MCV – “IVF Setbacks” by Rachel Cook

Rachel Cook discusses the delays for accessing IVF to same-sex couples – a delay of up to 5 months.

Delays in police checks will mean that same-sex couples requiring IVF treatment could be waiting five months.

Lesbians and single women gained access to IVF last December when the Assisted Reproductive Treatment Bill was passed. However the bill also introduced police checks as part of the screening process for prospective IVF recipients.

The checks are designed to ensure that people seeking fertility treatment are “fit to parent”, having no history of violence or sexual assault.

As reported in the Herald Sun last week, a doctor from Melbourne IVF has voiced his concerns that the government has failed to ensure the infrastructure is in place to cope with high numbers of police checks.

Dr John McBain said, “The bureaucracy isn’t in place in the relevant department to screen the very large numbers of people who will be trying to get police checks.”

Co-convenor of the Victorian Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby, Hayley Conway, said providing increased resources to cope with the swell in police checks should have been done “many many years ago”.

“This demonstrates the lack of seriousness this government has in terms of providing equal access to services for the LGBTI community,” Conway said.

“They will hide behind anything to prevent LGBTI families to access the same services heterosexual families will use. While it may not be malicious, in regards to the police checks, [before the introduction of the Assisted Reproductive Treatment Bill which allowed lesbians to access IVF] heterosexual couples were not subjected to these checks.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Human Services told MCV that the bill was “close” to being proclaimed:

“Part of making sure that the necessary arrangements are in place for the Act to be successfully implemented is that there is work that still needs to be done. Work that will make sure people can access the programs that are covered by the Act is still underway.”

The spokesperson added:

“These measures have been debated for a long time. For ten years this has been in the mix and the important thing is that we have in place the right procedures and the right infrastructure to support the bill. We want get it right.

He also said that the Herald-Sun’s claim that the Act was to be proclaimed July 1 was incorrect:
“The Act will be proclaimed automatically on January 1, 2010, if it is not proclaimed sooner, we did not say it would definitely be proclaimed July 1.”

To access IVF couples also have to pass a Child Protection Order Check. Melbourne IVF states on its website:

‘Melbourne IVF (and all IVF Clinic in Victoria) is currently working with Department of Human Services (DHS) to develop a process for undertaking the Child Protection Order Checks. This process is yet to be finalised.’”

[Link: Original Article]

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Gay Dads Australia Surrogacy Toolbar Now Available

Gay Dads Australia is experimenting with ways of communicating with members and potential members.  We have a twitter account and and rss feed.  We now have a “Gay Dads Australia – Surrogacy Toolbar” for the Firefox, IE and Safari(WIN) browsers. 

It is only in it's infant stages so far but has links to known surrogacy agencies that Gay Dads in OZ have used, links to GDA news, Link to the GDA website, Link to the Surrogacy Manual and a inbuilt radio (hopefully) tuned to JOY 94.9.

You can download it here.

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MCV - “Keeping Abreast” by Andrew Shaw

In this weeks edition of MCV [Melbourne] Gay Dad James talks about wanting to establish a Breast Milk bank in Australia for Gay Dads.

A group of gay men lobbying for a breast milk bank? The times they are a-changing, reports Andrew Shaw.

Being a father isn’t easy, even when your child’s mother is on the scene. But what happens when two dads get together and decide they want a kid? The answer is a financial, emotional and medical obstacle course that requires the stamina of an Olympic athlete to endure.

A Melbourne group that first met late last year hopes to take some of the difficulty out of the 1001 decisions that need to be made on the way to dual fatherhood. The Meeting Place is where gay dads who have, want to have, or have had kids can find information about parenting. You don’t have to have a newborn, you may have brought up yours already and want to pass on your knowledge. You don’t even have to have a child – just the desire to be a gay dad.

James and his partner Steve are poster boys for Australian gay dads, and they’re determined to share what they’ve learnt from their experiences.

“I’ve created my family through co-parenting,” James says. “First a son, then a boy and a girl through surrogacy, and we want to have a co-parenting relationship with a woman who’s now pregnant with twins. We’ll have five children in the end.

