Panda accused of faking pregnancy for more buns and bamboo was maligned

Claims that Ai Hin was faking pregnancy to get better treatment have been debunked by leading panda expert

Claims that a six-year-old panda faked signs of pregnancy in order to receive better treatment from her conservation centre carers have been dubunked by one of China's leading panda experts.

China's state newswire Xinhua reported on Tuesday that Ai Hin may have deliberately demonstrated tell-tale signs of panda pregnancy, including "reduced appetite, less mobility and a surge in progestational hormone".

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Six reasons why women should fake a pregnancy | Naomi McAuliffe

A panda in China has duped its keepers into giving it more food by appearing to be pregnant. You too can reap the benefits of a faked foetus

There we were thinking pandas were stupid, that they were an evolutionary dead-end that could not even reproduce without the help of the Chinese state. But it seems we have underestimated them. A giant panda by the name of Ai Hin fooled her keepers into thinking she was pregnant to get more food. Perhaps humans have something to learn from Ai Hin that if more women faked a pregnancy we too could reap the benefits. If pregnancy and childcare are going to continue to hamper womens career progression, earning potential and ultimate equality, perhaps we need to play it more to our advantage. Its a high-risk, short-term strategy, but here are some of the benefits you might receive before people start realising there is no bun in your oven.

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Commercial overseas surrogacy more dangerous, Australian study finds

Higher levels of multiple pregnancies and premature births overseas sparks calls for Australian ban to be lifted

Australians entering into commercial surrogacy arrangements overseas experience high levels of multiple pregnancies and premature births, placing the health of the surrogate and their children at risk, new research has found.

It has prompted leading surrogacy experts and researchers to call for an urgent review of Australias commercial surrogacy laws, and follows calls last week from high-profile family lawyers for the ban on commercial surrogacy in Australia to be lifted.

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Interpol investigates 'baby factory' as man fathers 16 children

Lawyer for Mitsutoki Shigeta, 24, says the businessman simply wants a large family and has the means to support it

Interpol has launched an investigation into an alleged "baby factory" after it emerged that a Japanese businessman had fathered 16 surrogate children and expressed a desire for many more.

Police raided a home in Bangkok earlier this month, finding nine babies with nine nannies. Mitsutoki Shigeta, 24, has been identified as the father of each of them, as well as seven more. Authorities are looking into his motives, which he says are benign.

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When surrogacy delivers a happy outcome: the story of baby Roman

Were not ashamed, were not embarrassed, and I dont think it should be something thats frowned upon

When Roman Samaras is old enough to understand, his parents will show him a book they are putting together about how he came into the world. Therell be the usual things like ultrasound scans and photographs of him as a newborn. Therell also be pictures of a Thai woman, Romans surrogate mother, at various stages of pregnancy, and copies of contracts between his parents Peter Foster and Sam Samaras and their surrogacy agency, Talent IVF.

Were going to tell him the truth, says Foster. He and his partner of 12 years brought Roman home to the tiny West Australian town of Tom Price in March. Its important that he knows. Were not ashamed, were not embarrassed, and I dont think it should be something thats frowned upon.

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Ireland and abortion: the law is failing women

The latest case of a woman denied an abortion and forced to have a caesarean shows the situation for vulnerable women is still dire



'Ireland's abortion laws made me feel like a criminal'

A young woman, variously described as "suicidal", an "immigrant", and a "rape victim", tried to demand an abortion under Ireland's widely promoted but ultimately useless abortion legislation. What she got was a state-mandated caesarean section at 25 weeks and a premature infant placed into the care of the state.

People often ask why I set up Abortion Support Network, an almost entirely volunteer-run charity that helps women living in Ireland and Northern Ireland have access to abortions. The story that's been splashed over the news in the past few days is a pretty good reason. As are many of the 345 calls or emails we've received this year asking for our help.

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Maternal mortality? Its just poor African and Asian women dying | Liz Ford

With 500 days until the millennium development goals expire, targets on maternal and reproductive health will not be met

Esther Worae believes a key part of her job is to preach the message of contraception. Along with her team from the Marie Stopes clinic in Accra, she goes to places that attract a crowd the beach, the marketplace to talk to people about the value of family planning, the dangers of early marriage and the importance of women having access to all of the healthcare services they may need to prevent them dying from pregnancy or childbirth.

