Posted on 07/30/2015 2:05:13 PM PDT by Red Badger
America and Spanish man claim Thai woman reneged when she found out their status
In the midst of an ugly battle in which two homosexual men are trying to bring a girl out of Thailand to rear her in Spain, the Southeast Asian country is proceeding to ban foreigners’ use of surrogate mothers there.
The gay fathers’ case is one of several contentious cases, albeit the highest profile, that has led to the legislative action.
Fusion gave some of the background:
A child born in Thailand by surrogate last year was left behind after he was born with Down’s syndrome. It’s still unclear whether that was because the couple refused to take him following the diagnosis or if the surrogate mother refused to let him go, but in the fallout the Thai government decided to ban the country’s “womb-for-hire” industry where they saw many risks for Thai surrogate mothers and children.
In another case, a Japanese man fathered at least 13 children by Thai surrogates and then left them living with nannies in the country. Local police raided an apartment and found nine of the babies with nannies and a pregnant surrogate, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Twelve of his children born through surrogacy are now in protective custody, and he is being investigated by authorities for possible human trafficking, the Guardian reports.
The new rules takes effect this week.
An American man, Bud Lake, and his Spanish boyfriend, Manuel Santos, have already used a surrogate in Thailand to have a baby girl. The woman bore a child that was engendered from the sperm of one of the men and a separate egg donor. They say their daughter has been granted American citizenship but cannot leave Thailand without a passport and permission from the Thai government, according to NPR.
Again, according to Fusion:
The surrogate, Patidta Kusolsang, who they found through an agency called the New Life Global Network, had agreed give them the child after she was born, but apparently changed her mind at the last minute, ABC reports. The couple think Kusolsang changed her mind when she found out they’re gay. They say they’re not leaving Thailand until they can bring their daughter back with them.
"This case is just one of a number of cases that continue to evidence that the entire practice of surrogacy is bad for all those involved," said Christopher T. White, director of research and education at the Center for Bioethics and Culture. "It's buttressed on the coercion of women, particularly poorer ones, who very often aren't fully informed of what they're getting into when they sign up for the practice. The child in question then becomes involved in a tug-of-war between two parties, neither of whom necessarily has his or her best interests in mind, but instead, are motivated by their own desires."
The Thailand case, White added, shows that "regardless of how much one might think that regulation is the best solution, at the end of the day it doesn't work."
"And when something is morally wrong, you don't regulate it," he said. "You prohibit it."
it’s transliterated colloquial usage !
“it’s transliterated colloquial usage !”
Goo hen mung, coi tay gon mung! I hah roi.
pahsaa Lao fang mai pben
“pahsaa Lao fang mai pben”
Gin som dam sai pla raa, ben, Bo?
I always had a hard time understanding the over-60 farmer crowd out in the villages near the Lao border. Especially when they were chewing a mouthful of betel-nut and lime paste. It was more like a grunt and a red grin. But I found them fascinating and they found me amusing, as I was just a twenty-something.
pben ! gin polamai dee kwa
oh? khun pben tahaan samai Vietnam reu? tengngan kap pooying Thai reuplauw ?
“oh? khun pben tahaan samai Vietnam reu? tengngan kap pooying Thai reuplauw ?”
No, not entirely. Me Peace Corps, 1977. Graduated Virginia Tech in horticulture and didn’t have a farm. So out to the rice paddies in Thailand I went. Had a good time, made friends with a number of farmers. 2 years as a volunteer and a bit more than a year working with Laotian and Cambodian refugees with the U.S Embassy. Mostly with the Hmong refugees in Ban Vinai camp in Loei province.
I did snag a Thai gal. Our 37th anniversary is coming up later this year. We have a new house in Loei that I have to see. Nothing special.
Interesting thing, though. A couple of my mates in my Peace Corps group learned to speak and read and write Thai amazingly fast, like 6 weeks. Others foreigners I met had perfected their Lao dialect. One (who almost became a Catholic priest) could intelligently discuss Buddhist philosophy with anyone, even drunken soldiers guarding the refugee camp. He could get on a phone and fool my landlady (a “Khun Ying”) into thinking he was Thai.
Learning a bit of Hmong language and working in the refugee camp was a trip. They were so far out there ... Seeing long-haired tribesmen coming up from across the Mekong River in the early morning hours and piling up their guns was an experience. U.S. Congressmen came by to visit, as did Joan Baez. Weird stuff.
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