On Friday, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni took charge on surrogacy in the Italian parliament when it was discussing a bill drafted by Brothers of Italy- a party led by Meloni, to prohibit Italians from having a baby via surrogacy in countries where it is legal – such as the United States and Canada.
Parenting via surrogacy is already declared illegal in Italy, where one can be penalized with jail and fines, but the right-wing coalition of Giorgia Meloni has sworn to impose an even draconian ban on it as part of its conservative agenda. On Friday, Italy’s prime minister urged parliament to pass a bill to prosecute those who go out of Italy for it. The bill has already been approved by Italy’s lower house Chamber and now at the Senate, with receiving a lot of criticisms by rights groups and some opposition politicians who see the recent bill as a way to target LGBTQ people.
Meloni’s take on surrogacy
In an event in Rome, Meloni said “No one can convince me that it is an act of freedom to rent one’s womb, no one can convince me that it is an act of love to consider children as an over-the-counter product in a supermarket,“. “I still consider the practice of uterus renting to be inhuman, I support the proposed law making it a universal crime.” she added.
Meloni said to a conference – ‘For a Young Europe: Demographic Transition, Environment, Future’ that “I continue to believe that surrogacy is an inhuman practice, I support the bill that makes it a universal crime.”
Ex-foreign minister Emma Bonino commented to daily Corriere della Sera this week that “The issue cannot be tackled with universal prohibition, but with regulation that balances the rights at stake,”.
Meloni’s war against Surrogacy
Estonia recently joined the ranks of European countries legalizing gay marriage and granting equal parental rights to same-sex couples, marking progress for LGBTQ+ rights in the region. However, this advancement has also sparked a conservative backlash in some countries, reminiscent of similar trends seen in the United States.
Katrin Hugendubel, advocacy director for ILGA-Europe, noted that while legal strides for LGBTQ+ rights continue, there is a concerning trend of right-leaning governments pushing conservative agendas across Europe. Among the rising conservative leaders is Italy’s PM, who has distanced herself from her party’s neo-fascist origins and taken a strong stance on issues like immigration and traditional family values.
The Italian PM opposes the legalization of gay marriage in Italy, citing concerns about national, religious, and family identity. She has also been vocal in her opposition to surrogacy, emphasizing the protection of women’s bodies and children’s rights. This stance aligns with broader European discomfort with surrogacy as a commercial practice, with even Pope Francis advocating for a universal ban on surrogacy to prevent exploitation.
Despite these conservative shifts, advocates like Hugendubel remain hopeful for continued progress in LGBTQ+ rights in Europe, even as they navigate challenges posed by the rise of far-right ideologies in some countries.
Legal experts suggest that criminalizing the act of seeking surrogates abroad would surpass any existing regulations within the European Union.
Eugenia Maria Roccella, Italy’s minister for the family, recognized that a ban on international surrogacy in Italy would disproportionately affect same-sex couples, despite only a small percentage of foreign-surrogacy clients in Italy being in same-sex relationships. Heterosexual couples utilizing surrogates overseas may not face immediate scrutiny upon returning to Italy, as they can present birth certificates showing parents of different genders. Roccella indicated that the law could act more as a deterrent for them.
While acknowledging that she knows same-sex couples who are excellent parents, Roccella emphasized that parenthood is not considered an inherent right for everyone. The Italian government’s communication to mayors regarding a court ruling against two fathers seeking to register their child’s birth certificate with both their names was portrayed as a mere advisory by Roccella. However, legal scholars argue that the influence of legal precedent in Italy differs from that in the United States, suggesting that the government’s notice to mayors prevented cities and towns from continuing to register children with same-sex parents.
Angelo Schillaci, a law professor at Sapienza University of Rome, asserted that the ideological foundation of the Italian government is based on the belief that a child cannot have two parents of the same sex. In a current legal case in Padua, a state prosecutor is seeking to invalidate 33 birth certificates dating back to 2017 that identify pairs of mothers. One of the affected mothers, Irene Amoruso, faces the possibility of her name being removed from her non-biological daughter’s birth certificate, with potential changes to the child’s last name as well. The process for reinstating rights would involve a lengthy and expensive stepchild adoption procedure.