11th February 2026
Last week on the 7th of January 2026, the Special Raporteur on the sale, sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children, Mama Fatima Singhateh published a new report A/HRC/61/45 on “Protecting children from sale, sexual exploitation and sexual abuse: progress, new frontiers and the path forward”.
FAFCE contributed to the call for input for this report on the protection of children from sexual abuse and sale, which will be debated on the next Human Rights Council Session 61, starting on the 23d of february 2026.
FAFCE contribution brings attention firstly, to the fact that the practice of surrogacy is a form of child trafficking, and secondly to the threat of Online Sexual Abuse of Children through the access of pornography online.
FAFCE calls for the recognition of surrogacy as a form of human trafficking and for the adoption at the United Nations of an international abolition of surrogacy.
Further, FAFCE calls for the recognition of the consequences of exposure to pornography, as an issue of public health, and the recognition of child pornography consumption as child sexual abuse.
Here is the full text of FAFCE’s contribution, published at the United Nations OHCHR website:
Call for input – Protecting children from sale, sexual exploitation and sexual abuse: progress, new frontiers and the path forward
To: Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children
1. The practice of Surrogacy – a form of Child Trafficking
There is strong evidence of the links regarding surrogacy practices and child trafficking in Europe. Through surrogacy, women and motherhood are the victims for commercial purposes of organized crime. The Federation of Catholic Family Associations in Europe would like to invite the United Nations to inspire an international ban on surrogacy, as a form of human trafficking of children, and on many occasions women too. Displacement and moving of pregnant women and unborn children for the purposes of surrogacy is a key element in this type of human trafficking. For instance, this has been put to light in the aftermath of the war in Ukraine by the International Organization for Migration, as well as in cases of women being trafficked for the purpose of surrogacy in Europe addressed by EUROPOL. Often, the purchasing party (“the client”) lives in a different State than the mother, and requires her displacement for medical checkups, delivery, circumvention of national laws, or other reasons to the country of origin of the client. On the other hand, the child is always trafficked, and the birth certificate is falsified, refusing the child to know his/her identity and their right to know one’s origin.
Research has highlighted the displacement of pregnant women to sell their children through illegal adoptions and baby trafficking. According to the organisation CIAMS, “Bulgarian, Georgian and Roma women were taken to private clinics in Greece to give birth before their babies were sold for illegal adoption. Others were taken to private clinics to have their eggs harvested and some were used as ‘surrogate mothers’”. The United Nations Human Rights Council underlined cases around the world and the importance of addressing surrogacy and the sale of children.
UNICEF also addressed the risks of surrogacy for children, stating: “Children born through surrogacy, especially ISAs, are at risk of multiple human rights violations – particularly, their right to an identity, including name, nationality, family relations and access to origins; the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health; and the right to not be sold [the latter also stated in the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (OPSC)]. Decisions may be made by adults in surrogacy situations which are discriminatory based on the child’s disability and/or gender, and which are contrary to the child’s best interests as the paramount consideration.”
Children shall not be used as objects, under any circumstance, as it happens in the case of surrogacy. FAFCE explains that surrogacy motherhood is an exploitation of the woman’s body, and also an exploitation of the child which is the object of a transaction – whether commercial or “in natura”. Mother and child are forcibly separated from each other, causing long term trauma in both the child and the mother. The child, who only knows the mother, is forced into the arms of clients who, whether in return of financial compensation or any other kind of retribution, or nothing at all, is deprived from the only reference. There are reasonable grounds to believe that further widespread cases of human trafficking occur in the context of surrogacy, and that the market of this crime is financially powerful. The woman is not only a carrier, but she is also a mother in its full biological, psychological and philosophical sense. Cells are exchanged between her and the children, moments, feelings, and genetic material.
A child should never be considered the object of a transaction whether or not pecuniary. It is against human dignity and the best interest of the child. The child in the womb has no voice, has no option, has no choice in such a transcending decision. Children’s rights and wellbeing are suffering under the consequences of the desire of adults. This trend of commodification and sale of children, and exploitation of women and motherhood should be abolished. Surrogacy has shown the traumatic consequences in surrogate children as well as to their physical and mental health.
In line with the theme of the 68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women in New York and with the 56th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva several side events were organized to advocate for States and the international community to work together towards the adoption of an international legally binding instrument for the abolition of surrogacy in all its forms.
The human trafficking of children highlights the need for an international ban on surrogacy, promoted by the United Nations. The selling of children through surrogacy has also been on the agenda of the OHCHR in the past. Surrogacy has also been included in the amended EU Directive 2011/36/EU on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims.
- Focus on the Rights of the Child
As the 2025 report of Special Rapporteur Reem Alsalem report on “The different manifestations of violence against women and girls in the context of surrogacy” emphasises the are several rights of children that are extremely violated in surrogacy arrangements. Firstly, the right to identity and origin (some children born via surrogacy may face legal, social or identity limbo). In addition, the right to protection from exploitation and from being treated as a commodity. Further on, the need for states to ensure children’s best interests are central in any regulatory or legal framework dealing with surrogacy.