“It’s been tricky with my partner at times. I have a 13-year relationship and the act of creating through surrogacy creates financial pressure and you have to navigate how you raise these children. It’s just us two and we don’t have the traditional roles. You have to work out the difference in how you parent a child. There’s no manual.”

The next meeting of the group in Carlton will be attended by anything from 10 to 25 men, James says, and everyone goes out for an informal dinner in the area afterwards. Guest speakers are a maternal health and child nurse who’ll talk about the medical and early developmental milestones for children, and a hospital representative who’s setting up a breast milk bank.

“A major hospital is setting up a breast milk bank,” James explains, “and is keen to talk to gay dads who have children through surrogacy and have newborns that need breast milk. I know there are a lot of Victorian men who have surrogate children through India and the US and the opportunity to use breast milk is good, if you can get it.”

In James’s case, the US surro-mum – as he calls the surrogate – came back to Australia and breast fed his children for two weeks. “Then we went to formula. But breast milk is supposed to be better for immunities.”

James believes it’s a man’s right, gay or straight, to have kids. “It doesn’t matter if you are into leather or [you’re] a bear – you’re a father as well. Children teach you a lot about how to enjoy life, and I’m learning through their experiences. You don’t get that through a gym membership or a dog.”

The Meeting Place’s next event is at the Drummond Street Relationship Centre, 193 Drummond St, Carlton at 6pm on July 14, 2009. Details: James 0410 548 613 or join the email group viagaydadsvic-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Photo: James feeds one of his children, photo by the surro-mum.

[Link: Original Article]

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TGLRG – Tasmanian Government Move on Same-Sex Parenting

TASMANIAN GAY AND LESBIAN RIGHTS GROUP

LGBT Media Release Wednesday June 17th 2009

TAS GOV MOVE ON SAME-SEX PARENTING APPLAUDED FAMILIES URGED TO CONTACT UPPER HOUSE MEMBERS

Tasmanian advocates have welcomed the State Government's move to give equal legal recognition to the same-sex partners of women who have children through reproductive technology.

Legislation has been introduced which will automatically grant parent status to the same-sex partner of a woman who has a child through IVF or other reproductive technology, a right long available to heterosexual partners.

The Tasmanian Gay and Lesbian Rights Group and the Womens Legal Service (Tas) applauded the move.

Rights Group spokesperson, Rodney Croome, said all children deserve the same legal protections regardless of the gender of their parents.

"This legislation will give children born to same-sex partners through reproductive technology like IVF the financial and emotional security of having two legal parents rather than one".

According to Womens Legal Service managing solicitor, Susan Fahey, the lack of recognition for co-mothers can create problems in areas like emergency medical decision-making.

"We are in contact with same-sex partners for whom lack of legal security has meant severe disadvantage and trauma in daily life", Ms Fahey said.

The recognition of same-sex co-parents was attempted by the State Labor Government in 2003 with the support of a majority of the Liberal Opposition, but was blocked in the State Upper House.

Since then, most other Australian states have enacted the reform.

Mr Croome urged families headed by Tasmanian same-sex partners to contact their local state Upper House member and explain how reform will benefit them.

Same-sex couples have had access to reproductive services in Tasmania for many years.

For more information contact Rodney Croome on 0409 010 668 or Susan Fahey on 0418 434 226

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Australian Marriage Equality – New Poll Shows Australians Overwhelmingly Support Same-Sex Marriage

AUSTRALIAN MARRIAGE EQUALITY - Media Release

NEW POLL SHOWS AUSTRALIANS OVERWHELMINGLY SUPPORT SAME-SEX MARRIAGE

A national opinion poll released today shows 60% of Australians believe same-sex couples should have the right to marry.

Australian Marriage Equality national convenor, Peter Furness, said that almost twice as many Australians now support equal marriage than oppose it.

"Clearly, Australians believe marriage is first and foremost about love and commitment, not your partner's gender", Mr Furness said.

"This poll scuttles the only rationale put forward by the Rudd Government for opposing equality, namely that a majority of Australians believe marriage should only be between a man and a woman."

"It surely increases the pressure on the Labor Party to endorse same-sex marriage at its upcoming national conference."

"We call on delegates to the conference to reflect the fairness and good sense of ordinary Australians by endorsing equal marriage."

The full results show 60% support equal marriage, 36% oppose it, with 4% undecided.

