- From 1985 to 1990. The emergence of New Reproductive Technologies (NRTs) sparked concerns and alarm among French feminist researchers.Simultaneously, associations dedicated to organizing surrogacy in France were established. These associations were subsequently banned (1988 and 1989), while case law (1991) and legislation (1994) reaffirmed France’s fundamental principles of the non-availability and non-patrimoniality of the human body[1].
- 2009. Philosopher Sylviane Agacinski’s book, “Corps en miette” (Bodies in Pieces), marked a starting point in the French left wing movement against surrogacy. Agacinski, a prominent figure within the Socialist Party and a recognized feminist, ignited a broader debate on the issue in the context of the ongoing revision of French bioethics law[2].
- 2010. Terra Nova, a think tank with close ties to the Socialist Party at the time, published a significant article titled “Surrogate Mothers: An Extension of the Realm of Alienation.” Authored by renowned fertility specialist René Frydman (known for his role in France’s first test-tube baby in 1982) and other experts, the article refuted arguments in favor of surrogacy. While the original piece is no longer available on the Terra Nova website, it has been preserved by Jean-Noël Tronc, one of its co-authors[3].
- 2011. Feminist and lesbian feminist organizations CLF, CADAC, and The Planning Familial launched the manifesto “Why We Are Against Surrogacy.” This manifesto, updated in 2014, marked the involvement of feminist organizations in what would become the international feminist movement for the abolition of surrogate motherhood in 2016[4].
- 2011. 8 February 2011: An Open letter in Le Monde “la GPA, une extension du domaine de l’aliénation“, called for the abolition of this practice, signed by numerous feminist individuals and socialists[5].
- 2013. Creation of the association CoRP – Collectif pour le Respect de la Personne (Collective for the Respect of the Person), a group of men and women, academics, scientists and philosophers dedicated to the fight against the practice of surrogate motherhood[6].
- 2014. 23 July 2014: Publication in the newspaper “Libération” of a call on the President of the Republic to oppose the legal recognition of surrogacy and to bring forward a draft international convention to prohibit surrogacy. It was signed by numerous personalities (including Jacques Delors, Lionel Jospin, Yvette Roudy, Marie-Georges Buffet, José Bové, Nicole Notat, Bernard Poignant, and associations such as CADAC (Coordination des associations pour le droit à l’avortement et à la contraception) CLF (Coordination lesbienne de France) and Mouvement du Nid[7].
- 2015. 23 March 2015: Several European feminist and human rights organisations, including CoRP and the European Women’s Lobby, submitted a contribution to the Hague Conference calling for a halt to o the project of international recognition of surrogacy and the drafting of an international convention to abolish the practice along the lines of the 1926 Convention on Slavery[8].
- 2016. On 2 February 2016: A first international conference for the universal abolition of surrogate motherhood marked the emergence of a feminist movement for the abolition of surrogacy, rooted in the left. Organised jointly by Corp (Collectif pour le Respect de la Personne), CADAC (Collectif des Associations pour le Droit à l’Avortement et à la Contraception) and CLF (Coordination lesbienne en France), the Conference took place at the French Assemblée nationale, hosted by Laurence Dumont, Socialist deputy, vice-president of the Assemblée Nationale . It ended with the signing of the Charter for the Abolition of surrogacy by 16 feminist, lesbian and human rights associations and left-wing politicians: José Bové, Benoît Hamon, Élisabeth Guigou, Eva Sas and Marie Georges Buffet[9]. The plan to set up an international feminist coalition was formed in the context of this conference.
- 2016. First collective mobilisations with an international scope. Feminist organizations mobilized against the ‘De Sutter’ report, which proposed legalizing surrogacy. The report was debated by the Council of Europe in June and September 2016[10] [11]., ultimately rejected by a narrow margin on October 11th. [12] A rally of over 54 feminist and human rights organizations was held in Paris in June to protest the report[13].
- 2016. August 2016. The organisation ADF (Women’s Assembly ) organised its summer university on “the commodification of women’s bodies”, with surrogacy as the focal point.
