More than 300 Spanish couples travel each year to Ukraine in order to fulfill their dream of becoming parents through surrogacy, an illegal practice in Spain, but allowed in that country, where the costs are much lower than those of other countries that They also allow this practice to foreigners.
The main agency to which most of these couples go to hire their subrogation services is BioTexCom, with representations in Madrid and Barcelona, and with which they have signed a contract, among many others, the more than twenty Spanish families trapped in Kiev that They cannot register their babies so they can travel back home with them.
"All inclusive" packages
The BioTexCom clinic offers "belly rental" services in the "all inclusive" mode with prices ranging from 29,900 euros the basic, up to 49,900 euros the VIP.
When hiring the latter, customers can (quote textually) "choose the sex of the baby", "have the pregnant woman who already had experience in subrogation" and other services such as maid and car with private driver during the stay in Ukraine. Come on, as if you were hiring a vacation trip.
Babies and more have tried to contact BioTexCom several times, but nobody is picking up the phone, and when accessing their website we find the following notice to their customers:
"We had already informed you that During the next 3 months, no new contracts will be signed for the surrogacy program. In our clinic. This is due to the management of a new bill on surrogacy in Ukraine. The same law affects all assisted reproduction centers in Ukraine. "
"We assure you that in the case of approval of a new law (according to which surrogacy will be prohibited for patients from abroad) our clinic will return the money paid if your pregnant woman is not yet pregnant. If you are already in the program and your pregnant woman is already gestating her baby, they will successfully finish their program and without any complications they will be able to go out with their baby with necessary documentation. But only in the case of approval of the Law. Today the clinic works in the usual regime. "
But the stoppage of its activity is not only due to the new bill that is discussed in the congress on surrogacy. There is something fatter behind that the clinic does not mention its clients in its notice: a judicial investigation.
Possible sale of Ukrainian babies to foreigners
News published in Ukrainian media on July 16 reports that the Prosecutor General of Ukraine, Yuriy Lutsenko, has formally accused the BIOTEX clinic (also known as BIOTEXCOM), of crimes of trafficking in persons, forgery of documents and tax fraud.
He has also stressed that people involved in criminal proceedings are threatened with prison sentence of eight to 15 years with confiscation of goods.
"Security forces suspect that the Medical Center of Ukraine" Biotexcom "was engaged in the sale of Ukrainian babies to foreigners", informed the Prosecutor General of Ukraine Yuriy Lutsenko during the briefing. He added:" and the main doctor incriminate the falsification of documents. "
The Ukrainian Minister of Justice has denounced the irregularities of the clinic that apparently has not followed in some cases the controls and requirements demanded by the Ukrainian Law, such as the obligatory genetic link with at least one of the intentional parents or the necessary absence of genetic link with the pregnant woman.
Below you can see the video of the appearance of Prosecutor (in Ukrainian):
The case of an Italian couple, the trigger
The case that made justice follow the clinic's track is that of an Italian couple, who in 2011 hired their services for 32 thousand euros, of which six thousand were paid to the surrogate mother, explains the Prosecutor.
When the baby was tested for DNA, they verified that He didn't share any genetic material with his father, as required by law. It is imperative, according to Ukrainian law, that at least the father contributes his gametes so that the child's filiation can be recognized.
"It has been proven that the parents were not at the time of fertilization in Ukraine and their biomaterial had not been provided to the medical center," says Lutsenko.
Security agents in Italy found false information about the child's origin, so the baby was taken to an orphanage, and the couple must report.
"It is not a unique case, this is the fact that Biotexccom has carried out at least 1000 subrogation operations and, unfortunately, we see that in many cases the law on the need for biomaterial was not complied with at least one of the parent parents, in this sense, the investigation will insist on the arrest of all those suspected of committing this crime, and also We call on all women victims of the activities of this company to present themselves to the police, "said the head of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.
Police also identified several hundred Ukrainian surrogate mothers who collaborated with the medical center and are being questioned.
For his part, the owner of the clinic, a man of German origin, (who calls himself Albert Man, whose real name is Albert Totchilovski) and known as "the king of the bellies for rent", is currently under house arrest .
As for the crime of tax fraud, as Chronicle has learned when accessing some of the payments made by couples, the clinic provided them with an account number in a tax haven, evading Ukrainian tax controls.
Last year, the chain Four issued a report on the program "In the Spotlight" on the bellies for rent in Ukraine in which a journalist visited the clinic and you could see the secrecy with which he was informed of all the process.
Warnings about Ukraine
The irregularities of this clinic have been known for a long time, but it is only now that everything comes to light.
From the Parents for Surrogacy Association have been years inadvising parents to hire this clinic, And now more than ever.
"We strongly recommend to prospective parents who were assessing the possibility of hiring the services of this clinic, not to do so, because due to the duration of a surrogacy process (between 15 and 20 months), they could be trapped in the middle of this judicial process, and seeing his project of being parents harmed. "
"These types of processes have a bad end almost always. Justice is slow but devastating. And hundreds of Spanish parents, (and other nationalities) are going to find themselves hostage in this process, "they warn.
For its part, the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs makes it clear in a recent statement that:
"The treatment of this type of files requires special care by the Consular Section of the Embassy of Spain in Kiev to have been informed in recent months of possible cases of medical malpractice associated with assisted reproduction processes, as well as in cases of possible trafficking of minors. The Spanish Embassy in Kiev must take all necessary precautions to protect the best interests of minors. In view of this situation, insists on advise against the start of any surrogacy process in this context, recommendation that has been made from this Ministry for years. "
The Association Our Children are also pronounced on the scandal:
"In Son Nuestro Hijos, we have always defended, defended and defended that access to surrogacy has to be done imperatively according to the regulation and legality of the country of origin, and, above all, with the utmost respect for the women who do We may become fathers or mothers. We cannot admit to them any practice that undermines their autonomy, dignity and freedom of choice. On the contrary, it makes us complicit in a system with consequences like the ones we are living. "
And send a message to the affected families:
"We call the affected families to calm and tranquility. No process carried out within the law will be affected, and they will undoubtedly continue and be resolved positively. In the next few days we will publish more detailed information on the channels that will be followed from now on forward in terms of registration and benefits ".
Meanwhile, there are several affected families who have hired the clinic services and initiated the process, and also those who already have their babies in their arms but remain trapped in Kiev waiting for a solution to return home.
The BiotexCom is a scandal Of which we will surely keep hearing news.