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Man arrested after allegedly punching his pregnant partner in the stomach

16-year-old girl miscarries, following the incident in Oldham, Greater Manchester

A man in Greater Manchester has been arrested on suspicion of "child destruction" after he allegedly punched his pregnant partner in the stomach, causing her to lose the baby.

The 16-year-old girl was seven months pregnant when she miscarried on Thursday this week, following the domestic incident at Copster Hill Park in Oldham.

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Surrogate children's parents must prove custody when they leave Thailand

Authorities demand documents from foreigners as clampdown sees two Australian and two US couples detained

Thai authorities are now asking all foreign couples leaving the country with surrogate children to produce proof of custody after a recent spate of surrogacy scandals has forced police to clamp down on the largely unregulated industry.

The news follows the detainment of four couples two Australian and two American who tried to fly out of Bangkok this week but were held by immigration authorities amid sudden plans to overhaul existing surrogacy laws.

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'I was fired for having a miscarriage': the truth about pregnancy and work

Six out of 10 mothers believe their careers suffered after they became pregnant. How have you found managing pregnancy, motherhood and work?

What was it like, returning to work post-baby from maternity leave? Did the icy finger of dread work its way down your spine as you opened up your inbox, or slipped back into your uniform? Did you have to take your seat alongside your "temporary" - perhaps male - replacement, unsure of your place in the organisation? You're not alone.

This week, London law firm Slater & Gordon published the results of a survey looking at the lives of working mothers. The figures are pretty stark: six out of 10 mothers think their careers were derailed after they became pregnant, believing that they were denied opportunities and had to work to prove themselves all over again once they returned to work. Nearly half of mothers polled said less maternity leave would have meant they were taken more seriously, and 60% also said they felt their career options were limited as soon as they declared their pregnancy.

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Australians hit by Thai surrogacy ban are 'pawns in a disastrous game'

Lawyer says baby Gammy case affects up to 200 Australian couples as four couples are stopped at Bangkok airport

Up to 200 Australian couples affected by Thailand barring surrogate babies from leaving the country without a court order in the wake of the baby Gammy case are now pawns in a disastrous game, a leading surrogacy lawyer says.

ABC reported that two Australian homosexual couples and two American couples were stopped by police at Bangkok airport on Thursday afternoon amid plans by the country to overhaul its surrogacy laws.

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Thailand to ban commercial surrogacy in wake of Gammy scandal

Military government approve draft law that will effectively stop foreign couples paying for pregnancies in the country

Thailand's military government gave preliminary approval for a draft law to make commercial surrogacy a criminal offence, following a spate of dramatic surrogacy scandals in the past two weeks.

The case of an Australian couple accused of abandoning their Down syndrome son with his Thai surrogate mother unleashed an international outcry over the "wombs for hire" business that rights groups say preys on poor and vulnerable women in countries such as India and Thailand.

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Alps rescue team eschew helicopters for foggy mountain climb to deliver baby

Tyrol team of 17 ascend 2,350 metres on foot to aid woman in premature labour and deliver her son on mountainside

A team of 15 mountain rescuers accompanied by a doctor and a gynaecologist climbed 2,350 metres on foot up the Austrian Alps to help deliver a baby.

The mother of the baby had been staying at a mountain hut in the eastern Tyrol region when she went into premature labour at 7am Tuesday morning, reportedly 24 weeks into her pregnancy.

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Baby Gammys sad story is not the only side to surrogacy I know it can work | Bonita Dordel

International surrogacy could do with some regulation, but its all too easy to pass moral judgment

I have three daughters. The youngest, twins Kiara and Francesca, were born through surrogacy. The tragic case of baby Gammy, a twin born through surrogacy with Downs syndrome and a heart condition, led me to despair. Not only because of the story itself, but also over the incredible lack of understanding of the issues involved and the reactionary language used by some commentators.

Surrogacy usually features in the media in one of two ways. When it involves celebrities like Sarah Jessica Parker or Elton John, it is presented in the fawning style favoured by Hello magazine. Either that, or it hits the headlines because either the intended parents or the surrogate has reneged on the agreement, with tragic consequences for all.

