7 years down the drain!

So now singles are going to be excluded from the new ART guidelines, with some suggesting that this should be made broader to include all international clients ( this is a suggestion only, but it is out there)

What is going on with us in India? Seven years of talks, meeting, debates from all sectors including social. legal medical paramedical government all trashed by one report from a cash rich foreign funded organisation to stop surrogacy in India.

The media is filled with reports of what will and will not be included in the new draft proposal; what is lacking is again any consultation with the field - why bother when decisions have already been made.

Planning Commission member Syeda Hameed has a close relationship with a number of NGO's and has been clear of her bias towards surrogacy and is one of the reasons why a dodgy report with  questionable methods is being touted as evidence. She is willing to promote the 'expertise' of organisations such as SAMA, but refuses to acknowledge that others in the field may have equally valid views.

Now we have a quote from DGHS Dr. Jagdish Prasad  ( a cardiologist) suggesting that lines must be tighten, confirming the ban on singles and suggesting that the ban should exclude all foreigners, with the main reason being surrogates are being abused. Further, we don't know what happens to the children??

Really, we don't know? Have you thought about asking? Even the most basic search of surrogacy in India shows links to 100's of blogs from happy families, sharing their joy to the world. The learned Doctor is basing his assumptions on "alleged" incidents that may have occurred, but are again being reported as fact. So, why now, do we have a situation in which a cash rich foreign funded organisations such as CSR has the influence to deny any kind of progress.

Seven years of consultation, discussion, mediation, in which India was moving towards being a world leader down the drain. We now have increased the panic across the world; India is not stable; India cannot be trusted to change the rules; India continues to hold our embryos/our children hostage.

We promote poor research, mixing allegations' and hearsay as facts. We have staff from these cash rich foreign funded organisations being promoted and asked to travel across the world to share their findings. That these countries have their own surrogacy programmes is a happy coincidence.

So the question remains, why are we, as Indians, prepared to sabotage ourselves so brilliantly. More importantly who has been financing all this "research", and why, now, is this the only evidence that is up for discussion?

What is happening to Surrogacy in India ?

What does it mean when new guidelines are being made with no consultation with the field; with the patients? How can one body have so much influence, but no actual evidence?

This is what is happening in India today. Recent reports have come out suggesting that the new guidelines will include a provision that a surrogate mother can only give birth up to three times including her own children.

There is no evidence that women who give birth more than three times are of greater risk than those who give birth four times. So why this arbitrary number? Why are agencies such as CSR suggesting this? Please look at the attached chart: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_states_ranking_by_household_size

 So, are all women in India more at risk? What is the scientific basis of this statement on which they are pressurizing the Government of India. Have they medically examined women before and after surrogacy?

Of greater concern is that up until now, most reputable agencies have been focused on choosing surrogates who have ended their families and are now wanting to help others. With this new guideline, this will change

The CSR has been in the media recently, reporting on the worst of surrogacy, adding innuendo and hearsay as actual evidence of what is happening in our world: their bias against surrogacy in evident. A quick look at their website finds funding from countries which are in competition with India for the medical tourist dollar.

What is difficult to tolerate is that this is being viewed as the norm and not, at best, evidence of bad practice by a few. This cannot be allowed to continue.

What we and others are asking for is equal representation at the table; one biased view does not represent surrogacy practice across India. Where are the representatives from the doctors and clinics who demonstrate good practice? Where are the patients who use this service?

Will we end up with another set of dodgy guidelines, based on some innuendo from one biased agency which leads to the chaos we now have? Why is the GOI falling for such tactics?

Embryos in one country, parents in another not being able to use or access embryos or treatment; couples who do meet the criteria are being denied visas for weeks and months on end on a whim and the FRRO holding patients who have met all the criteria and done nothing wrong hostage for days and weeks because they can.

We have a chance to get this right. To undertake broad consultation with all parties, to identify good practice and base the guidelines on evidence. Let’s not let this opportunity pass.

GOI take a stand.