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Dotan Halbreich-Israeli. Still waiting

Gay fathers still stranded in Thailand as passports rejected for surrogate babies

Parents to children born through surrogate mothers continue to wait in Thailand for solution, while Family Court reject appeals to issue passports to children

The crisis surrounding the gay Israeli couples currently stuck in Thailand with their new-born children continues as the Family Court rejected appeals to require the Ministry of Interior to issue passports to the children born through surrogate mothers in Thailand.

 

  

In two separate appeals filed to the Family Court that were rejected, two sets of couples staying in Thailand with their children asked that the court order the State to immediately issue passports for their children.

 

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According to Thai law a child belongs to the mother that birthed him – whether or not she shares any genetic material with the child – unless she waives her rights. The parents that filed the appeals did not present the court with the surrogate mother's consent that the minor may leave Thailand permanently. Ultimately the courts rejected the appeals.

 

Parents' protest in front of minister's home, Tuesday (Photo: Motti Kimchi) (Photo: Motti Kimchi )
Parents' protest in front of minister's home, Tuesday (Photo: Motti Kimchi)

 

Meanwhile, the Israelis in Thailand continue to wait for passports for their children. One such Israeli is Dotan Halbreich-Israeli, who is waiting with his two sons Omer and Ilai, while his partner Robbie is in Israel, waging their battle.

 

While the Foreign Ministry announced that a solution is in the works – according to which signed waivers from the surrogate mothers severing the linkage between the surrogate and the baby will be approved – there are still many confusions due to bureaucratic miscommunications.

 

"For the past few days, we have been receiving conflicting messages from the Interior Ministry, the Foreign Ministry and the Israeli Consulate in Thailand. It means that the pressure is working," Halbreich-Israeli said.

 

Halbreich-Israeli continued to describe the bureaucratic muddles: "The Foreign Ministry told us to go to the Consulate to get our passports. We called the consulate and they told us that they don't know anything about the subject, and are waiting to receive instructions from the Interior Ministry .

 

"We called the Foreign Ministry and they told us that they did not update them (the consulate) yet, we talked with the consulate again and were told that the consul will be absent for the entire week. There is no clear decision, everyone says something else."

 

Halbreich-Israeli spoke of the need to run celebrity-led campaigns, and influence the public opinion with the media to force the executive authority to act. "This is unbelievable. They should fulfill their duties under the law, we shouldn't have to move heaven and earth for this."

 


פרסום ראשון: 01.24.14, 09:33
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