Narratives of commercial gestational surrogacy (CGS) as ‘baby-selling’ often conflate or interchange the transfer of children born via surrogacy with trafficking in children or the sale of children, two sometimes overlapping but nonetheless distinct offenses. Moreover, anti-trafficking laws have been used to police cross border CGS. But when do CGS arrangements fall within the category of legitimate ‘reproductive tourism’ and when do they amount to child trafficking? In this paper I critically explore intersections between human trafficking laws and CGS, vis-à-vis the child, charting the relevant trafficking laws in the context of international surrogacy, and analysing whether trafficking laws are an appropriate mechanism through which to regulate CGS. I conclude that while child trafficking might occur via surrogacy, CGS in itself is not child trafficking under international law.
In 2016, a new study, funded by iPoint, was conducted in conjunction with Development International. 1,961 brands were evaluated against their disclosure compliance based on the law’s Risk Verification, Audit, Certification, Internal accountability...Read More
In many ways, our understanding of the links between modern slavery and humanitarian crisis is still nascent. Just over five years ago, the United Nations held its first thematic debate on human trafficking, specifically condemning, “in the strong...Read More
We believe that everyone should read this handbook – and we have kept it small so that you can keep it in your work bag or desk drawer. This handbook was, however, specifically created for staff who work in the homelessness sector, particularly fr...Read More
This research, commissioned by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), provides an overview of trends and possible pathways of t...Read More
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