"We are a couple with difficulty having a child, can we have surrogacy?"
In China, the answer is NO.
Sixteen years ago, surrogate techniques were banned in a legal paper on assisted reproductive technology, which is still in effect today. "We will continue severely punishing surrogacy violations and ensure that people have access to safe, regulated and effective assisted reproductive technology services," said Mao Qun'an from China National Health and Family Planning Commission.
The announcement follows recent discussions on whether to allow surrogacy in China to help couples have a second child under a new policy implemented last year.
Earlier this month, a People's Daily report recommended that authorities consider allowing the limited use of voluntary surrogacy in some cases. That made a big splash, with over 80 percent of surveyed netizens opposed to it, according to a poll on Chinese social media platform Weibo.
Some fear more girls will be abducted and forced to be surrogates. Others doubt voluntary surrogacy is realistic, as people are often driven by financial interests.
Debates over surrogacy do not just exist inside China. It has become a worldwide issue. At present, various countries have different laws on surrogacy.
There have been legal issues over surrogacy cases in the world. The baby M case was the first court ruling on surrogacy in the US. Back in 1986, a US couple asked a surrogate mother to give birth to their baby but the surrogate refused to hand over the baby to the client couple. New Jersey's Supreme Court ruled that the surrogacy contract was invalid and handed the baby's custody to the couple through the father -- using the conventional "best interests of the child" analysis -- yet allowed visitation rights to the surrogate mother. In 2014, an Australian couple gave up one of their twin babies delivered by a Thai surrogate mother since the boy suffered from Down's syndrome.
For such a complex matter involving legal, ethical and social issues, reaching a consensus in the short term will not be easy. World Insight with Tian Wei held a panel discussion regarding the legality of surrogacy, in which guests shared quite different opinions.
