On Wednesday, October 16th, the Italian Senate took a decisive step by totally banning surrogacy and thus upholding the dignity of human life and the rights of children. The World Youth Alliance applauds Italy on this pivotal decision, which not only reinforces the value of family but also protects the vulnerable in society.

This new law expands on Italy’s previous ban from two decades ago, now expanding the prohibition to include Italians seeking surrogacy arrangements abroad. The Senate voted 84 to 58 in favor of the measure, recognizing the ethical concerns associated with surrogacy.

The practice of surrogacy violates fundamental ethical norms related to the commodification of human life and the potential exploitation of women. By banning this practice, Italy prioritizes the well-being of both children and women. The decision reflects a political consensus based on the fundamental truth that children can never be treated as products to be traded but are unique individuals with inherent rights. It acknowledges the importance of a stable family environment where children can thrive, nurtured by their natural parents whenever possible.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni confirms this truth by characterizing the law as a “common-sense measure against the commodification of women and children,” stating, “human life cannot be assigned a price.” Similarly, Eugenia Roccella, Italy’s Minister for Equal Opportunities and the Family, asked: “There is a question to which I have never received an answer from jurists or bioethicists: all over the world the buying and selling of a child is a crime. What is the difference with surrogate motherhood? I have never received an answer.”

This legislative action aligns with the proposals given in the World Youth Alliance’s White Paper on Surrogacy, which emphasizes that surrogacy represents the commodification of children and leads to the exploitation of women. The White Papers specifically warns of the “potential for exploitation, as in surrogacy tourism” which is a serious concern and has been banned by a number of “destination” countries, primarily in Asia. Italy is now the first European country to extend the ban on surrogacy through criminal law sanctions being applied to its own citizens hiring surrogate mothers abroad. 

Italy’s proactive stance serves as an encouraging model for other nations to consider similar measures. As the WYA White Paper states, “parents struggling with infertility need care and support, but the practice of surrogacy is not an appropriate means of providing that because of the lack of respect for the human dignity of the child and the surrogate.” Solutions for infertility should respect both the natural and good desire of couples to become parents and the rights of children not to be treated like objects. Neither should women be reduced to their reproductive capacities through agreements that function almost as rental agreements for their organs.

While we commend this achievement, we recognize that continued efforts are necessary to promote supportive policies for parents and children. The global dimension of surrogacy, as well as the increasing practice of multi-State surrogacy contracts, raises the need for regional and international collaboration and the development of principles to guide legal norms. We hope this legislative decision adopted by Italy will spark a global conversation about the ethical violations of human dignity brought about by surrogacy and the importance of protecting the rights of children and families. Let us work collectively to build a future that honors the sanctity of life, nurtures the next generation, and upholds the human dignity of every person. 

 

What True Reproductive Health Looks Like

In November, young men and women will converge in Brussels, Belgium for the 13th WYA Europe Emerging Leaders Conference. This year’s focus will be “Empowering by Educating: Training on Women’s Reproductive and Mental Health and Rights.” Through a series of discussions, workshops, and lectures, participants will delve into crucial topics surrounding women’s mental and reproductive health and their associated rights.

Everyone can agree that it’s important to care for women’s health needs—and that there are many areas of the world where those needs have been sadly neglected. 

But what is women’s reproductive health? Is there a right to it? And what’s the best way to care for it?  

Does an International Right to Reproductive Health Exist?

The term “reproductive health” was introduced in 1994 by the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). The ICPD defined reproductive health as, “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being in all matters relating to the reproductive system and its functions and processes.” 

WYA affirms this definition. At the same time, however, we recognize that there are international organizations attempting to promote an incorrect understanding of reproductive health. 

While various organizations have declared that reproductive health is an international right, none have had the authority to do so. As WYA’s White Paper on Reproductive Health explains:  

“International human rights are not created by declarations of political will, such as documents produced at international conferences, or declarations by international or regional institutions, such as the United Nations.”

Instead, international human rights are established through international treaties. Treaties are binding instruments of international law for the States that both sign and ratify them. Non-treaty assertions of an international right to reproductive health do not have the force of law. 

The White Paper on Reproductive Health goes on to note: 

“The right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health is established in international law. However, no international human rights treaty asserts a right to reproductive health. Although some international human rights treaties have discussed health as related to women’s special needs and as related to nondiscrimination on the basis of sex, no treaty actually establishes a right to reproductive health.” 

This isn’t the only misunderstanding related to reproductive health. There are many who try to push abortion as a universal reproductive health “right.”

In fact, it’s not uncommon for small and developing States to be threatened with the loss of foreign aid if they do not amend their reproductive health laws and policies to include abortion. 

WYA has always stood against this practice. The WYA Declaration on Reproductive Health states: 

“We condemn all coercion and abuses of human rights in regards to reproductive health, including: forced abortions and sterilizations; population control programs leading to feminicide in sex-selective abortion; commodification of children’s and women’s bodies through surrogacy; and imposing ideological programs on communities contrary to their religious and cultural values.”

States must not bow to pressure to include abortion in reproductive health. International law does not include abortion as a component of reproductive health. And no international treaty even mentions abortion.

The ICPD Programme of Action paragraph 8.25 says no State can be forced to change its abortion laws; any measures or changes related to abortion can only be determined at the national or local level. States have the sovereign right to look to the religious, ethical, and cultural values of their people when implementing the ICPD Programme of Action recommendations.

