Netanyahu's shift to the right to surrogacy attracts massive protests from LGBTs



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Protesters for LGBT rights march in the streets of Tel Aviv Sunday, calling on the government to recognize their equal rights to parents such as marriage, adoption and surrogacy. (Abir Sultan / EPA-EFE / Shutterstock)

Waving Rainbow Flags and Demanding Equal Rights, members of the LGBT community of Israel and their supporters gathered Sunday to protest the government 's refusal to amend a law allowed gay couples to father children via surrogacy.

Their anger was triggered by an apparent reversal of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who pledged to support a key change in the surrogacy law but voted against an amendment when it was introduced the week before. last in the Knesset. were held throughout the day while members of the larger community also announced a widely supported day-long strike throughout the Israeli labor force and supported by many multinational companies.

In Tel Aviv, at the heart of Israel's LGBT community, the main roads were blocked for nearly an hour and a central event drew hundreds of thousands of supporters chanting against Netanyahu and the policies of his government. In Jerusalem, protesters clashed with police outside the official residence of the prime minister and two people were arrested for disturbing the peace.

Netanyahu has expressed support for LGBT rights in the past, and in a Facebook post last Monday he acknowledged the need to repair the "unfair" surrogacy law. But its coalition partners, including the conservative and ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties, strongly oppose the extension of these rights for LGBT families. His critics say that's why he finally chose to vote against the change.

After the vote, Netanyahu posted an additional Facebook post saying that he supported surrogacy for fathers as well as for mothers. He said he would support more comprehensive legislation on the issue in the future.

The law on surrogate mothers of Israel was adopted 22 years ago, but it does not provide a real solution to all those who want to become parents. Rosenblum, founder and CEO of New Family, a non-profit group that helps and supports the creation of alternative families.

An amendment to the law approved last week means that single women, in addition to heterosexual couples, can begin the maternity process to have children.

Yet, says Rosenblum, the law remains deeply restrictive. the age of the mother concerned, as well as that of the surrogate mother, demanding that the religion of the persons involved be the same and dictating that the relational status of the surrogate be unique

In addition, the claimants must be evaluated by a committee, a slow and bureaucratic process that has led to the birth of less than 700 babies through surrogacy since the adoption of the law. Instead, about 500 to 600 babies a year are born to surrogates abroad, not only for homosexual couples, but also for heterosexual couples struggling to get pregnant.

[Among Nepal’s earthquake survivors: Israeli gays and their surrogate babies]

"To become parents, we have to travel abroad and spend thousands of dollars," said Shai Davis, Shai Davis, a member of the LGBTech board of directors, an organization of health professionals. technology dedicated to the enrichment of lesbian community, gay,

He said the protests were also in response to a "culture of intolerance and a series of incidents against the community these last months."

"It's coming to a head right now," said Davis, co-founder of the Israel Diversity Standard to promote equality for all groups at the workplace. "There was great hope for change and now there is a huge disappointment that he has not managed to materialize despite a promise from the Prime Minister."