Greece, an increasingly progressive nation regarding LGBTQ+ rights, is facing a proposed legislative change that could restrict surrogacy options for gay men. Justice Minister Giorgos Floridis announced on Tuesday that a forthcoming amendment to the civil code would limit access to surrogacy exclusively to women. This move has raised concerns regarding the rights and options available to single men and same-sex male couples in the country.
The proposed reform seeks to clarify eligibility for surrogacy services, asserting that the legal definition of being unable to carry a pregnancy applies exclusively to women. “We are now clarifying unequivocally that the concept of inability to carry a pregnancy does not refer to an inability arising from one’s gender,” Floridis stated during the announcement. “In other words, a woman may be unable to carry a pregnancy whether she is in a male-female couple, a female same-sex couple or on her own.”
This planned change signifies a significant shift, effectively barring single heterosexual men, gay men, and male couples from pursuing surrogacy services. However, it is noteworthy that the new guidelines would allow single or partnered lesbian women continued access to surrogacy, thereby creating a disparity in family-building options based on sexual orientation.
The announcement of this change comes just a year after Greece enacted a historic law that legalised same-sex marriage, marking it as the first Orthodox Christian-majority nation to do so. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis heralded this landmark decision as a major step toward reducing social inequalities, describing the legislation as one that would “boldly abolish a serious inequality.”
Stefanos Kasselakis, Greece’s openly gay opposition leader from the left-wing Syriza party, played an instrumental role in driving the marriage equality bill forward. While supporting the landmark legislation, he has raised concerns regarding the new restrictions on surrogacy for male couples included within the same framework.
Despite potential setbacks presented by this proposed amendment, Greece has made notable strides on LGBTQ+ rights in recent years. In 2022, the country banned conversion therapy and prohibited medically unnecessary surgeries on intersex infants. Furthermore, in 2017, the Legal Gender Recognition Law was enacted, allowing transgender individuals the right to change their legal gender without the need for prior medical requirements.
The landscape of surrogacy laws globally continues to vary widely, with practices in some countries being relatively permissive while others impose strict prohibitions. In the United States, for instance, commercial surrogacy is relatively common, while various European nations, including Spain and Italy, maintain stringent restrictions. Recently, Italy, under Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, has adopted a hardline stance by banning surrogacy and adoption for same-sex couples, with further criminalisation of international surrogacy expected in 2024.
Source: Noah Wire Services