•fertilisation of a maximum of two eggs from a single treatment cycle;
•prohibition of embryo freezing;
•prohibition of surrogacy (that is when a woman carries out a pregnancy with an embryo for another intended parent).
•the quantity of fertilised eggs can go up to three in the first cycle and five in subsequent ones;
•a maximum of two embryos can be transferred to the woman, with the others being frozen;
•if frozen embryos are unutilised by their parents, they are given to the state to begin the process of embryo adoption to others;
•altruistic surrogacy be introduced by separate Legal Notice.
It’s probably a truism that wherever there is life, there is a huge controversy and a hot debate. I’ve observed this in Australia and as expected is happening in Malta too.
Parts of their concern are also mine, however another part I feel does not have a solid foundation or is based on a fear of what might or might not happen, and finally there is a declaration which is an opinion that is debatable.
One of the main objection of the academics is that many frozen embryos would remain unwanted, as considered inferior and a higher age than those transferred fresh to the woman’s womb, and we’d end up with an embryo orphanage. I don’t think this fear is realistic. Here in Australia, where IVF has long been carried out and regulated for years, there is quite a demand for frozen embryos, from heterosexual and homosexual/lesbian couples and even single persons, especially females. The biggest problem a parent has when wishing to donate embryos to someone else is that of the choice of the best intended person from a queue, rather than not finding anybody!
Therefore the declaration that the government’s proposals will ‘invariably and inevitably, create a surplus of embryos’ seems to me to be an exaggeration.
The academics also mentioned the subject of surrogacy, saying that women would become commoditised, that parenthood would become trivialised and maternity fragmented as an offspring might have up to three mothers. This latter comment is clearly true, but I’m surprised by the other comments. I would ask, have the academics ever in fact talked to a surrogate mother before signing the declaration?
Over the years I’ve met several women who have carried out surrogacy. I’ve always been impressed by the deep thought that went into what they were planning to do, with their determination to help couples having fertility difficulties, even when taking a big risk to their own health and a significant disruption to their families, all while acknowledging and accepting that the child being carried is not their own.
I marvel that people do exist in this world who have this huge sense of personal sacrifice for others, an attitude please forgive me for describing as Christian.
The surrogate mothers I know or know about have a good relationship with the child they brought into the world and with the parents they have helped to form a family. The child with time is provided with information about what happened, and has the opportunity to see, communicate with and meet the surrogate mother as much as possible, not less than a traditional extended family. Quite opposite to being ‘strangers’ as written by the academics.
Naturally, not all stories end up positively, and the academics provided one example of this and I know of others. What are we trying to convey, that traditional families are problem-free?
I think it is futile to continue maintaining the model of the Holy Family as the only acceptable family model for society. This model has nothing wrong, but the truth is that today other family models exist, and these deserve respect and a legal framework as much as traditional families. It is fine for society to have rules which after consideration it decides need to be there, but trying to stop the clock on social progress being a response to a social need, will not fly.
There were other points of criticism with which I agreed, amongst others that the government wants to decriminalise surrogacy by simple Legal Notice and not through a parliamentary process. I think the subject requires a more intensive scrutiny than that.
Also the point made that oocytes (the female egg) could be frozen as an alternative to freezing embryos, is a good one for those who choose to do so.
I augur all concerned to take a deep breath!
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•fertilizzazzjoni massimu ta’ żewġ bajdiet f’ċiklu wieħed ta’ trattament;
•il-projbizzjoni tal-iffriżar tal-embrijuni;
•il-projbizzjoni tas-surrogazzjoni (jiġifieri fejn mara ġġorrtagħmel tqala b’ embrijun intenzjonat għal ġenitur ieħor).
•l-ammont ta’ bajdiet fertilizzati jista’ jitla’ għal tlieta fl-ewwel ċiklu u ħamsa f’oħrajn;
•massimu ta’ żewġ embrijuni jiġu ttrasferiti ġewwa l-mara, l-oħrajn jiġu ffriżati;
•l-embrijuniu ffriżati jekk ma jintużawx mill-ġenituri tagħhom, jingħataw lill-iSstat li jibda proċess ta’ adozzjoni tal-embrijuni lil ħaddieħor;
•is-surrogazzjoni altruista tiġi introdotta b’regolamenti (Legal Notice) separati.
Kull fejn tidħol il-ħajja, jikun hemm kontroversja sħiħa u dibattitu sħun. Dan osservajtu fl-Awstralja, u bħal mhu mistenni qiegħed isir f’Malta wkoll.
Parti mit-tħassib tagħhom huwa tiegħi ukoll, madankollu parti oħra jidhirli li m’għandux bażi soda jew huwa bbażat fuq biża’ ta’ xi ħaġa li tista’ sseħħ jew fil-fatt ma sseħx, u fl-aħħarnett hemm stqarrija li hija opinjoni li hija dibattibbli.