The poll was conducted by Galaxy polling and commissioned by Australian Marriage Equality and Equal Love with the support of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG).

It found that 64% of Labor voters, 50% of Coalition voters, and 74% of young voters support marriage equality.

PFLAG national spokesperson, Shelley Argent, also welcomed the result: "We want to see the relationships of our gay and lesbian children given the same rights and respect as their straight siblings", said Mrs Argent.

A separate question found that 58% of Australians believe foreign same-sex marriages should be recognised by Australia.

In 2004 the Howard Government, with the support of the Labor Opposition, amended the Marriage Act to prohibit same-sex marriages occurring in Australia as well as the recognition of same-sex marriages from overseas.

Polls taken since then have shown a steady increase in support for same-sex marriage from 38% in an SBS Newspoll in 2004 to 57% in a Galaxy poll in 2007 to 60% today.

A National Day of Action on marriage equality, commemorating the 2004 same-sex marriage ban, will be held on August 1st with events in all major capital cities.

A copy of the poll is available at 
www.australianmarriageequality.com/Galaxy200906.pdf

Further information:
Peter Furness
0425 848 723

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Herald Sun - “Gay couples’ access to IVF delayed” by Georgie Pilcher

GAY couples wanting access to IVF and donor sperm will have to wait for authorities to develop a way to make sure they are fit to be parents.

Laws allowing same-sex couples access to donor sperm and extra IVF services will be delayed at least five more months amid claims the Government doesn't have the technology or resources to implement mandatory police checks in the legislation.

The Assisted Reproductive Treatment Bill, passed in December, gave lesbian and single women access to donor sperm and additional IVF services, but it also made it compulsory for all women and their partners, and any man donating sperm, to have police and child protection record searches.

The Act was to be proclaimed on July 1, but Melbourne IVF director Dr John McBain said the Government had stalled, unable to handle the hundreds of expected record checks.

"The Government is telling us it doesn't have the resources in place to cope with the police checks," he said.

"The bureaucracy isn't in place in the relevant department to screen the very large numbers of people who will be trying to get police checks."

Dr McBain said he was advising patients to have police checks in advance.

"There are many women whose ovaries are getting older and have to go interstate. Now they will have to wait until at least September or later," he said.

Shadow health spokeswoman Helen Shardey claims the Government has failed to develop an IT program to run the police checks.

"This bungling could lead to Victoria's IVF program being closed down, robbing couples of the opportunity to commence treatment to start a family," she said.

"This failure could also put at risk the ability of women needing cancer treatment to have their eggs stored for future IVF treatment."

A spokesman for the Department of Human Services confirmed lesbians and gay couples would have to wait.

The Government wanted to get it right. "I don't know the precise details of what the hold-up is, but we need to put all the mechanisms in place to support the Act," he said.

"We need to have all those systems and supporting regulations actually happening and that is the work that is going on currently."

He would not comment on the date of delivery, saying another couple of months was a short wait for gay couples who had already waited nearly a decade.

"The wait in the overall scheme of things between now and as long as the end of the year is not a huge amount of time. The focus has to be on getting it right," he said.

[Link: Original Article]

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New - Listen to the Gay Dads Australia News Direct from our Site

We have added a new feature to the Gay Dads Australia website.  You can now listen to any of the news postings simply by clicking on the link at the end of the post called “Listen to this post”.  Indeed, you will be able to listen to this post by clicking the link below.  You can also download the file as an MP3 file and put it on your music player to listen at any time. 

You can also subscribe to this via as a PodCast by clicking on the icon below or paste the PodCast URL in the “Subscribe to Podcast” section of a program like iTunes.

 

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Rainbow Families Conference Announced for Saturday 27 February 2010 in Melbourne

The Rainbow Families Council in Victoria has just announced that the next Rainbow Families Conference will be held on Saturday 27 February 2010 in Melbourne.  They are currently requesting people suggest topics for workshops, presentations and special sessions and have a “Conference Suggestion Form” which you can complete to help shape the program for the Conference.  It is a great opportunity for Gay Dads to have a say and help the conference cater to the various needs of Gay Dads and Gay Dads to be. Whether it be something on Surrogacy, Fostering, Co-Parenting, Known Donors or something more general like child care issues or dealing with CentreLink.

