Illicit surrogacy market in China remains challenging
- By Wu Jin
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E-mail China.org.cn, February 24, 2017
The surrogacy market remains strong in China even though the country announced the illegitimacy of the operation a few days ago, an interview conducted by China Central Television (CCTV) revealed recently.
According to the report, the surrogacy business has not simply survived the ban but is even thriving.
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A man surnamed Niu from a surrogacy agent introduces the services to the reporter in a secret interview done by CCTV. [Photo: CNTV.com] |
During the interview, an employee from a surrogacy agent in Wuhan touted that they provide solutions to those who suffer infertility either due to problematic oviducts or unhealthy wombs.
The solution for the former is to insert ova from a different body into the womb, while the latter involves putting a healthy zygote into a different womb. The first service costs between 100,000 (US$14,540) to 16,000 yuan, while the second costs between 410,000 to 900,000 yuan.
"I can assure you a healthy baby within two years and promise to assume all responsibilities if the baby is born with deformities or other problems" a man surnamed Wang from a surrogacy agent said during the secret interview.
There will also be considerable charges if the couples demand gender distinctions for the embryos.
According to another man from the agency, surnamed Niu, they have contacted obstetric doctors and surgeons from first-class hospitals to cover all pregnancy care and childbirth services.
Though illegal, the surrogacy service still lures women unable or unwilling to deliver babies. The price for a successful surrogate mother ranges from 150,000 yuan to 200,000 yuan.
Once chosen, their wombs will be inserted with zygote.
"We'll check and follow the conditions of the surrogate mothers to decide whether they'll take medicine to prevent miscarriages and provide nutrition required during their pregnancy," Wang said.
With their ages ranging between 20 and 38, surrogate mothers are attracted by the high pay.
In addition to the disputes that are difficult to resolve without the protection of legal provisions, the business endangers the health and safety of surrogate mothers.
Continuously exposed to medicines to ensure pregnancy and faced with the dangers of miscarriage, the surrogate mothers jeopardize their health and even their fertility with no legal protection.
China prohibits the transaction of gametes, zygotes and embryos in any form, and the medical staff are not allowed to undertake any related operations.
Liu Ping, deputy director of the Reproductive Center of the Peking University Third Hospital, said that the overstimulation of the ovaries may put one's life at risk, causing blood clots or damage to livers and kidneys.
Surrogacy has been banned in many countries, including France, Switzerland and Germany, and its operation is stringently controlled in Britain, Australia and Canada.
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