Moreover, customary international law does not include abortion as a component of reproductive health. Custom is created when a rule is followed as a general State practice, and when States accept the rule as if it were legally binding. Custom is binding on all States who do not consistently object to it. Currently, there is no consensus among States to include abortion as a component of reproductive health. 

The ICPD Programme of Action casts abortion as undesirable, confining its inclusion to reproductive health care and services to States where it is already legal, and saying “governments should take appropriate steps to help women avoid abortion, which in no case should be promoted as a method of family planning.” 

Beyond Birth Control 

The ICPD puts a strong emphasis on giving women the tools for family planning. Birth control is often touted as the best way to do this. However, in order to really empower women and help them achieve lasting health, a better approach is needed. 

As WYA’s Declaration on Reproductive Health states: 

“Fewer than 3% of women worldwide can identify their time of fertility and many lack knowledge about their body and health. The idea of a global unmet need for contraception ignores this fundamental problem and attempts to substitute the sustainable impact of increased knowledge with the short-term effect of distributing contraception.”

It’s every woman’s right to understand the link between her hormones and health. The best way to advance reproductive health worldwide is to help women grasp their reproductive health in all its physical and emotional complexity—and give them access to treatment for underlying hormonal health conditions. 

The international community need more care like that offered by WYA’s sister organization, FEMM (Fertility Education & Medical Management). FEMM provides evidence-based women’s healthcare and fertility awareness. FEMM recognizes that ovulation is a sign of health, and empowers women to be agents in the management and care of their overall reproductive health and well-being. 

Using the FEMM app, a woman can easily track her body’s biomarkers each day. She can understand her fertility and learn how to work with her body to postpone or avoid pregnancy—or achieve it. Most importantly, she learns what a healthy cycle looks like. And she can get the support she needs if she detects symptoms or imbalances.

Medical providers trained in FEMM protocols offer comprehensive physical and lab workups to diagnose and treat the root cause of health conditions like infertility, polycystic ovarian syndrome, thyroid imbalances, endometriosis, and much more. 

Instead of offering band-aid solutions that only suppress symptoms, a healthcare model like FEMM gets to the root causes of a woman’s reproductive health issues. This is the kind of reproductive healthcare that helps a woman achieve real, lasting wellbeing. 

In April 2023, the World Youth Alliance team had the privilege to meet Celsus Talifilu and Daniel Suidani, public officials from the Solomon Islands, during their last visit to the United States. Both men are on the frontlines of defending democracy in the Solomon Islands, fighting against the growing influence of the Chinese Communist Party. Defying demands to bow to the Chinese Communist Party pressures in their country, all attempts to silence them have failed. Today, they were arrested. 

In October of 2021, a vote of no confidence aimed at Malaita Province Premier Daniel Suidani, who had stood firmly against the central government’s alignment with Beijing, failed, due to the courage and solidarity of the Malaitan people in his province. Thousands took to the streets in peaceful protest, standing up for democracy, and risking everything to prevent the overthrow of their democratically elected Premier. Premier Suidani was an outspoken critic of the central government’s decision in 2019 to switch diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China, and he has consistently warned that the Solomon Islands’ shift toward Beijing risks turning the country into a more authoritarian, oppressive state. As proof of his concerns, he was ousted over the protests of his constituents in February of 2023 and replaced by a loyalist to the  Beijing-backed Prime Minister Sogavare and illegally disqualified from his seat in the Malaita Provincial Assembly in April of 2023.

Celsus Talifilu, formerly Premier Suidani’s Chief of Staff, ran for elected office as an MP during the elections of April, 2024. He has now launched a suit to contest the results of the election. The legal challenges of both former Premier Suidani, and Clesus Talifilu, are currently moving through the court system. Celsus Talifilu’s legal challenge to the April 2024 election outcome in his district was recently given leave to proceed. Daniel Suidani’s challenge to his disqualification from the previous provincial parliament (on grounds that he refused to accept China’s definition of the One China Policy) is also currently in the courts. Now both of them are also being charged with organizing unlawful assemblies and protests in Auki in 2021 (the peaceful and spontaneous protests led by their own constituents). 

Mr. Talifilu was an invited speaker to WYA’s 2024 International Solidarity Forum, on the topic of “Human Dignity and Totalitarian Ideologies”. We invited him to talk about his opposition to encroaching totalitarian influences in his home country at that time. Unfortunately, the conference conflicted with the critical national general elections where he was running for a seat in Parliament.

We see their arrest as a clear attempt to silence them and discredit their political positions through an abuse of the Solomon Islands justice system. Their arrests, even as both have cases proceeding through the courts, casts a deepening shadow on the erosion of the rule of law in the Solomons. Their courage in fighting for their people against the Chinese Communist Party’s increasing influence in their country is nothing short of inspiring. 

The World Youth Alliance stands in solidarity with Mr Talifilu and Mr. Suidani. The people of Malaita Province have shown their solidarity and appreciation for the men they have legitimately elected. Mr. Talifilu and Mr Suidani are risking everything to stand with, and for, their people in the fight for freedom and democracy in the Solomons. We support Mr. Talifilu and Mr. Suidani as they face this next challenge, even as they prepare to defend themselves in court. We recognize their great courage and we hope that, in the face of the force and coercion of the Chinese Communist Party, justice and truth will prevail.