Kathmandu (AsiaNews) – The lack of a proper legislative framework has helped Nepal become a major centre for surrogacy in South Asia.
Taking advantage of the legislative void, several private clinics have been equipped with the technology needed to implant fertilised eggs from foreign couples into local women.
Several foreign companies are interested in the Nepali market, because of lower costs than in the West.
According to Nepal’s Health Ministry, when mother, father and the surrogate mother are foreigners and they want to have the child born in Nepal, they can do so upon payment of a fee.
However, some experts believe that surrogacy without a proper legislative framework can lead to several problems.
For Family Health Division chief Pushpa Chaudhary, “The practice should be banned until a law is adopted.” Indeed, "What if a woman dies during childbirth?” she asks. “All this can turn into a great evil if we cannot monitor it through a law."
In addition, "Poverty is widespread in our society,” she adds. “Oppressed by poverty, many women are ready to become surrogate mothers for money. Many husbands push pressure on their wives to do this because they can get up to half a million rupees” (about US$ 5,000).
“This can cause many problems and health risks. For instance, in the case of twins, couples may take only one,” Pushpa explained. Because of this, Thailand banned the practice.
More broadly in South Asia, surrogacy is very risky because extreme poverty can lead to abuse. This is what happened when some countries in the region (including Vietnam) legalised kidney transplants. Many poor people felt compelled to sell their organs to survive.
According to the World Health Organisation, at least 10,000 surgical operations are performed every year for the purpose of illegal organs sale.