To find our more about the Rainbow Families Council visit their website or participate in their survey.

[Link: Rainbow Families Council]

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Rainbow Families Inclusive Project - Assisting Early Childhood Services become inclusive of Rainbow Families

The Rainbow Families Council (in Victoria) has just published their first newsletter for 2009.  One of the matters in the newsletter is the funding that they have received from a local council relating to inclusiveness of “rainbow families”. A great initiative.  I am reproducing the announcement below.

The Rainbow Families Council received funding from the City of Darebin Community Grants round 2008/2009 to develop a new resource to assist early childcare services (i.e.Maternal & Child Health, Kindergartens, Child Care Centres) become more inclusive of same sex parented families.

We are seeking your ideas, personal stories and experiences to assist us in developing this new resource. The new resource may include an online booklet, posters, stickers; fact sheets… the ideas are endless.

If you would like to share your ideas about how to assist these services become more inclusive or share your personal experience of early childhood services being inclusive or not being inclusive we would love you to fill in our online survey click  on this link.

Contributions will be accepted until the end of June.

The Rainbow Families Council hopes to finalise the new resource which will include information about the use of inclusive language and sample inclusive policies by the end of 2009.

A similar booklet developed in 2002 by the parents at the Fairfield Playgroup and the Darebin Community Health Centre called We're Here ....a resource for child care worker is currently out or print but you can still get an online copy from the Rainbow Families Council website at www.rainbowfamilies.org.au

If you would like more information please e-mail Sam @info@rainbowfamilies.org.au

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Gay Dads Victoria - Discussion: Your child’s Physical Health and Development – 14 July 2009

What: Gay Dads Victoria - Discussion: Your child’s Physical Health and Development

When: 14 July 2009 - 6.00pm to 7.30pm

Where: Drummond Street Relationship Centre 195 Drummond St Carlton, VIC 3053, Australia

View Larger Map

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JOY 94.9 Radiothon – Time to Support the Station that Supports Us

For those people in Melbourne who listen to JOY 94.9 Radio and those interstate/overseas who listen to JOY on the web, this is a message for you. 

JOY 94.9 is currently running their annual Radiothon.  I would like to encourage people to renew their membership or join up during the Radiothon period to help keep JOY on the air and going strong.

JOY 94.9 has been an ongoing and strong supporter of GAY DADS and Gay Dads Australia over the years.  Every year they run our Community Service Announcement (CSA) on a high rotation.  This costs us nothing (which is good because we don't have any money!) but provides a way of reaching out to Gay Dads and potential Gay Dads in our community.  Over the years many of us from Gay Dads have appeared as guests on various programs, talking about and sharing our experiences about being Gay Dads.  It has allowed us to connect to each other and helped others who may feel isolated as Gay Parents know that they are not alone.  JOY 94.9 has been a wonderful help in fulfilling our aims of being a social, support and information source to Gay Dads and Dads to be.

They need our support in return and I would encourage everyone to join up or renew their membership during the Radiothon.  There is an added bonus, and that is loads of great prizes to be won.

JOY 94.9 offers individual and family memberships (another way they recognise and support G&L families).  For more information please visit http://joy.org.au/radiothon.

Kicking off on Friday June 12 and running on-air for 10 days the JOY 94.9 Alphabet Soup Radiothon will ensure the station remains a staple in the communityʼs media diet. The station provides an independent voice for the diverse GLBTIQ Community (often referred to as “the alphabet soup” community) by providing a healthy diet of Music, Talks shows, News & Current Affairs and Arts & Culture programs.

The station receives no re-current government funding and is proudly self funded through on-air sponsorship and more importantly memberships and donations.

Every soup needs seasoning so weʼve got a range of great prizes available to all new and renewing members, total prize pool is over $30,000. Whatever your taste weʼve got something for you.

Help keep JOY 94.9 in the radio food chain and support the station, because we canʼt make a complete alphabet soup without U.

Become a Member

Join up now by calling 9699 2949 or online via Our Community.