In 2020 already the Parliamentary Assembly raised its concerns in “Concerted action against human trafficking and the smuggling of migrants” (Resolution 2323 (2020)) on the risks children face with regards to trafficking:
“10. The Assembly furthermore invites the Parties to the Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings to consider common policies to combat human trafficking for the purpose of forced marriage or illegal adoption and better protect victims […].”
Next steps have been taken to deepen the investigation of the exploitation of women in Ukraine.
How is the child’s right, wherever possible, to know and be cared for by his or her parents (Article 7.1 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child) taken into account in relevant laws, policies and regulations regarding surrogacy?
The practice of surrogacy not only violates the dignity of surrogate mothers, but forget as well to consider the heart of its “business”, the child, which interests to know and be raised by its parents (Article 2 §2 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child) are completely overlooked. To protect women’s bodies from being treated as a mere object and children from being bought as a merchandise, we recall our demand to stop the practice of surrogacy worldwide.
The practice of surrogacy deliberately violates the fundamental rights of children to know and be cared by their biological parents (Article 7 of the United Nations Convention on the Right of the Child: “Every child has the right to be registered at birth, to have a name and nationality, and, as far as possible, to know and be cared for by their parents.”), and does not comply with the requirements of the international adoption rules, which are the safeguards for the wellbeing of abandoned children (Article 21 of the United Nations Convention on the Right of the Child: “Governments must oversee the process of adoption to make sure it is safe, lawful and that it prioritises children’s best interests. Children should only be adopted outside of their country if they cannot be placed with a family in their own country.”). Member-States have a legal duty to prevent the trafficking of children, under the Article 2 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the commodification of vulnerable women’s bodies.
- Legal frameworks in Europe about Child Trafficking in Surrogacy
How adequate are current systems and strategies in Europe in protecting children effectively against the threat of child trafficking in surrogacy practices?
On the practice of surrogacy: this practice is often pursued illegally outside the country of residence. In the name of an easier cross-border recognition of filiation, it should not be allowed nor made possible to overrule or undo the violation of the law of a Member State, especially when the situation results from or implies deliberately circumventing a domestic legal system. The European Commission furthermore does not have any ground to legislate on practices that are illegal in most EU countries, such as surrogacy. On the contrary, the European Commission should work towards a total ban on this practice, which is contrary to human rights and inherent dignity, and constitutes a form of human trafficking.
In 2005, the Social, Health and Family Affairs Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) decided not to pursue its work on a report “For recognition and supervision of surrogacy as an alternative to sterility”. At this time, the Committee concluded that “it was unable for the time being to submit proposals on the matter to the Assembly”.
On the contrary, in recent years, courts across Europe and, in particular, the European Court of Human Rights have followed a trend facilitating surrogacy, on the ground of the alleged child’s best interests.
FAFCE considers that it is not in the child’s best interest to be born through a practice that deliberately deprives a child of his or her gestational mother and that it is not in the interest of a woman to be used for giving birth to a child for someone else. Thus, recognising the problems of surrogacy arrangements, everything should be done to prevent couples and individuals from resorting to this practice. It is in the primary and best interest of the child not to be born following a surrogacy arrangement, which is for-profit in most cases and which, in either case, deprives the child of his/her gestational mother.
The European Parliament has clearly condemned the practice of surrogacy, without distinction between “altruistic” and “commercial” surrogacy. On 5 April 2011 the European Parliament adopted a resolution, asking “Member States to acknowledge the serious problem of surrogacy which constitutes an exploitation of the female body and her reproductive organs”. This resolution also emphasised “that women and children are subject to the same forms of exploitation and both can be regarded as commodities on the international reproductive market, and that these new reproductive arrangements, such as surrogacy, augment the trafficking of women and children and illegal adoption across national borders”.
In 2021, the European Parliament stated that the “sexual exploitation for surrogacy and reproductive purposes […] is unacceptable and a violation of human dignity and human rights.”
In October 2023 the European Parliament finally recognised “surrogacy as a crime of human trafficking”. Moreover, surrogacy has been considered together with crimes as slavery, forced marriage, illegal adoption or exploitation of children. That decision was jointly taken by the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) and the one on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM).
In May 2024 the Council of the European Union adopted a directive focused on the topic of human trafficking. Building on the already existing directive, the latest addition includes “the exploitation of surrogacy, of forced marriage and of illegal adoption as forms of exploitation covered by the EU’s anti-trafficking law”.
General Recommendations to combat Child Trafficking:
In the name of all its Members, the Federation of Catholic Family Associations in Europe, recommends and invites the United Nations Special Rapporteur on on the sale and sexual exploitation of children :
- To establish a common mandate with the United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls and the Committee on the Rights of the Child in order to promote an international ban on surrogacy, through an International Human Rights instrument binding on States.
- To follow the 2025 report of Special Rapporteur Reem Alsalem report on “The different manifestations of violence against women and girls in the context of surrogacy”
- To draw a proposal in order to reinforce basic rights of human dignity of children, through enhancing police cooperation in relation to the prevention, detection and investigation of this crime. More preemptive detection and police cooperation would be needed due to a multifactor crime that affects vulnerable women and children. It is a multiple crime: illegal adoption, purchasing of human beings, human trafficking of children, forced separation of mothers and children, smuggling and selling of children.