- 2017. 23 March 2017. The movement is spreading. The 2nd Conference for the Universal Abolition of Surrogacy was held in Rome. It concluded with an appeal, signed by feminist organizations from around the world, urging the United Nations bodies working to uphold the Conventions on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), and the Convention on Rights of the Child, to initiate a process aimed at recommending a ban on the practice of surrogacy. They argued that surrogacy is incompatible with human rights and the dignity of women[14].
- 2018. 22 September 2018. The fight against surrogate motherhood is taking shape as an international Coalition. A Conference titled “For the respect of women and children, abolish surrogate motherhood” was held at the Senate building in Paris[15]. Hosted by Laurence Cohen a communist senator, the event was organized by four women’s rights associations: CoRP, CQFD Lesbiennes Féministes, CADAC, and ADF. At the conference, ICASM, the Coalition for the Abolition of Surrogacy was announced. With the 4 organisations mentioned above as founders, it had been created in June 2018 with the approval of all the French associations mobilised on this issue.
- 2018. September 2018. In September 2018, Spanish feminists (RECAV), together with the Swedish Women’s Lobby and ICASM launched an international appeal for a global ban on surrogacy. This initiative was endorsed by 241 feminist organizations from 18 countries to be presented to the 73rd UN General Assembly[16].
[1] Extract https://www.senat.fr/lc/lc182/lc182_mono.html
Translation in English : In France, Law no. 94-653 of 29 July 1994 on respect for the human body explicitly prohibits surrogate motherhood.
By introducing Article 16-7 into the Civil Code , which states that ‘ any agreement concerning surrogate motherhood is null and void ’, this law confirmed the previous case law of the Cour de cassation. It also added article 227-12 to the Criminal Code , which makes it an offence punishable by six months’ imprisonment and a €7,500 fine “ to mediate between a person or couple wishing to welcome a child and a woman agreeing to carry the child in order to hand it over to them ”.
[2]https://www.lemonde.fr/livres/article/2009/05/08/corps-en-miettes-de-sylviane-agacinski_1190606_3260.html. « Corps en miette » Flamarion first published in 2009 then republished in 2013. https://editions.flammarion.com/corps-en-miettes/9782081312616
[3] https://www.tronc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Note-TN-meres-porteuses-nov-2010-VDEF.pdf
[4] https://cqfd-lesbiennesfeministes.org/abolition-de-la-gpa/dossiers/manifeste-pour-labolition-du-recours-a-la-gpa-maternite-de-substitution/
[5] https://www.lemonde.fr/idees/article/2011/02/08/la-gestation-pour-autrui-une-extension-du-domaine-de-l-alienation_1476850_3232.html
[6] https://collectifcorp.wordpress.com/
[7]http://www.liberation.fr/societe/2014/07/13/gpa-monsieur-le-president-de-la-republique_1063256
[8] https://collectifcorp.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/surrogacy_hcch_feminists_french.pdf
[9] https://abolition-ms.org/ressources/evenements/assises-pour-labolition-universelle-de-la-maternite-de-substitution-gpa-presentation-et-programme/
[10]ttps://collectifcorp.wordpress.com/2016/02/24/is-the-council-of-europe-promoting-commercial-gpa/
https://assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/XRef/Xref-XML2HTML-fr.asp?fileid=23015&lang=fr
http://coordinationlesbienne.org/spip.php?article358
[11]ttps://collectifcorp.wordpress.com/2016/02/24/is-the-council-of-europe-promoting-commercial-gpa/
https://assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/XRef/Xref-XML2HTML-fr.asp?fileid=23015&lang=fr
http://coordinationlesbienne.org/spip.php?article358
[13] http://coordinationlesbienne.org/spip.php?article361
[14] https://collectifcorp.wordpress.com/2017/03/22/23-mars-2017-2e-assises-pour-labolition-universelle-de-la-gpa-a-rome/
[15] https://abolition-ms.org/ressources/evenements/pour-le-respect-des-femmes-et-des-enfants-abolir-la-maternite-de-substitution-programme-colloque-22-septembre-2018/
[16] http://www.noalquilesvientres.com/news-posts/organizaciones-feministas-de-18-paises-exigen-la-prohibicion-global-de-los-vientres-de-alquiler/