On June 22, the Government of Italy, in collaboration with the Holy See, Chile, and Cameroon, convened a high-level side event on surrogacy at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Representatives of the participating states presented a joint declaration calling for an international moratorium on surrogacy as a step toward its eventual global abolition. In this context, a moratorium refers to a temporary suspension of surrogacy arrangements pending further legal, ethical, and human rights review.
The event, titled “Building Momentum Towards a Moratorium on Surrogacy,” was motivated by concerns over the increasing physical, psychological, medical, and ethical harms associated with surrogacy. The rapid growth of the surrogacy industry, projected to hit nearly $100 billion by 2033, was another cause of concern.
The joint declaration presented reflects an abolitionist approach to surrogacy and calls on governments to adopt policies that safeguard human dignity and fundamental human rights.
The initiative follows previous criticism of the controversial practice by Pope Leo XIV, who condemned it in a January address. In March, the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations also raised concerns about surrogacy, warning that it is an area in which “technology and practice have run laps around the law and ethics.”
A question of human dignity
Italy’s Minister for Family, Birth Rate and Equal Opportunities, Eugenia Roccella, framed the surrogacy debate as a fundamental question about the status of the human person.
She asked whether society still recognizes human beings as persons “who must be respected” or is willing to accept a situation in which they become “a means to satisfy the interests or needs of others.”
Roccella described the declaration as establishing “a common political commitment” to support an international moratorium on surrogacy while laying the groundwork for “an international legal framework aimed at abolishing surrogacy worldwide.”
At the same time, she stressed that the initiative should be viewed as the beginning of a broader international effort rather than its culmination. Roccella urged governments, international organizations, and civil society actors to engage in a “serious and constructive dialogue” on how best to address surrogacy while protecting the rights and dignity of all those involved.
Serious human rights concerns
Among the keynote speakers was U.N. Special Rapporteur Reem Alsalem, whose 2025 report to the U.N. General Assembly was widely praised as one of the most comprehensive examinations of surrogacy to date.
Alsalem told participants that her scrutiny of surrogacy arose not from ideological opposition but from her mandate to investigate violence against women and girls. She said she began examining the issue after identifying it as a “growing and emerging phenomenon” with “significant and serious consequences” for women and girls, yet one that had received comparatively little analysis through the framework of international human rights law.
Drawing on her findings, Alsalem described surrogacy as a system that “commodifies women and children,” turning women’s reproductive capacities into services to be purchased and children into objects of contractual arrangements.
She further argued that children born through surrogacy can face abandonment, statelessness, and separation from their birth mothers, circumstances she said may cause lasting emotional harm.
Welcoming the declaration, Alsalem endorsed calls for an international moratorium, explaining that a temporary suspension would allow governments to gather data, improve accountability, and better assess the human rights implications of surrogacy.
“We will no longer accept these abuses,” she said, expressing hope that additional states would join the initiative.
Her subsequent 2026 report on violence against women and girls reiterates concerns that surrogacy can facilitate exploitation, coercion, and other serious violations of the rights of women and girls.
Momentum beyond Geneva
Speaking to EWTN News, Giorgio Mazzoli, moderator of the event and director of U.N. advocacy for ADF International, explained that opposition to surrogacy is gaining traction among governments. He referred to Slovakia’s 2025 constitutional prohibition of surrogacy and current advancing legislation in Chile that would ban the practice as evidence of a broader shift.
According to Mazzoli, “states are increasingly aware of the need for a coordinated response to the harm surrogacy causes to women and children,” adding that the Geneva event was intended to “build and sustain that momentum.”
While supporters of surrogacy continue to advocate for its expansion in jurisdictions where the practice remains legal or unresolved, Mazzoli said governments that have not yet confronted the issue directly are nevertheless paying attention.
“Even countries which do not yet face the problem directly — or claim not to — are taking note,” he said. “They see where this is heading and want to be ahead of it.”
Mazzoli also highlighted Italy’s recent legislation extending criminal liability to Italian citizens who commission surrogacy abroad, describing it as a significant attempt to curb so-called “forum shopping,” whereby individuals travel to other countries to access services prohibited at home.
Nevertheless, he argued that national measures alone will not be sufficient. Given the increasingly cross-border nature of the surrogacy industry, Mazzoli said the long-term goal should be the development of an international legally binding instrument capable of addressing surrogacy across jurisdictions.
Meanwhile, Ludovine de La Rochère, president of Le Syndicat de la Famille, who attended the event as an observer, told EWTN News that public awareness of surrogacy varies significantly across Europe.
Countries where advocacy groups actively publicize scandals and ethical concerns tend to have a greater understanding of the issue, while in other countries “people are largely unaware of what surrogacy entails.”
She noted that most media outlets rarely scrutinize surrogacy practices in depth and that public discussion is often shaped by advocacy groups supportive of surrogacy.
According to De La Rochère, anti-surrogacy organizations defending mothers and children face an uphill battle because they often operate with limited resources. “Large-scale information campaigns are absolutely essential,” she said, but she noted that such groups generally lack the financial support available to progressive organizations.
She contended that public education efforts should focus on demonstrating why surrogacy constitutes “an exploitation of women and an objectification of the child,” while also drawing attention to cases involving international human trafficking.