Fratelli d’Italia wants to punish surrogacy even when this practice is done abroad. Giorgia Meloni’s party introduced a bill that was filed in Parliament a few weeks ago, as we quote the document called “reproductive tourism” or “the phenomenon in which Italian infertile couples use the technique of surrogacy”. in a foreign country where the same is allowed”.
Let’s try to better understand what we are talking about. For others, surrogacy or pregnancy refers to a form of assisted reproduction in which a woman maintains a pregnancy on behalf of a couple or other people. This is a practice that is expressly prohibited in our legal system, such that the “medical reproductive regulations” act of 2004 includes the provision “anyone who creates, organizes or promotes the commercialization of gametes, embryos or surrogacy in any form”. punishable by “three months to two years’ imprisonment and a fine of 600,000 to one million euros”.
The point made by the Brothers of Italy is that this ban “applies only at the national level, while on the other hand such practices are legal in both European and non-European countries, especially India and the United States”. On the other hand, Fdi argues that the law in question was written “when reproductive tourism did not yet exist” and thus “leaves a regulatory loophole that provides nothing regarding the legitimacy or otherwise of uterine surrogacy and more general maternity leave”. performed by Italian citizens abroad”.
The bill insists that courts “cannot be left alone” in prosecuting such situations. Therefore, according to the Melonians, a paragraph in the 2004 law needs to be amended, stating that penalties “will be applied even if the crime was committed abroad.” But is it possible to impose a penalty for an application made in a country where it is legal? The parliamentarians who signed the proposal argue that legal support would be Article 7 of the penal code, which “clearly establishes the penalty for certain crimes, even if committed abroad, and makes legal reservations about it”. From this perspective, however, the legal process promises to be complex.
This is not Fdi’s first attempt to pass a law banning assisted reproduction even across national borders. Already in 2018, a nearly identical bill was introduced, and just two years ago, Giorgia Meloni launched a petition to make “a womb for rent” a “universal crime”, declaring surrogacy “a disgusting thing”.
Source: Today IT
Emma Fitzgerald is an accomplished political journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in political science and international relations, she has a deep understanding of the political landscape and the forces that shape it.
