Right-wing parties in government proposed to make gestational surrogacy a ‘universal crime’, meaning Italian citizens abroad could be prosecuted, to discourage ‘procreative tourism’, according to MP Carolina Varchi (FDI/ECR), who presented the bill on Monday.
The practice of surrogacy is already banned in Italy, but the party led by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni – Fratelli d’Italia (FDI/ECR) – has embarked on a battle to legally prosecute only Italian citizens who return to Italy after resorting to surrogacy in countries where it is legal and regulated.
According to the government majority, the new universal offence ”will discourage the use of this practice, stopping procreative tourism and more generally this market,” said Varchi.
The centre-right government is united in favour of the proposal, while the left is split. Although they consider the centre-right’s bill legally wrong, several left-wing MPs oppose surrogacy.
In particular, MPs are divided over the Luca Coscioni Association’s counter-proposal for ‘surrogacy in solidarity’, filed in the Chamber of Deputies by Più Europa leader Riccardo Magi and in the Senate by Italia Viva (Renew) exponent Ivan Scalfarotto.
The ‘surrogacy in solidarity’ provides for the willingness of a woman to carry a pregnancy without compensation. According to this ‘counter-proposal’, the pregnant woman – who must be under 40, already a mother and with an income – must first undergo medical checks and a psychological course to ascertain her good health and free will.
“The Pregnancy for Others Solidarity Bill strongly condemns all forms of exploitation and commercialisation (…), putting the rights of all those involved at the centre and guaranteeing access to this assisted fertilisation technique for all those who need it with the absolute protection of those born in Italy or abroad”, reads a note.
Before the debate in the Chamber, a demonstration against the government proposal took place in front of the parliament. During the protest, Magi and MP Benedetto della Vedova (Più Europa) showed a placard: ‘Parents, not criminals’.
“It is taken for granted that there cannot be a woman who has the will to carry a pregnancy for others, and we must take this as a certainty. Is there anyone who can stand as guardian of a woman’s will without even listening to her?” asked Magi during the debate in parliament.
In addition to political positions, there seem to be procedural problems with the ‘universal’ crime. According to lawyer Filomena Gallo of the Luca Coscioni Association, the law proposed by the government has no future.
“The mere fact that surrogacy is lawful and regulated in some countries makes it impossible to qualify it as a universal crime”, the lawyer explained.
(Federica Pascale | EURACTIV.it)
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