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Gammy's mother says she is concerned about adoptive father's history of child abuse - video

At a press conference, Pattaramon Janbua, the Thai surrogate mother of baby Gammy, says she is worried that Australian court documents are reported to show the adoptive father of the twins has previously abused at least three girls under the age of 13. She is concerned about Gammy's twin sister and has asked for her to be returned to her care Continue reading...



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Gammy's mother demands his sister's return over child abuse allegations

Thai surrogate mother wants the girl she says is Gammys twin back over claims the alleged Australian father has convictions

The Thai surrogate mother of baby Gammy has asked for the baby she says is his twin sister to be returned to her after it was reported that the Australian alleged to be the father of both children has a criminal record for child abuse.

Pattaramon Chanbua claims she was left to care for Gammy after the Australian and his wife took their daughter home but abandoned him. Gammy was born with Downs syndrome and a hole in his heart.

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Baby Gammy needs our support. So do women coerced into surrogacyy | Sonia Allan

Commercial surrogacy is not the answer. While we rally to support baby Gammy and his Thai family, we should also ensure that women are protected from exploitation

Commercial surrogacy has once again captured the attention of the world with the story of baby Gammy, a twin conceived as a result of a commercial surrogacy arrangement between a Thai national (whose family was in significant debt) and an Australian commissioning couple who reportedly offered her $11,700.

When it was discovered baby Gammy had Down Syndrome, the surrogate mother was told to abort. She refused on religious grounds, and was allegedly left to care for the child, without financial support, while his healthy twin sister was taken by the commissioning couple to Australia. Details concerning whether the Australian couple knew of baby Gammy, and the role the agency and others may have played in the events are evolving, but public outrage ensued and donations for Gammy soon came flooding in.

Here is a little secret for all of you. There is a lot of treachery and deception in IVF/fertility/surrogacy because there is gobs of money to be made.

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Baby Gammy may be given Australian citizenship, government suggests

Campaigners also say infant with Down's syndrome 'abandoned' to Thai surrogate should have right to Australian healthcare

The Australian government has suggested that a child apparently abandoned to its surrogate mother in Thailand after being born with Down's syndrome may be given Australian citizenship.

The seven-month-old child, who is currently in hospital in Thailand for treatment of a life-threatening lung infection and will need further operations for a heart condition, has sparked a worldwide debate on the rules surrounding international surrogacy.

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The case of baby Gammy shows surrogacy for the repulsive trade it is | Suzanne Moore

Pattaramon Chanbua is another victim of this twisted version of slavery, in which poor women are disposable receptacles for the privileged

At the age of 21 Pattaramon Chanbua already has two children, aged six and three. She works on a food stall in a small seaside town south-east of Bangkok. It is an extremely hard existence. When offered A$16,000 (£9,000) to become a surrogate mother for an Australian couple she saw a way out: The money that was offered was a lot for me. In my mind, with that money, one, we can educate my children; two, we can repay our debt.

We only know about her because of a baby boy called Gammy, one of the twins she gave birth to seven months ago. Gammy has Downs syndrome and a congenital heart condition, and according to Chanbua, the Australian parents took Gammys twin sister but left him. The outrage this has provoked has resulted in donations being made online to fund medical care for Gammy.

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Surrogacy campaigners fear Australia ban after Down's syndrome case

Thailand surrogacy trade investigated after woman claims Australian parents refused to take baby with Down's syndrome

Surrogacy campaigners have called for clearer regulations after claims by a Thai woman that she was left with a baby with Down's syndrome after his Australian parents refused to take him but instead took his healthy twin sister.

An online campaign to raise funds for urgent medical treatment for the seven-month old boy, named Gammy, reached £175,000 as fears were expressed that the case could lead to Australia banning international surrogacy.

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More than 1,500 UK babies born addicted to drugs each year

NHS figures show increase of 22% in number of cases over last 10 years from 1,192 in 2004-5 to 1,536 in past 12 months

More than 1,500 babies are born addicted to drugs every year, NHS figures show.

They include cases where doctors have been forced to give opiates to babies in order to wean them off heroin.

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