PH wants to bring home surrogates convicted in Cambodia, babies too

The Philippine government is in talks with the Cambodian government to bring home not just the 13 Filipino women convicted of trafficking, but the babies they are carrying as well, with at least one of the women already having given birth in jail.

A Cambodian court on Monday sentenced the 13 Filipinas—impregnated through surrogacy—to four years in prison, with two years of the sentence suspended, after being found guilty of violating the Cambodian Human Trafficking Law.

They were among 24 foreign women detained by police in Kandal province in September and charged with attempted cross-border human trafficking, according to a statement from the court.

Justice Undersecretary Nicholas Felix Ty said one of the women had already given birth. "Ngayon pala may isa na palang nanganak. May isa sa mga babae nanganak na, yun mga iba naghihintay pa ng manganganak," Ty said in an interview with reporters on Wednesday.

(Now it turns out that one of the women has already given birth. One of the women has given birth, and the rest are waiting to give birth.)

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Eduardo De Vega, however, said in the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing that two of the women had already given birth.

 He added that the woman are being provided legal assistance through the Philippine Embassy in Cambodia. 

“Titignan pa kung maaring payagan mapauwi,” De Vega said. 

(It remains to be seen if they will be allowed to go home.) 

'Ang mga bata ay Pilipino'

The Cambodian court said it had strong evidence showing that the women "have the intention... to have babies to sell to a third person in exchange for money, which is an act of human trafficking."

The court statement did not give details on what would happen to the babies of the 13 when they were born, but Ty said that the DOJ has conveyed the Philippine government’s position on the matter: that the babies are Filipino even if they have no Filipino blood.

“Hindi nila ka-DNA itong mga batang ito. Pero para sa atin, ang mga batang ito ay mga Pilipino,” Ty said.

(The surrogates don't share DNA with these babies. But for us, these babies are Filipino.)

“Sa batas natin, simple lang. Kung sinong babaeng nagsilang sa bata, siya ang nanay ng bata. Susundin ang nationality niya,” he added.

(In our law, it's simple. Whoever gives birth to a child is the mother of the child, and the child will have her nationality.)

Ty also said that for the Cambodian government, the utmost priority is the welfare of the victims—in this case, the children conceived through illegal means.

“Iba ang prioridad, iba ang pananaw ng Cambodia. Ang pinaka-biktima dito ay yung mga bata. Kahit di pa nanganganak ito, sila ang tunay na biktima dito,” Ty said.

(Cambodia has a different priority, a different view. The biggest victims here are the children. Even if they have not yet been born, they are the real victims here.)

Ty added that If the Cambodian government agrees with the Philippine government’s stand, the DOJ will immediately start the process of the return of the children to the country through the Philippine Embassy in Phnom Penh.

“May kambal, kambal yung bitbit. So most likely magkakaroon tayo ng mga 14 na sanggol,” Ty said.

(One of them is pregnant with twins. So most likely there will be 14 babies.)

“Malaki ang posibilidad pag mauwi na natin yung mga bata dito sa Pilipinas, ay i-refer natin sila sa DSWD tsaka sa NACC,” he added.

(There is a big possibility that once we bring home these babies, we will refer them to the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the National Authority for Child Care.)

Ty also said that they are not discounting the possibility that the children may be put up for adoption.

“Pag-aaralan kung nakakabuti ba sa mga bata doon na kung ipa-adopt na sila sa ibang-ibang pamilya,” Ty said.

(We will study whether it will be best for the babies to be adopted into different families.)

Ty clarified that this will all depend on the results of the talks between the two countries.

Convicted of trafficking, not surrogacy

De Vega said it was fortunate the women were not sentenced to 20 years in prison.

“Dinaramdam namin, pero ang maganda doon, hindi sila nakasuhan ng surrogacy, na hindi sila nag-violate ng surrogacy law kasi 20 years yun na pagkakakulong. Kinasuhan sila ng trafficking, ang nangyare, hanggang four years yung hatol, binawasan pa ng two years. Two years lang yung hatol sa kanila,” he said. 

(We are sad about it. However, the good thing about that is that they were not charged with surrogacy, that they did not violate the surrogacy law because that would have been 20 years in prison. They were charged with trafficking, and, the sentence was up to four years but it was reduced to two years. Their sentence is only two years.) 

De Vega then warned Filipinos that it is illegal to act as a surrogate mother in Cambodia. 

“Gusto ko lang din paalalahanan ang mga kababayan natin. Nakita niya mayroon tayong mga kababayan na kinasuhan. Bawal ang surrogacy sa Cambodia, kaya kung merong offer sa inyo o alok online na maging surrogate mothwr, 10,000 dollars, bawat baby, ‘wag niyo pong gawin,” he said. 

(I just want to remind our compatriots. We've seen our fellow Filipinos charged. Surrogacy is illegal in Cambodia, so if you see an offer to become a surrogate mother, $10,000 per baby, don't do it.) 

“Hindi namin masisiguradong mapapalaya kayo,” he added. 

(We cannot guarantee that you will be released.) — with a report by Sherylin Untalan/BM, GMA Integrated News