Insieme riconosciamo il profondo desiderio di genitorialità che molti hanno. Tuttavia, come nella maggior parte dei desideri, devono esserci dei limiti. I diritti umani ci forniscono delle linee guide significative per chi vuole identificare questi limiti. Noi siamo convinti che la gestazione per altri debba essere vietata in quanto costituisce una violazione dei diritti umani delle donne e dei bambini.

La maternità surrogata spesso è basata sullo sfruttamento delle donne più povere. In molti casi sono i poveri ad essere costretti a vendere e i ricchi a potersi permettere di comprare. Queste transazioni inique implicano un consenso da parte di donne poco informate, o del tutto disinformate, una scarsa remunerazione, una coercizione, una insufficienza di assistenza medica nonché gravi rischi per la salute, a corto e lungo termine, delle donne che accettano la gestazione per altri.

La pratica della gestazione per altri comporta dei rischi per la madre surrogata, per le giovani donne che vendono i loro ovociti e per i bambini nati grazie alle tecniche di procreazione assistita. Tra i rischi corsi dalle donne si riscontrano: Sindrome da Iperstimolazione Ovarica (SHSO), torsione delle ovaie, cisti ovariche, dolore pelvico cronico, menopausa precoce, perdita di fertilità, tumori del sistema riproduttivo, trombosi, insufficienza renale, ictus e, in alcuni casi, la morte. Le donne che portano avanti la gravidanza a partire dagli ovociti di altre donne presentano un rischio più elevato di preeclampsia e di ipertensione.

I bambini nati grazie alle tecniche di procreazione assistita, che sono generalmente attuate durante la GPA, sono anche esposti a rischio di patologie quali: nascita prematura, morte intrauterina, peso insufficiente, malformazioni fetali e pressione arteriosa elevata. La gestazione per altri rompe intenzionalmente il legame materno naturale che si stabilisce durante la gravidanza – un legame che i professionisti della medicina incoraggiano e cercano di rinforzare senza tregua. I legame biologico tra la madre e il figlio è innegabilmente di natura intima e una volta spezzato, le conseguenze sono permanenti per entrambe le parti. Nei paesi dove la gestazione per altri è autorizzata questa sofferenza potenziale è istituzionalizzata. Noi siamo convinti che non vi sia differenza tra la pratica commerciale della gestazione per altri e la vendita o l’acquisto dei bambini. Anche se non c’è scambio di denaro (la cosiddetta gestazione non remunerata o “altruistica”), ogni pratica che espone le donne e i bambini a tali rischi deve essere vietata.

Nessuno ha diritto a un bambino: né eterosessuali, né omosessuali e neppure chi ha scelto di rimanere single.

Uniti chiediamo ai governi delle nazioni del mondo e ai capi della comunità internazionale di lavorare insieme per mettere fine a tale pratica e fermare subito l’utero in affitto.

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Original Individual Signatories