JOY 94.9 membership rates:

All membership subscriptions are annual (all fees include GST)

• $88   Family
• $66   Full
• $33   Concession
• $22   Under 18
• $150 Business / Organisation

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Out in Perth – “Surrogacy and Gay Dads”

When it comes to having kids, gay and lesbian couples face a few obvious logistical problems over and above to the sheer drama of bringing them up!  OutinPerth caught up with gay couple Matt and Martin who gave the lowdown on their chosen path to parenthood.

Matt and Martin….
….On Choosing Surrogacy

After a lot of research we found that this was the best option for us.  Surrogacy is a regular practice in the US and  we specifically decided to go to California as this is one of the few places in the world where 2 men could be on the Birth Certificate.  We also found that we were covered completely legally and we  didn’t want to take any risks or not know exactly where we stood throughout the process.  Medically they have some of the best IVF doctors in the world and being that Matt’s sister is our egg donor also, healthcare was a priority.

…Finding a surrogate mother

We found our surrogate mother through a surrogacy agency in San Diego called Surrogate Alternatives.  After researching and interviewing agencies we registered with Surrogate Alternatives and began going through a database of surrogate mothers and creating a profile about us as a couple and our motivation to be parents. We read through their profiles about themselves, their families and their motivation to be a surrogate.  Once we narrowed it down to a few surrogates we began the process of talking with them and once we spoke with the woman who was to be our surrogate, we knew straight away that she was the one and she felt the same about us!

….Long distance mothering

We don’t have any issues at all.  We talk to her a lot, whether by emails, phone calls or photos on a weekly basis.  We spent a lot of time getting to know here and her family when we were in the US initially and it helps when you get along so well.  Her husband and family are amazing and supportive of the process and she has the most wonderful daughter.  being able to communicate freely with here was a quality that was at the top of our list (other than the obvious healthy lifestyle etc) when we were choosing a surrogate mother, so we felt we were on the pregnancy journey with her.  And she’s not afraid to call us at any hour and share information like her morning sickness or the growth of her belly.

…Other gay dads in the village

You’d be surprised at how many there are in Australia alone, let alone around the world. that have been through surrogacy or are in the process of doing it.  We were lucky enough to find a great online support group called Gay Dads Australia  (www.gaydadsaustralia.com).  This is a fantastic group of Gay Dads & Families that share and collate all their experience and knowledge into an online forum and support group that anyone wanting to become a gay dad can join.  They have forums for each state and a national forum specifically for gay dads going through surrogacy. Unfortunately most of the people we are in contact with are in the Eastern States, we haven’t met many gay dads in WA, especially that have done it or doing it through surrogacy….YET!

….Essential Advice

DO YOUR RESEARCH! That is definitely the most important part, we spent the best part of a year researching and talking to people before making our move.  And find others that have done the same thing, you’ll need the support and experience that they can provide.  We would be more than happy to talk with anyone looking at the possibility of starting their family through Surrogacy.  We want to show people and create awareness of the options and that even if you are gay, that doesn’t mean you can’t be a parent.  And whether you go through adoption or surrogacy or co-parenting, the fact that you’re going to these great lengths just shows you want it more , are ready and will be a great parent!.

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Out In Perth - “Rainbow Families: Getting Started”

First published on 11 May 2009 in Out in Perth.

One of the most noticeable changes in the community in recent years is the increasingly high profile of GLBT families. There’s a diverse range of ways in which people are building families, and a vast range of issues and challenges involved. Over coming months, OUTinPerth will be catching up with people in our community to share some of the stories of the families they’re building and the issues they’re facing. This month, Marnie Woodley shares the story of how she, her partner Leonie and their friend Josh have approached starting a family.

‘My partner Leonie and I have been together for 7 years. We decided to have a baby and after much consideration, we asked my best gay male friend to be our known donor with a view to him playing an active parenting role in the child’s life. We gave him a year to think about it - and thankfully he said yes. We agreed to use a clinic to protect my parental rights (as the non-bio/non-birth mother) and to protect him from any financial obligation from Centrelink.

‘We talked LOTS and wrote up a five page parenting contract outlining everything we could think of regarding our co-parenting arrangement and had it notarised. Legally Josh will be a donor and as such, will have no legal rights or responsibilities regardless of the contract. However we wanted to make sure we all had similar expectations and we figured it would be a good back up if our relationship ever broke down so badly we ended up in court.

