Germany has just adopted a law to put an end to anonymity for sperm donors – a practice that leads to the birth of over 1000 children per year in this country. German legislation seeks to create a “central register of sperm donors and female recipients”. The data will be filed for 110 years and the donors’ names can be communicated to children over 16 years of age, on request. However, the law “excludes any judicial finding of donor paternity which could involve custody or inheritance”.
Finally, the introduction of in-depth psychological interviews with donors and intended parents is under investigation. This last approach does not convince Anne Meier-Credner, a member of the German Association for children born through gamete donation, “SpendeKinder”, who fears conflicts of interest: “It’s not in the interests of assisted procreation physicians to dissuade donors and patients”. She also noted that this law will concern a minority of children born through gamete donation because only 20% of parents actually inform their children of their origins in such cases: “Many ‘social’ fathers are afraid of telling the truth because they are afraid of being rejected by their child”. On the other hand, few donors actually want to meet up with their offspring: “Many of them are very young and do not necessarily take into consideration the long-term implications of organ donation“.
La libre, Nathalie Steiwer (26/05/2017)