UN Labels Surrogacy Modern Slavery SHOCK

The United Nations has condemned the global surrogacy industry as a form of modern slavery that exploits vulnerable women and commodifies children, calling for worldwide bans despite claims of consensual arrangements.

Story Highlights

• A UN Special Rapporteur report has declared that the surrogacy industry can constitute human rights violations.
• The $14 billion industry is projected to reach $129 billion by 2032 through systematic exploitation of economically disadvantaged women.
• International networks dismantled in Greece and Mexico have revealed captive-like conditions for surrogate mothers.
• Cross-border arrangements create power imbalances that undermine genuine autonomy and protect vulnerable populations.

UN Declares Surrogacy Industry Violates Human Rights

The UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls released a thematic report in May 2025 that fundamentally challenges the surrogacy industry’s legitimacy. Multiple human rights organizations submitted evidence documenting systematic exploitation, with the report concluding that consent alone cannot justify practices that constitute human rights violations. The findings directly contradict industry claims that contractual agreements make surrogacy arrangements ethical, instead revealing how economic desperation undermines genuine autonomy and creates conditions that have been compared to modern slavery.

A new UN report unequivocally condemns surrogacy as “exploitation and violence against women and children.” It calls for a global ban, criminalizing buyers and agencies, and delivers a long-overdue scathing rebuttal to those who promote so-called “ethical surrogacy.” For more… pic.twitter.com/lwD5rwALbk

— The European Conservative (@EuroConOfficial) August 28, 2025

Massive Industry Built on Exploitation of Vulnerable Women

The commercial surrogacy market has grown from a $14 billion industry in 2022 to a projected $129 billion by 2032, driven by cross-border arrangements that exploit economic disparities. Women from developing countries in Georgia, Kenya, Cambodia, and Mexico face significant power imbalances with wealthy foreign clients seeking reproductive services. These arrangements systematically target economically disadvantaged women who lack educational resources and bargaining power, creating exploitation networks that prioritize profit over human dignity and family integrity.

International Scandals Expose Slavery-Like Conditions

Recent enforcement actions reveal the industry’s dark reality behind polished marketing campaigns. Greek authorities dismantled exploitation networks in 2023 that trapped foreign women as surrogate mothers and egg donors under controlled conditions. Mexico’s Tabasco region, which legalized surrogacy in 1997, faced such widespread abuses involving unlicensed clinics and captive conditions that authorities implemented major reforms in 2016. These cases demonstrate how the industry operates through systematic deception, coercion, and control that violates basic human rights.

The UN report emphasizes that power imbalances between surrogates and commissioning parties are exacerbated by poverty, lack of education, and cross-border legal complexities. Agencies often control information and resources while isolating surrogate mothers from independent legal counsel or medical advocacy. This creates dependency relationships that mirror historical patterns of exploitation condemned by international human rights law.

1/ NEW UN REPORT: Surrogacy = violence & exploitation of women & children.
The UN Special Rapporteur @UNSRVAW calls it a serious human rights violation.#StopSurrogacy #HumanRights pic.twitter.com/0L1AjfxRu7

— UniversalSurrogacyAbolition (@CasaDeclaration) August 23, 2025

Threats to Family Values and Child Welfare

Beyond exploiting women, the surrogacy industry has been criticized for commodifying children and undermining traditional family structures. Children born through surrogacy arrangements face legal uncertainties, potential separation from birth mothers, and complex identity issues that prioritize adult desires over child welfare. The industry promotes a transactional view of reproduction that treats children as products to be manufactured and delivered rather than human beings deserving stable family environments from conception through birth.

Sources:

WYA Submits Report on Surrogacy to UN Special Rapporteur
Commercial Surrogacy Between Ethics and Legalization
SRVAWG Surrogacy Joint Submission
Call for Input: Thematic Report Special Rapporteur Violence Against Women and Girls
Human Rights Surrogacy