‘We completed the compulsory counselling through the clinic and Leonie and Josh completed all the tests and screening required by the clinic. There is a six month mandatory ‘cooling off’ period in WA if you use a known donor so we started our first IUI cycle in December 2005. Leonie fell pregnant our third round of IUI and had an early miscarriage at 6.5 weeks. We did another 9 rounds of IUI and had 5 more early miscarriages. We then decided to have a break from TTC.

‘Six months later (and a new fertility specialist) we looked into IVF. Over the next 8 months Leonie did 4 full IVF cycles and we got nowhere. Josh moved overseas for a job opportunity, we sold our investment property to fund our treatment and Leonie and I started to look at other options before our relationship disintegrated.

‘Originally we’d agreed that Lone would carry our first child and I would have our second, both with Josh as our donor/dad. We finally agreed on this after months of ‘debating’ about it because I really only wanted one child and therefore I obviously wanted to have the opportunity to be pregnant. But after watching Leonie go through so much and seeing how much she wanted to be pregnant, I realised I didn’t want it like she did. In fact, I had really taken on my role as non-bio/non-birth parent and I couldn’t imagine it any other way. After Leonie’s fourth IVF cycle we were starting to get desperate and we realised the end result was what was important, not how we got there.

‘So we suggested to our specialist that we use my eggs to get Leonie pregnant. I am 8 years younger than Leonie (29/37) and we figured that maybe it was an egg issue. No one could actually tell us why she couldn’t stay pregnant, which was so frustrating because we kept weighing up our options not knowing what was the problem in the first place. Our specialist didn’t know if using my eggs would make a difference but he supported us and we planned my egg pick up. After a cancelled cycle due to low response to the drugs, I finally had surgery on my 29th birthday. We ended up with 6 embryos (we’d only had 2 at most with Leonie) and the very first fresh transfer 5 days after my birthday worked. As I write, Leonie is now 31 weeks pregnant.

‘It’s been a very high risk pregnancy and we have spent most of it terrified that something would go wrong but we are feeling better as more time goes by. Josh has given up his job overseas and returned home ready for our baby to arrive in June. The three of us are very close after everything we’ve been through. Leonie and I came very close to separating from the stress of infertility - it does horrendous things to even the strongest relationship. We adore Josh - he has been such a support and held everything together when we were falling apart. We feel utterly grateful to have each other and be sharing this together.

‘We have also been blessed with some amazing friends and family members – we feel very lucky. We also made new friends through this process. We met Kelly and Sam Pilgrim-Byrne through a GLCS parenting forum, who also went through a very difficult journey to conceive their daughter Charlotte. They were just so supportive and helped us to pick up the pieces every time something went wrong, and we now consider them two of our dearest friends.

‘Our situation is very different to most of the people we people we know. The majority of our lesbian friends with children used anonymous donors through the clinic or had children in previous straight relationships. Some of our gay male friends would love to have children but don’t have the opportunity to do so due to the legal situation and a lack of willing co-parents/surrogates/egg donors. We had other friends offer before we asked Josh and I feel a lot of regret that our decision to ask Josh could ultimately end their opportunity to have children, as parenting options for gay men are still greatly limited.

‘Our precious baby is now due in less than nine weeks and we are starting to feel confident that we will finally have a baby to take home with us. We are well and truly organised and prepared. Nursery decorated, baby clothes and linen washed, birthing classes finished and hospital bag mostly packed. We are just so excited about meeting our baby, and finally putting all our plans and dreams of the last few years into practise at last.’

[Link: Original Article]

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Australian Government – Same Sex Couples and Child Support – New Laws

The Australian Federal Government through their Child Support Agency has released a “Same Sex Fact Sheet” about the changes to the law covering same sex couples and child support issues.  A full copy of the “fact sheet” is available here.  The following situations are exemplified in the “Fact Sheet”.  These laws come in on 1 July 2009.

[Link: Original Document]

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Gay Dads Australia – News & Media – Now Available on both iPhone and other Mobile Phones

The Gay Dads Australia News and Media blog is now easily accessible from all Mobile Phones (including iPhones).  Just simply visit http://gaydadsaustralia.mofuse.mobi/ using your Mobile phone browser, bookmark it and then just visit it to see the latest news on Gay and Lesbian parenting in Australia.  It is that simple.