Kathleen Sloan Feminist leader, activist, and author USA	Phyllis Chesler, Ph.D. Emerita Professor of Psychology, Feminist activist, Scholar and Author of Sacred Bond: The Legacy of Baby M USA	Marjorie Murphey Campbell, J.D. Founder of NewFeminism.co USA
Renate Klein, Ph.D. Biologist, social scientist, and coordinator FINRRAGE (Feminist International Network of Resistance to Reproductive and Genetic Engineering) Australia	Ruchira Gupta Founder and President, Apne Aap Women Worldwide India	Jennifer Lahl Founder and President of the Center for Bioethics and Culture Network USA
Janice G. Raymond, Ph.D. Professor Emerita University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and author of Women as Wombs: Reproductive Technologies and the Battle Over Women’s Freedom USA	Kajsa Ekis Ekman author of Being and Being Bought: Prostitution, Surrogacy and the Split Self Sweden	Jessica Kern Product of a surrogate pregnancy USA
Sylviane Agacinski Feminist philosopher, author of Corps en Miettes France	Gail Robinson “Surrogate” Mother USA	Michel Onfray Philosopher and Writer France
Farida Akhter Women’s rights and health activist Bangladesh	Tanya Lynn Surrogate mother USA	Gary Powell LGBT activist and public administration campaigner United Kingdom
Elisa Anne Gomez Surrogate mother USA	Donna Hughes Eleanor M. and Oscar M. Endowed Chair in Women’s Studies, University of Rhode Island USA	Helen Alvare, J.D. Professor of Law, George Mason University School of Law USA
Gaëlle Cariati Graduate student in International Relations from University of Calabria Italy	Julie Bindel Writer, author, broadcaster, and feminist campaigner against violence against women and children United Kingdom	Deborah Hornstra M.A. Health Advocacy, Sarah Lawrence College USA
Gertrud Åström Gender equality expert, feminist activist, president of the Swedish Women’s Lobby Sweden	Lord David Alton Member of British Parliament United Kingdom	Matthew Eppinette Executive Director, The Center for Bioethics and Culture USA
Robert Oscar Lopez, Ph.D. President of the International Children’s Rights Institute USA	Alana Newman Founder of The Anonymous Us Project and Advocate for Donor-Conceived People USA	Charles C. Camosy, Ph.D. Associate professor of theological and social ethics, Fordham University USA
Christopher White Director of Research and Education, The Center for Bioethics and Culture USA	C. Ben Mitchell, Ph.D. Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Graves Professor of Moral Philosophy, Union UniversityUSA	Evan Grae Davis Filmmaker and director of It’s a Girl USA
Katy Doran Donor Conceived Activist USA	Matt Doran Founder of the free social network: www.DonorChildren.comDonor Conceived Advocate Connecting Biological Family and the Community USA	Claudia Corrigan D’Arcy Board Member of Adoption Rights Coalition USA
Jeffrey M. Togman, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Political Science and Film at Seton Hall University Director of the film We’re Not Blood USA	Cathi Swett, J.D. Attorney and Adult Adoptee Advocate USA	Mirah Riben Author of The Stork Market: America’s Multi-Billion Dollar Unregulated Adoption Industry USA
Miriam Grossman, M.D. Adolescent and adult psychiatrist and women’s health activist. Author Unprotected and You’re Teaching My Child WHAT? USA	Melinda Tankard Reist Writer, feminist, activist Australia	Nkechi Asogwa, M.D. President,Doctors Health Initiative Nigeria
Adesuwa Onyenokwe Publisher and Editor in chief of TW Magazine Nigeria	Ego Egonu, M.D. Physician, Derry Clinics Nigeria	Sanjay Khanna Convener, Socio-Economic Welfare Society India
Babita Khanna Gen. Secretary, Socio-Economic Welfare Society India	Lalit Pasricha Project Coordinator, Socio-Economic Welfare Society Canada	Eliette Abécassis Writer, author of Qumran and La Répudiée, which inspired Amos Gitai’s film Kadosh France
Johanna Langhorst Reporter Sweden	Eberechukwu Okey-Onyema Executive Director, Healthy Living and Women Empowerment Initiative Nigeria	Annika Lundegårdh, R.N. Nurse and President of the Women’s Committee of the Centre Party in Uppsala Sweden
Nina Björk Author Sweden	Ebon Kram Chairman Sweden	Erika Beckman Chairman, National Organization Against Sexual Abuse Sweden
Jane Eriksson Vice-Chairman, National Organization Against Sexual Abuse Sweden		Yvonne Hirdman Professor of Women’s History at the Gothenburg University Sweden
Karin Svensson Chairwoman, Roks, The National Organization for Women´s Shelter and Young Women’s Shelter Sweden	Ebba Witt-Brattstrom Author, Feminist, and Professor in Nordic Literature, University of Helsinki Finland	Nina Rose, M.D. Vice President, Swedish Women Doctor’s Society Sweden
Caroline Norma, Ph.D. Lecturer in Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University Australia	Jorunn Friis Reset Organisational secretary, Women’s Front Norway
Helen Pringle, Ph.D. Senior Lecturer in the School of Social Sciences, University of New South Wales Australia	Seyran Duran Chairman of the Kurdistan Women’s Association in Sweden Sweden	Ruth Nordström President of Scandinavian Human Rights Lawyers Sweden
Rebecca Ahlstrand Attorney, Scandinavian Human Rights Lawyers Sweden	Maria Mies, Ph.D. Founding member of FINRRAGE (Feminist International Network of Resistance to Reproductive and Genetic Engineering) Germany	Shagufta Omar President, Pakistan Chapter of the International Muslim Women UnionGeneral Secretary, Women’s Aid Trust Pakistan
Mia Fahlén, M.D. Senior Consultant Surgeon Sweden	Ana Reis, M.D. Feminist physician, former representative of FINRRAGE Brazil	Viviane Teitelbaum President, European Women’s Lobby Belgium
Myfanwy Cummerford Donor conceived advocate and Founder of TangledWebs Australia	Isla MacGregor Tasmanian Public Interest Advocate, Whistleblowers Tasmania Australia	Simone Andrea Survivor of Prostitution, Director of NorMAC Australia
Martine Segalen Professor Emeritus in Ethnology, Université Paris Ouest France	Genevieve Couraud President of the Observatoire Droits des Femmes CG-13President of ECVF, Politicians Against Violence Against Women France	Yvette Roudy Former Minister for Women’s Rights France
Irene Tabellion President, La Lune, L’Association Strasbourgeoise de Femmes Homosexuelles France	Marie-Josèphe Bonnet, Ph.D. Historian of Women, Arts, and the Second World War France	Anne-Yvonne Le Dain Deputy, Socialist Party France
Elfriede Hammerl Journalist and Writer Austria	Nora Tenenbaum Representative, Coordination of Associations for the Right to Abortion and Contraception France	Maya Surduts Representative Coordination of Associations for the Right to Abortion and Contraception France
Nnenna Chikezie Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development Nigeria	Alice Schwarzer Editor of EMMA and co-founder of Mouvement de Liberation des Femmes (MLF) Germany	Nathalie Heinich Sociologist and Research director at Le Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) France
Monette Vacquin Psychoanalyst and author of Frankenstein et les Délires de la Raison and Main Basse sur les Vivants France	José Bové Member of the European Parliament (Green Group), Former Chairman of Confederation Paysanne / Via Campesina, and Founding member of ATTAC France France	Emma Sahlén Grip Press Officer, National Organization for Women’s and Girls Shelters in Sweden, RoksSweden
Arun Dohle Executive Director of Against Child Trafficking Germany	Roelie Post Author of Romania for Export Only: the Untold Story of the Romanian Orphans The Netherlands	Anjali Pawar Director, Sakhee Pune India
Gita Ramaswamy Concerned activist for child rights India	Jin Vilsgaard Contact person for ACT Denmark	Kat Pinder Sex trade survivor activist and Member, Amnesty International against pimps and buyers Australia
Martine Billard Deputy of Paris 2002-2012, secretary of the delegation for women’s rights of the National Assembly 2007-2012, author of a proposition of law against violence against women in 2007 with Marie-George Buffet France	Gloria Casas Vila Spanish/Swiss activist against prostitution and surrogacy	Etienne Dujardin Lawyer Belgium
Sophie Heine, Ph.D. Senior Research Fellow at Egmont, Royal Institute for International Relations Belgium	Josina Kamerling Head of Regulatory Outreach Belgium	Michel Ghins Action for family, President Belgium
Xavier Lombard Companies founder Belgium	Bernard Michelet Companies administrator Belgium	Tara Hewitt LGBT Activist United Kingdom

