UN equates surrogacy with slavery and child trafficking

Illustrative image of surrogacy. Photo: RFE/RL

On August 23, 2025, the United Nations published a report condemning surrogacy as a modern form of slavery. The document was presented by Reem Alsalem, UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences.

The text states that surrogacy is “characterized by exploitation and violence against women and children,” while the female body is treated as a “commodity and object.” Alsalem emphasized: “Commercial surrogacy is tantamount to the sale of children. It is a crime under international law.”

The report further notes that surrogacy agreements effectively place women in a position of property, depriving them of freedom of movement, medical autonomy, and even forcing them to undergo selective abortions at the request of clients.

Special attention is given to children: surrogacy always involves the “planned separation of a woman from her child,” which results in the newborn being viewed from the very beginning as an “object of purchase and sale.” This, the report stresses, inflicts serious harm on the emotional and psychological development of the child.

The UN recommends the eradication of surrogacy in all its forms, the prohibition of legal recognition of such contracts, and the drafting of an international treaty for its complete ban.

The social teaching of the Church echoes these conclusions: a child is a gift from God, not the subject of a contract, and the female body is not a “reproductive machine” to satisfy the desires of others.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that the UN had established the International Day Commemorating Victims of Religious Persecution.

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