Waħda mill-oġġezzjonijiet prinċipali tal-akkademiċi hi li ħafna mill-embrijuni ffriżati jispiċċa ma jridhom ħadd, għax meqjusa inferjuri u ta’ età iktar għolja minn dawk li jkunu ttrasferiti ġo ġuf ta’ mara mingħajr iffriżar, u nispiċċaw b’orfanotrofju tal-embrijuni. Jien din il-biża’ ma narahiex realistika. Hawnhekk fl-Awstralja, fejn l-IVF ilu jsir u rregolamentat is-snin, hawn domanda mhux żgħira għall-embrijuni ffri\ati, minn koppji eterosesswali, omosesswali/lesbjani u anke persuni waħedhom, speċjalment in-nisa. L-ikbar problema li jsib ġenitur li jixtieq jagħmel donazzjoni ta’ embrijuni lil ħaddieħor hija dik tal-għażla tal-aħjar ġenituri prospettivi minn kju, mhux li ma jsib lil ħadd!.
Għalhekk, id-dikjarazzjoni li l-proposti tal-gvern sejrin ‘invarjabbilment u inevitabbilment, jikkrejaw surplus ta’ embrijuni’ naraha esaġerata.
L-akkademiċi jittrattaw ukoll is-suġġett tas-surrogazzjoni, jgħidu li n-nisa jispiċċaw ikkommodotizzati, li tkun ġenitur jispiċċa ttrivjalizzat, u l-maternità fframmentata għax wild jista’ jkollu sa tliet ommijiet. Dan tal-aħħar huwa minnu, imma niskanta bil-kummenti l-oħrata’ trivjalizzazzjoni u kkommodifikazzjoni. Jien nistaqsi, dawn l-akkademiċi qatt fil-fatt tkellmu ma’ omm surrogata qabel ma ffirmaw din id-dikjarazzjoni?
Jien ngħid għalija matul is-snin iltqajt ma’ diversi nisa li għamluha ta’ surrogata. Dejjem bqajt impressjonat bis-sens ta’ dedikazzjoni tagħhombil-ħsieb profond tagħhom fuq dak li kienu sejrin jagħmlu, bid-determinazzjoni li jgħinu lill-koppji li għandhom diffikultajiet ta’ fertilità, anki b’riskju kbir għas-saħħa tagħhom u skomdu kbir għall-familja tagħhom, bl-għarfien u l-aċċettar li t-tarbija li qiegħdin iġorru mhix tagħhom.
Nimmeravilja ruħi li hawn nies f’din id-dinja li għandhom dan is-sens kbir ta’ sagrifiċċju personali għal ħaddieħor, attitudni li ppermettuli nsejħilha Nisranija.
In-nisa surrogati li naf jew naf bihom jien għandhom relazzjoni tajba mat-tarbija li ġabu fid-dinja u mal-ġenituri li għenuhom isawru familja. It-tarbija maż-żmien tingħata informazzjoni fuq dak li ġara, u jkollha l-opportunità li tara, tikkomunika u tiltaqa’ mal-omm surrogata tagħha safejn u sakemm ikun possibbli, xejn inqas minn familja estiża tradizzjonali. Altru milli jkunu ‘stranġieri’ kif kitbu l-akkademiċi.
Naturalment, mhux l-istejjer kollha jintemmu daqshekk pożittivi, u l-akkademiċi taw eżempju wieħed ta’ dan, u jien naf b’oħrajn. X’qed nippruvaw ngħidu, li l-familji tradizzjonali m’għandhomx problemi tagħhom ukoll?
Jien naraha inutli li nkomplu nżommu l-mudell tas-Sagra Familja bħala l-uniku mudell aċċettabbli għal familji fis għas-soċjetà. Dan il-mudell assolutament m’għandu xejn ħażin, imma l-verità hi li llum hawn forom oħra ta’ familji, u dawn jistħoqqilhom rispett u qafas legali daqs familji tradizzjonali. Tajjeb li jkun hemm ir-regoli li s-soċjetà tasal biex taqbel li għandhom ikunu hemm, iżda li tipprova twaqqaf l-arloġġ tal-iżvilupp soċjali mmexxi minn ħtieġa soċjali, mhux se taħdem.
Kien hemm fejn qbilt mal-kritika tal-akkademiċi, fosthom li l-gvern irid jiddekriminalizza s-surrogazzjoni sempliċement b’regolamenti u mhux bi proċess parlamentari. Naħseb li s-suġġett jirrikjedi skrutinju iktar intensiv minn daqshekk. Ukoll l-iffriżar tal-ooċit (bajda tal-mara), bħala alternattiva għall-iffriżar tal-embrijun, hija waħda tajba għal min jixtieq jagħmel hekk.
Jien nawgura li lkoll nieħdu nifs qawwi ’l ġewwa!
1Embryo Protection Act 2012
2An Act to amend the Embryo Protection Act, Cap. 524
3Embryo Protection (Amendment) Bill; Bill No. 38 (2018); Matters of Concern
4Embryo Protection Act 2012
5An Act to amend the Embryo Protection Act, Cap. 524
6Embryo Protection (Amendment) Bill; Bill No. 38 (2018); Matters of Concern
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