| Brussels, 19 November 2025 |
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A day before International Children’s Rights Day, a major conference entitled “Surrogacy: An Ethical and Political Challenge for Europe” was held today at the European Parliament, bringing together Members of the European Parliament, international experts, human rights organisations, and individuals directly affected by surrogacy. The purpose of the event was to examine the ethical, legal, and political implications of surrogacy in Europe and to assess how the European Union can protect the rights of women and children in the face of a rapidly expanding global industry. A European Event at the Heart of the Institutions The event was organised by Members of the European Parliament Paolo Inselvini, Bert-Jan Ruissen, and Stephen Nikola Bartulica. The opening session featured interventions from Laurence Trochu, Jadwiga Wiśniewska, Carlo Fidanza, and Nicola Procaccini, Co-Chair of the ECR Group. Italian Leadership One of the most notable remarks came from Eugenia Roccella, Italian Minister for Family, Equal Opportunities and Birth Rate, who emphasised the need for a human-rights-based approach rather than one guided by market dynamics or individual desire. Italy is today one of the leading nations in the global movement towards the universal abolition of surrogacy. The organisation of this conference at the European Parliament reflects this political and legal momentum. A Key Intervention from the United Nations The conference welcomed Reem Alsalem, United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls. She reiterated the conclusions of her recent report to the United Nations General Assembly, in which surrogacy, in all forms, including so-called “altruistic” surrogacy, is recognised as a form of violence against women. She called on States to work toward its universal abolition through the creation of an international treaty. A Rapidly Expanding Global Market: A Critical Challenge for the EU Experts highlighted the exponential growth of the global surrogacy market, valued at 22.4 billion USD in 2024 and projected to reach 201.8 billion USD by 2034 (Global Market Insights). This expansion currently outpaces legal safeguards and risks creating a de facto transnational recognition of surrogacy contracts through practice rather than democratic decision-making. Civil Society Speaks with One Voice The panel brought together organisations from Italy, France, Belgium, Ireland, Croatia, the Netherlands, Spain, and the United States, united in the defence of the fundamental rights of women and children. Among them was the Casablanca Experts Group, represented by its spokesperson Olivia Maurel, herself born through surrogacy, and by its Executive Director, Dr Bernard Garcia, legal scholar. Speakers shared a principle unanimously affirmed throughout the event: “There is no such thing as a right to a child. But every child has fundamental rights, and these rights are neither negotiable, transferable, nor commercialisable.” A Clear Call to the European Union Participants urged the EU to: • Ensure that the European Certificate of Parenthood does not enable the de facto legalisation of surrogacy in Member States where it is prohibited; • Protect the child’s right to identity, origins, and true parentage; • Resist all forms of commodification of the human body and the child; • Support the development of a binding international treaty abolishing surrogacy, in line with the recommendations of the UN Special Rapporteur. Press contact: Bernard Garcia, Executive Director of the NGO “Casablanca Declaration” – WhatsApp : +33 (0) 6 58 43 69 71 |