- To establish prevention and accountability measures in relation to trafficking in persons through surrogacy and further investigate transnational transactions in the context of surrogacy and put to light abuses in contractual agreements in the context of surrogacy, whether it has been legalized in the State or not.
- To propose trainings for relevant personnel to identify, document and denounce situations with risks of trafficking in the context of surrogacy, including through the expert worldwide network created by the Casablanca Declaration. The trainings shall be mandatory for peacekeeping personnel on trafficking in persons for all purposes of exploitation including surrogacy in conflict areas.
- To design a coordinated response and programmes on prevention, protection and recovery from conflict-related sexual violence, psycho-social and medical support services, which mainstream trafficking in persons, particularly in the context of surrogacy.
Should the possibility of developing a dedicated international instrument governing surrogacy be explored, and if so, what form should it take?
FAFCE hopes that all the International institutions will recognise surrogacy as a form of human trafficking. In fact, the United Nations could contribute to the elaboration of an international convention on private international law aspects to tackle cross-border surrogacy in close cooperation with Member States, to prevent the Human Rights abuses of both mother and child. On the same grounds, as an European Parliament’s Directorate-General for Internal Policies Report suggested in 2010, the United Nations could positively contribute to the work of the Hague Conference for Private International Law. A ban and a strong disincentive for this practice should be promoted in all Member States, discouraging reproductive tourism which also fuels human trafficking and exploitation, without any respect for human dignity.
Should a specific international instrument focus on banning or regulating surrogacy?
The practice of surrogacy is spreading throughout the world, creating a slippery slope to the right to a child, without any respect for human rights and fundamental ethical principles. An international abolition of surrogacy would be the only solution to secure the human rights of all parties concerned. In fact, surrogacy violates International and European law, in particular the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (2000) , the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and its Protocol on the Sale of Children (2000), the Conventions on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979), on the Adoption of Children (1967 and 1993), on Human Trafficking (2005) and on Human Rights and Biomedicine (1997). The defence of human rights must adapt to new threats on humans. The International community must set an example for the universal abolition of surrogacy.
FAFCE argues that one additional sentence to article 3 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union would be sufficient to clarify the principle of the inalienability of the human person and the non-commercialisation of the human body. An additional protocol to the International Convention of the rights of the Child or a specific international convention on the prohibition of surrogacy could also be proposed.
2. The threat of Online Sexual Abuse of Children
One of the main challenges we would like to bring your attention to is the plague of online access of children to pornography, also seen as a form of online abuse. Most children, and at an earlier age, use their online devices on an almost constant basis. However, online activity can expose children to risks such as cyberbullying, access to age-inappropriate content, “self-generated” sexually explicit content (sexting), solicitation for the purposes of sexual exploitation (grooming), and child sexual abuse and exploitation. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these trends, as it led to a further increase in use of online devices by children. Current regulations are non exhaustive, more research is needed and further measures need to be developed, starting from recognising that children’s exposure to pornography is already a form of online sexual abuse. Therefore, the fact that online pornographic content is accessible to minors is itself a breach of human rights.
Furthermore, pornography represents an issue of public health: not only it has a damaging impact on young people’s brains, as it may lead to addiction, and has serious consequences in the construction of sexuality in the pivotal period of young people’s psychosexual development, but also encourages gender stereotypes by objectifying women and is linked to violent behaviours and sexual dysfunction caused by cerebral habituation to pornographic content.
With the widespread use of mobile devices it becomes increasingly difficult for parents, teachers and educators to protect children from the exposure to pornography. The average age for the first use of the internet among European children is 7 years. 75% of 15-16 years old people use the internet daily. A UK study found that, on average, children aged 5-16 spend 6.5 hours a day on screens.
Exposure of minors to pornography is widespread in Europe. In Italy, a survey found that 67% of boys aged 14-19 and 15% of girls have watched pornographic material. In Sweden, 92% of boys and 57% of girls of 15-18 years of age have watched pornography. Exposure to pornography can happen even earlier: in the UK, a survey of children aged 11-16 found that more than half of them were exposed to such contents.
In the context of preventing the exposure of children to pornography parents and educators need tools that enable them to protect children. The constantly increasing access to screens, especially through mobile devices, induces a need for protective instruments that are up to date. Legislators have a duty to search for ways to guarantee the protection of minors from harmful contents on the internet and TV.
At the European level, the European Parliament approved an extension to the current rules that allow for the detection of Child Sexual Abuse Material online. While the temporary extension is necessary, the detection and prevention of abuse material needs long-term solutions, with the backing of civil society and families’ organisations. While this is an urgent issue that cannot be solved only by extending temporary measures, we welcomed this extension and reiterate our calls for the inclusion of age verification systems, and parental controls.
General Recommendations to combat Sexual Exploitation of Children Online:
FAFCE urges the Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children to consider the following steps:
- promote more research on the consequences of exposure to pornography, as an issue of public health;
- further analyse the links between pornography consumption and child sexual abuse;
- raise awareness of the fight against the oversexualisation of children;
- explore the feasibility of an international ban on pornography.