[Link: Mobile Link]

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Gay Dads Australia – News Now on iPhone

If you have an Apple iPhone and would like to get this blog as a web app on the iPhone, all you need to do is open Safari on the iPhone and click this link or enter the following in your iPhone Safari browser: http://blog2iphone.com/blogs/GayDadsAustralia/#_home.  This will bring up a specially formatted iPhone web app for Gay Dads Australia news.  To save it, just add it to your home screen. 

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The Hump Day Crew – Joy 94.9 – Gay Dads Victoria – Surrogacy Forum

The Hump Day Crew chat to Rodney from Gay Dads Victoria about the upcoming Forum on Gay Surrogacy, his personal story of the birth of his son Ethan in America and much more around surrogacy.

To find out more about this group visit their website www.gaydadsaustralia.com

Click here to listen to the full interview!

[Link: Original Article]

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Same Same - “Australia’s Surrogacy Pitfalls” by Christian Taylor

News.com.au have reported on a Queensland woman who is acting as a surrogate for her gay brother. The baby she’s carrying was fathered by a third party through artificial insemination, and the gay man plans to raise the baby as a single dad. The baby is due early in 2010 and will know who its biological mother is.

The article reports that the surrogacy is illegal in her home state of Queensland.

“Surrogacy laws in Australia are largely regulated by the states and it varies from state to state,” says gay legal professional Ghassan Kassisieh. “In Queensland, all surrogacy is illegal. In NSW, commercial surrogacy (paying a fee or giving a reward for surrogacy services) will be outlawed when the Assisted Reproductive Technology Act 2007 commences, but altruistic surrogacy (where there is no financial gain or reward involved) will remain legal. Advertising for surrogacy services is also illegal in some states.”

“I understand that my own situation is a little different to what people would normally hear about,” the father to be told News.com.au.

“I guess the other thing that makes my situation a little unique is that I intend to be a sole parent. I am single, and am looking forward to being a single dad.”

Rodney Cruise, a spokesperson for Gay Dads Australia, told News.com.au that there could be hundreds of these kinds of surrogacy pregnancies happening out there, despite the illegality. Cruise says that these arrangements are considered, well-planned and that the man is lucky to have a family member who is willing to do this for him.

Some experts say that such arrangements are unnecessarily breaking the bonds between mother, father and child, and that prospective parents can be faced with children who, down the track, may demand to live with their biological parents.

“Sometimes [children] decide not to get along with their parents with whom they live with because they have leaving options. What if the sister didn’t like the way her brother raised her child? She could legally take the child back.”

“Apart from the legality of surrogacy, the big problem is really after a child is born and determining who are the legal parents,” says Kassisieh. “In most states (including NSW), the surrogate mother (and her partner, if any) will be the legal parents and there are very few avenues for having the child legally recognised as the child of the intended parent(s). This is the case even if the surrogacy arrangement goes to plan and the parties are all in agreement.

“In such states, the best option for the intended parents is a parenting order from the Family Court awarding them parental responsibility, however this does not grant all the rights of full legal parentage. The surrogate mother and her partner, if any, remain as the legal parents to the child (e.g. for inheritance reasons, accident compensation, state and federal-based legal rights etc.) for the remainder of their child’s life.

“In some states (e.g. ACT, Victoria, WA), the intended parents can get a court order in some circumstances transfering the legal parentage from the surrogate mother (and her partner, if any) if the surrogate mother consents. This effectively allows the intended parents to ‘adopt’ their child, if all parties agree, the agreement satisfies the conditions of the law, and the court determines that a parentage order would be in the best interests of the child. In other words, the child is fully recognised as the child of the intended parents – and not the child of anyone else.”

 

[Link: Original Article]

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Channel 7 – Sunrise - “Gay Surrogacy Debate” with Jason Tuazon-McCheyne – Watch Online

From Videos - Public

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Marie Claire Magazine - “What Does Your Family Look Like?” by Alison Tait

From “Families of Friends” to living with the in-laws, our home life has never been more diverse.  Allison Tait talks to seven Australians about the most important people in their lives.

(Ed: One of those couples is Ben Hall and Arthur Thomson and their four children, Brooke, Emma, Aiden and Ashton)

Gay couple Ben and Arthur say having their children through surrogates was difficult – but definitely worth it.

