FOR years, sperm and
human egg donations have been shrouded in secrecy.
Like sex in the 1950s, the subject was taboo. Donors
remained anonymous, parents never talked about it
and donor children knew nothing.
Yet 1.5 per cent of all births in Australia have
been achieved through some form of assisted conception.
In other words, about 3600 children are born each
year because one or both parents had problems conceiving
a child naturally.
Since Australia's first in-vitro fertilisation birth
in 1980, more than 37,000 IVF babies have been born
in the country.
The Commonwealth Government has not universally legislated
for the practice of Assisted Reproductive Technology
(ART). However, Australian Health Ethics has issued
guidelines. This means each state and territory is
responsible for the implementation of separate legislation.
There are, however, some rules that are applicable
to all states – first, donors cannot be paid; second,
they have no legal rights and cannot be held responsible
for the financial upkeep of the donor children; third,
birth parents are lawfully deemed to be the legal
parents.
It is amazing that after more than 20 years of IVF
births, most donor-conceived children are still ignorant
of their biological parents – they have been kept
deliberately in the dark.
"The problem often lies with the parents," says Helen
Szoke, head of the Infertility Treatment Authority
in Melbourne.
She says parents are reluctant to tell their children
the truth because they fear rejection by the children.They
feel there may be a stigma associated with their inability
to conceive children naturally and they prefer not
to be accused of being different from other parents.
So these children often go through life not knowing
the truth about their biological parents.
Neither do they have the right to demand to know
the full identity of their genetic parents.
Nor do they have the right to meet them – unless
they get the written permission of the donor.
These children also grow up without knowing about
any medical or physical problems their genetic parents
may have experienced.
However, Professor Gab Kovacs, medical director
of Monash IVF, part of Monash University's Institute
of Reproduction and Development in Melbourne, says
it is often irrelevant for a donor offspring to know
whether the donor died of a heart attack or some other
disease.
"Donors are thoroughly screened for all contagious
and hereditary diseases before they are accepted as
sperm donors. But if they subsequently die of a heart
attack, the chances of the donor's family reporting
that to the sperm bank is highly unlikely. It is also
unnecessary for the donor child to be notified because
they are not being disadvantaged. Neither can they
do anything about it."
But the tide is changing. Increasingly more progressive
legislation is being introduced, with Victoria leading
the way.
In 1988, Victoria introduced a central register of
sperm and egg donors, their recipients and the donor
children.
All births must be registered and should include
identifying details of the donors, the recipients
and the child born.
Identifying information can be released only with
the consent of the person involved.
Ten years later, the legislation changed. Since January
1998, all donor children have the right to access
identifying information about their biological parents
when they reach 18 years of age.
Interestingly, since legislation changed to favour
a more open policy, the number of donors has more
than halved.
Out of the 566 sperm and egg donors on its 1988 register,
2180 children were born. The figures dropped dramatically
in 1998. Out of the 208 donors, 296 children were
born.
In Western Australia, a new voluntary register of
donors was introduced late last year. However, there
are very strict rules governing the revelation of
identifying information.
Donors' identifying information can be accessed by
donor children at the age of 18 only if they have
the written consent of the donor.
Parents would not be provided with identifying information
even with the consent of the donor. Neither can parents
provide identifying information about their offspring
to the donor.
"All information is treated with the strictest confidence
and no identifying information can be released without
the full written consent of the person in question,"
says Antonia Clisser of the Reproductive Technology
Council.
In South Australia there is no national register,
but clinics are obliged to keep records of donors,
donor children and recipient parents, which may be
made available later on if a child applies for access
to the information, provided there's written consent
from the donor.
There are moves to change the legislation for a more
open system.
In NSW, there is no legislation and no national register.
Fertility clinics have the freedom to use anonymous
donors or not but they all have to keep records.
Increasingly, clinics are moving towards a more
open policy where donors are asked to give identifying
details that will be released to the donor children
only with the consent of the donors.
But this open policy comes at a price, says Professor
Peter Illingworth, director of reproductive medicine
at Westmead Hospital and vice-president of the Fertility
Society of Australia.
"It is becoming increasingly difficult to get donors
from Asian and Arabic backgrounds," he says.
In Queensland, ACT, Northern Territory and Tasmania
there is no legislation. Fertility clinics must keep
records, and the guidelines say the revelation of
identifying details of donors and donor children cannot
be given unless there is written consent by the those
involved.
Dr Kevin Forbes of the Royal Brisbane Hospital says
in Queensland almost 100 per cent of sperm donors
and 60 per cent of egg donors are anonymous.
Donors have the right to decline to meet any donor
children, if they so wish. Except in Victoria, the
rights of donor children to know their genetic parents
are limited and identities are still cloaked in secrecy.
Illingworth says: "More than 85 per cent of parents
have no intention of telling their children the truth.
We still hear of horror stories when children find
out about their biological parents by chance and they
are badly affected by it."
As Helen Szoke says: "It is not a matter of whether
the child pursues his genetic origin or not.What matters
is that it should be possible for the child to do
so. "This is the protection offered by legislation
in Victoria."
Sometimes children find their genetic parents by
accident.
Myfanwy Walker was told her genetic father was an
anonymous sperm donor, three days after her 20th birthday.
She was she was determined to find out who he was.
It was only when her photograph was published on
the front page of The Australian that Michael Linden
realised Myfanwy was his daughter.
Linden contacted the Donor Conception Support Group
immediately and was introduced to Myfanwy.
"It was strange at first as we all had to work out
our relationship with each other," he says. "But we
are now comfortable and see each other regularly.
It is amazing how similar we are in appearance – we
even walk the same way."
Despite knowing the truth, Myfanwy is against her
own method of conception. She believes parents are
presented with a happy picture when they conceive
a child by IVF or sperm donor, but the agony, pain
and rights of the donor child are often not taken
into account.
Regardless, Myfanwy has a close relationship with
her genetic father. "He's like a stepdad to me, without
the responsibility. Initially the relationship was
pretty intense but now it's settled down.
"It's rather like having an extended family, although
I still find it very confusing as I figure out where
I fit in all this."
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