英字新聞

August 09, 2014
EDITORIAL: Down syndrome surrogacy case a cautionary tale for Japan
（社説）代理出産　安易な利用が生む悲劇

In a shocking act of trampling on human rights and degrading the dignity of life, an Australian couple has abandoned a child born with Down syndrome to a Thai surrogate they hired. The boy is one of twins carried by the Thai woman, and the couple has returned home from Thailand with the other infant, a healthy girl.
　母子の人権と尊厳を踏みにじる行為に驚かされる。
　オーストラリア人夫婦がタイで代理出産を依頼した。ダウン症の男児を含む双子が生まれたが、夫婦はその男児だけ引き取らずに帰国した。

The couple’s selfish act has provoked international criticism. We can find some solace in the fact that the Thai woman said she would raise the boy on her own and has been receiving donations from around the world.
　その身勝手な振るまいに国際的な批判が起きている。救われるのは、産んだ女性が男児を育てると表明し、世界中から支援が寄せられたことだ。

This tale has brought to the fore some deep-rooted problems inherent in the practice of gestational surrogacy, in which a woman becomes pregnant with a fertilized egg from a couple and gives birth on behalf of the wife.
　このケースは第三者の女性に受精卵を移植し、妻に代わって出産させる代理出産がはらむ問題の根深さを突きつけている。

Pregnancy and childbirth inevitably entail risks. It sometimes happens that a surrogate mother begins to suffer serious complications after giving birth, or in worse cases even dies.
　妊娠・出産にリスクはつきものだ。代理母の女性が重い後遺症を負ったり、死に至ったりすることもある。

The fundamental question is whether people should be allowed to impose such burdens on others in order to have their own children.
「自分の子」をもつために、そんな負担を他人に背負わせることが許されるかという本質的な問いがある。

Many cases of surrogacy involve a monetary payment to the surrogate mother.
　また、いま行われている代理出産の多くは報酬を伴う。

The way people in wealthy nations hire surrogate mothers in poor countries smacks of exploitation based on economic disparities.
豊かな国から貧しい国へ代理母を求める動きには、経済格差を背景にした搾取の性格が否めない。

It is hard to see the whole picture of international surrogacy, and there may be other cases similar to the one in Thailand.
　国際的な代理出産の全体像は見えにくく、同様のケースがほかにもあるかもしれない。

There are many ways in which surrogacy contracts end up in serious trouble, such as the surrogate mother refusing to part with the baby or cases in which it is later found that the child has no blood relationship with the couple who hired the surrogate mother.
代理母が赤ちゃんを手放さなかったり、引き渡した子と依頼人夫婦に血縁がないとのちにわかったり、トラブルの芽は無数だ。

Surrogacy is far from unknown in Japan. More than 20 years have passed since Japanese couples started hiring surrogate mothers in other countries to have children.
　よその国のこととも言っていられない。日本人夫婦が海外で代理出産をしだして２０年以上たつ。

Initially, most of such Japanese couples sought surrogate mothers in the United States, but now Asian nations like Thailand and India are more popular because of lower costs.
当初の米国から、報酬が安いタイ、インドなどアジア諸国に行き先が移っている。

In 2008, a case came to light in which a child born to an Indian surrogate hired by a Japanese man had not been allowed to leave India.
　０８年には、日本人男性が依頼した代理出産によりインドで生まれた子どもが、出国できなくなったケースが表面化した。

Further complicating the surrogacy situation in this nation is the fact that Japan trails other countries in regulations on surrogate childbirths.
　深刻なのは、代理出産の規制で日本が大きく遅れていることだ。

The government has been trying to ban surrogacy since the 2000s, but has so far failed to submit proposed legislation to the Diet.
政府は２０００年代以降、禁じる考えだったが、法案を出せずにきた。

The government’s expert panel as well as an academic society have called for a ban. Debate on the issue should not be delayed any further.
禁止は政府の専門委員会、学会などが打ち出しているが、これ以上、議論を遅らせるべきではない。

It is adults who adopt surrogacy as a means to have their children. But it is always children who suffer when such arrangements go awry. The rules concerning the issue should be designed to protect the well-being of children born under surrogacy arrangements.
　代理出産という手段をとるのは親の都合だが、出産前後に何か問題が起こると、窮地に立つのは常に子どもだ。子の側に立ったルールを求めたい。

Even if legislation banning surrogacy is established, however, it will still be difficult to prevent all surrogacy deals arranged overseas.
　ただし、たとえ立法がされても、海外での実施を防ぎきるのは難しいだろう。

Japan should try to work with other governments to investigate the issue more deeply and develop measures to ensure that surrogate mothers and children born to them will not find themselves in predicaments that spell hardship.
生まれる子どもや代理母が窮地に陥らないよう、関係政府間で調査し、対策づくりで協力できないか。

Some lawmakers of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party are campaigning for the submission of a comprehensive bill concerning reproductive medicine to the autumn extraordinary Diet session.
　自民党内には、秋の臨時国会に生殖医療をめぐる包括的な法案提出をめざす動きがある。

The draft bill would allow surrogacy for only certain cases, such as women who do not have a uterus.
But there is no public consensus on key surrogacy-related issues. Debate on the matter should be based on both accurate scientific knowledge and values shared widely among Japanese citizens.
　素案は代理出産を子宮がない場合など条件つきで認めているが、社会の議論は追いついていない。科学的知見や市民の価値観に根ざした検討が必要だ。

--The Asahi Shimbun, Aug. 9