Organizational Signatories

• Swedish Women Doctor’s Society (Sweden)
• Roks, The National Organization for Women’s Shelter and Young Women’s Shelter (Sweden)
• Swedish Women’s Lobby (Sweden)
• Kurdistan Women’s Association in Sweden (Sweden)
• Women’s Organisation’s Committee on Alcohol and Drug Issues (Sweden)
• European Women’s Lobby (Belgium)
• LeCorp (France)
• La Lune, L’Association Strasbourgeoise de Femmes Homosexuelles (France)
• Coordination of Associations for the Right to Abortion and Contraception (France)
• Cercle d’Etude de Réformes Féministes (CERF) (France)
• EMMA (Germany)
• Against Child Trafficking (ACT) (The Netherlands)
• Sakhee Pune (India)
• The Center for Bioethics and Culture (USA)
• FINRRAGE (Australia)
• Women’s Bioethics Alliance (Australia)
• Scandinavian Human Rights Lawyers (Norway)
• Se non ora quando – Libere (Italy)
• Generazione Famiglia (Italy)
• Make Mothers Matter (France)
• Feministas Mexicanas contra Vientres de Alquiler (Femmva) (Mexico)
• Stop Vientres de Alquiler (Spain)
• Abolish Surrogacy (Australia)
• Women’s Liberation Front (USA)
• Breaking Free (USA)
• OBJECT (UK)
• Nordic Model Now! (UK)

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