.
If this amendment concerns you, you can write to the minister of Health and your MP.
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