Woman gives birth to grandchild
A Japanese woman in her 50s gave birth to a child
she had carried for her daughter, who was unable to conceive as she had her womb
removed due to cancer, an obstetrician said on Sunday.
A Japanese woman in her 50s gave birth to a child she had carried for her daughter, who was unable to conceive as she had her womb removed due to cancer, an obstetrician said on Sunday.
The case is likely to further stir debate in Japan about births by surrogate mothers, which both the government and a key medical association oppose.
Kyodo news agency said it was the first time in Japan that a woman has acted as a surrogate mother for the child of her daughter — effectively delivering her grandchild.
Netsu said the baby — whose gender has not been revealed — was first registered as a child of the surrogate mother and later adopted by the daughter and her husband.
The Japanese Justice Ministry takes a position that the woman who gives birth, not the biological mother, is the mother of the child, which critics say is a stance that ignores the interest of the child.
The issue came into the spotlight after a Japanese celebrity couple had twins through a surrogate mother and was denied their request to register the children as their own. They are fighting their case in court.
The capabilities of modern medicine coming into conflict with mores that probably run a century or two behind reality. Though it isn’t always the case, we have a government coming down on the side opposing science. And family values.
Posted: Mon - October 16, 2006 at 06:41 AM