Text of Declaration

We, signatories of this Declaration,

Aware of

The suffering of the people who may not conceive
The attractiveness of the reproductive technologies
And of the international issue of an efficient protection for human dignity

Convinced that the contract through which one or several orderers agree with a woman that she will carry one or several children for the purpose of their delivery upon birth, regardless to the name and terms and conditions of such contract, here below called surrogacy,

Violates human dignity
And contributes to the commodification of women and children

Require from the States the prohibition of surrogacy in every modalities and kinds, whether remunerated or not, and the implementation of measures to fight such practice.

For this purpose, we make the following recommendations to the States:

Prohibit surrogacy on their territory
Deny any legal validity to contracts bearing the undertaking from a woman to carry and deliver a child
Punish individuals and corporations acting as intermediaries**** between the surrogacy mothers** and the orderers***
Prosecute individuals who have recourse to a surrogate mother on their territory
Prosecute their nationals who have recourse to a surrogate mother outside their territory
Act in favor of the implementation of a legal instrument bearing global prohibition of the surrogacy.

Attached to this Declaration, is a draft international Convention, freely available to the States wishing to commit themselves in such process.

* Surrogacy, gestational surrogacy, surrogate motherhood, reproductive exploitation, use of a surrogate, is the arrangement by wich one or several orderers agree with a woman that she will carry one or several children for the purpose of their delivery upon birth, regardless the arrangement has been entered into directly by them or though one or several third parties.
** Gestational carrier, surrogate, or substitute mother: woman undertaking, to the benefit of one or several orderers, that she will carry for their account one or several children to be delivered to them at birth.

*** Orderer(s) : individual or individuals, also called clients or intended parents, who enter into an agreement with a woman, for her to carry for their account one or several children to be delivered to them at birth.

**** Intermediaries for the purpose of the surrogacy : individual(s) or corporate body(ies) putting in contact a woman and one or several orderers so that she will carry one or several children and delivered them upon birth and/or mediate between the woman and the orderer(s) for such purpose

Schedule – International Convention for the global prohibition of surrogacy

The signatory States to this Convention,

Aware of

The suffering of the people who may not conceive
The attractiveness of the reproductive technologies
And of the international issue of an efficient protection for human dignity

Convinced that the contract through which on or several orderers agree with a woman that she will carry one or several children for their delivery upon birth, whatever name and terms and conditions of such contract, here below called surrogacy,

Violates human dignity
And contributes to the commodification of women and children

Denounce surrogacy in any modalities and kinds, whether remunerated or not.

Undertake to fight against such practice to protect and preserve human dignity and women’s and children’s rights, through the implementation of effective measures, including by :

Prohibiting surrogacy on their territory
Denying any legal validity to contracts bearing the undertaking from a woman to carry and deliver a child
Punishing individuals and corporations acting as intermediaries between the surrogacy mothers and the orderers
Prosecuting individuals who have recourse to a surrogate mother on their territory
Prosecuting their nationals who have recourse to a surrogate mother outside their territory

The Casablanca Declaration for the universal abolition of surrogacy, signed by 100 experts (lawyers, doctors, psychologists, philosophers etc.) of 75 nationalities, was made public in Casablanca (Morocco) on March 3, 2023.

This text is not the property of any structure. The text is available to any State, organization or person who wishes to save humanity from the scourge of surrogacy.

No authorization is required from anyone to use the content of the Declaration or the proposal for an international Convention appended thereto.

The Casablanca Declaration is the contribution that the signatories experts are happy to offer to humanity, to each and everyone need it.