Insight: Mar 22
This week Insight discusses the sensitive subject of commercial surrogacy, looking at the challenges, laws and ethics involved.
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This week Insight discusses the sensitive subject of commercial surrogacy, looking at the challenges, laws and ethics involved.
The forum will bring together ethicists, legislators, surrogate mothers, infertile couples and children born through reproductive technologies.
Following the show the debate also continues at sbs.com.au/insight, with a live chat with guests.
Guests joining the discussion include:
Stephen Page a family law specialist based in Brisbane, who advises clients about Australian surrogacy laws and international arrangements.
Linda Burney NSW Minister for Community Services, who introduced an amendment to the Surrogacy Bill 2010 banning NSW residents from going overseas and paying someone to be their surrogate. She says commercial surrogacy exploits women in developing countries and denies children access to their genetic and cultural histories.
Sam Everingham a Melbourne-based surrogacy advocate, intending to become a parent with his partner Phil. As they don’t have sisters or suitable female friends, Sam and Phil are going through a New Delhi-based surrogacy agency.
Lisa Banfield, who, with her husband John, paid an American woman – Krisy – to be a surrogate for their twin sons. Lisa is infertile due to an earlier medical complication. The boys are now almost 7 years old and the family continue to have a relationship with Krisy.
Damian Adams, who was conceived with an anonymous sperm donation. He says he is “deprived” of knowing his genetic history and believes reproductive technologies involving donor conceptions should not be allowed.
Insight airs on SBS ONE Tuesdays at 7.30pm.
UPDATE: Margaret Sommerville no longer appearing.
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3 Responses
surrogate is good,laws in this country is problem.
Do we have a right to be a parent? Some of us happily have no problem. Some through no fault of their own cannot conceive, but would dearly love to become a parent. My daughter had two ectopic pregnancies. She went through years of IVF without success and wanted to adopt. What is the matter with this country? Adoption is absolutely impossible, having passed all the tests, criteria, what have you to become a parent through adoption she and her husband have waited 5 years. With so many children in the world who are homeless my question is, Do children have a right to have a parent – a loving family, an education, a safe country in which to live? Surrogacy is now an option and unfortunately a last resort. Perhaps Renata Klein as a politician can look into the adoption laws in this country and then the necessity to go to countries for surrogate mothers would be negated.
I have no problem with the concept of surrogacy and iam fully aware of why it is needed. However i dont like it when certain couples who can have kids naturally but choose not to simply so that the woman does not have to reuin her perfect body. Increasingly if you have the money you tend to abuse the system which is set up to help the less fotunate and the unlucky. One thing is for sure that this will be a very heated debate i wonder how Jenny manages to keep it together. Again surrogacy as a concept is good but not when it is abused by certain people for cosmetic reasons.