“Arthur and I went to great lengths to have our children – and we love and appreciate them so much.  A year after we met, in 2000, we approached an American agency that matched us with a surrogate and egg donor.  It was the only option; in Australia, single or gay men can’t adopt.

“For three years, we went through the heartache of failed attempts – either the pregnancies didn’t take, or donors pulled out.  It was a stressful, emotional – and expensive – time.  But I believe in chasing what you want.  You only get one shot at life.  We were there, in South Dakota for the birth of the girls, and the experience was sheer happiness.  I was in awe of, and in love with, these babies.

“All our children are biologically the kids of one of us, but we don’t talk about who.  We’d prefer they were viewed as ‘ours’. We’ve never had a negative response to being two gay dads.  Kids at creche have raised it, but our children just say, ‘I’ve got two daddies’.  We’re mindful the girls need female influences, and they spend time with our female friends.  The kids do ask about their mum, and we say they don’t have one; an egg donor is not a mother. We tell them they have two dads – two dads who love them to death”.

[Link: Original Article]

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News.com.au - “Queensland woman impregnated by donor sperm, surrogate for her single gay brother” by Mark Schliebs

A WOMAN is due to give birth to a child for her gay brother after impregnating herself with donor sperm from a third party - an act that is illegal in her home state of Queensland.

At the centre of the startling story, the homosexual man says pregnancy tests taken last month have proven that his sister is carrying what will become his first child.

The man, aged in his mid-twenties, said his older sister, who has two teenage children herself, agreed to carry a child for him earlier this year and became pregnant after being artificially inseminated with another man's sperm.

It is not known if the child, due to be born early next year, will know the identity of its biological mother. It will not have interaction with the biological father.

"I understand that my own situation is a little different to what people would normally hear about," the man told news.com.au in an email.

The siblings declined to be interviewed for this story.

Stephen Page, a partner at Brisbane's Harrington Family Lawyers and an expert on gay and lesbian law issues, said all surrogacy arrangements in Queensland were illegal.

But Mr Page said the only way for the pregnancy to be legal would be if the child would be treated as her own.

In a post on an internet forum in April, the "gay dad-to-be" admitted that his case was "unorthodox".

"I guess the other thing that makes my situation a little unique is that I intend to be a sole parent. I am single, and am looking forward to being a single dad."

He added that he was not opposed to having a partner after the child's birth.

Rodney Cruise, a father of two who heads Gay Dads Australia, said he would like congratulate the Queensland man on his good news.

"I think it's great that the man has a family member so willing to do this," Mr Cruise said.

"(Surrogacy pregnancies) doesn't happen in a backseat of a car after three Bacardi Breezers, these are well planned and well thought-out.

"Who would (a child) rather want: a loving caring gay father… or an alcoholic woman with an abusive drug addicted partner?

"In terms of the legality of (surrogacy), I'm sure that there’s hundreds and hundreds of cases out there."

But Anglican bishop and academic Tom Frame, who was adopted at a young age and believes that he might never know who his biological father is, said the impact on such an arrangement would be overwhelming for a child.

"We've got a child here who will grow up without its biological mother or father," Dr Frame said.

"We are deliberately breaking to bond between the father, the mother and the child. I think if you don't need to do that, don't do it."

Dr Frame said if the child did know its aunt was its biological mother, it could react the same way his own sister - who was also adopted - did and demand to live with her.

"Sometimes (children) decide not to get along with their parents with whom they live with because they have leaving options.

"What if the sister didn't like the way her brother raised her child? She could legally take the child back."

Mr Page said it could be possible for an unmarried person to legally gain custody and guardianship of a child, but adopting it would be difficult.

"(In Queensland) you've got to be married for two years to adopt," Mr Page said. "It actively discriminates against gays and lesbians."

He said an unmarried person could seek a Supreme Court order, but the costs of a trial would be overwhelming.

John Morrissey from the Australian Family Association said the child would be born out of "vanity".

"It's a strange situation," Mr Morrissey said. "It's not giving the kid a normal family.

"He wants to have a baby, the baby doesn't get a say (and) it's not about what the baby wants."

[Link: Original Article]

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