Shigeta asks to take babies back to Japan

Shigeta asks to take babies back to Japan

HSS wants 'no blood ties' surrogacy ban

Japanese businessman Mitsutoki Shigeta's Thai lawyer has contacted Lat Phrao police asking for permission to take all the babies he is thought to have fathered using surrogate mothers back to Japan.

Screen grab from Australian TV shows a couple who succeeded in returning to Perth from Bangkok with their twins who were born to a Thai surrogate mother.

Investigation team head Pol Col Pakphum Poolsirisopha said Tuesday that Mr Shigeta had assigned his lawyer, Kong Suriyamonthon, to provide documentation to Thai police saying why he wanted to have so many babies via surrogates and bring them to Japan.

However, police have asked Mr Shigeta for the originals of the documents appointing Mr Kong as his lawyer and also the translation of his request concerning the babies. The process is expected to take around a week.

Mr Kong also proposed that Thai police question Mr Shigeta in Japan but this is still under consideration, Pol Col Pakphum said.

Mr Shigeta reportedly fathered 15 babies, including nine babies found at a Lat Phrao condo, via surrogates in Thailand.

Meanwhile, Lumpini station chief investigator Pol Col Decha Promsuwan said a probe into the links between the surrogate mothers and the agencies involved is still under way in the Shigeta case. Pol Col Decha said so far police have asked six of 11 women who provided surrogacy services at the All IVF fertility clinic to testify.

The clinic is owned by Pisit Tantiwutthanakul. He is scheduled to provide his testimony next month.

Two of the mothers told police Tuesday that they were contacted by agencies to take part in surrogacy arrangements and paid 300,000 baht and 400,000 baht respectively. They also admitted to being surrogates at the All IVF clinic and said Dr Pisit delivered their babies in July.

The Department of Health Service Support (HSS) issued a doctors' proposal Tuesday that called for a ban on surrogate mothers with no blood ties in the surrogacy bill currently being drafted.

They said the draft submitted by the Social Development and Human Security ministry does not include a ban on surrogates who are not relatives of the intended parents.

Director-general Boonruang Triruangworawat said the decision to submit the proposal after a recent meeting between the HSS, the Medical Council of Thailand, and the Royal Thai College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

"We think the draft should add that eligible surrogate mothers must be relatives [of the intended parents] to prevent commercial surrogacy," he said.

HSS deputy director-general Thares Karasnairaviwong said the department would prepare its proposal for the Royal Gazette and the National Legislative Assembly. He said there could be exceptions for some cases, such as when the intended parents could not find any relatives to carry a baby.

The HSS also gave an update on the results of raids on 12 clinics providing assisted reproductive technology services this and last month.

Five of them were found to be in violation of the HSS's Sanatorium Act 1998 because they are general clinics but were providing surrogacy services without licences.

Two also violated the act as they had opened surrogacy clinics without licenses while three were found to be surrogacy agencies but advertised themselves as clinics.

Only two were found to comply with the laws and regulations.

The HSS found a total of six doctors were involved.

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