On February 26th, from 3:00pm, Famiiro Network for Unconventional Kinship in Japan (hereafter Famiiro Network) will hold a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan (FCCJ).
Famiiro Network is an organization composed of individuals who have become parents through third-party assisted reproductive technologies (ART) and researchers dedicated to this field.
The press conference aims to highlight serious concerns with the Special Assisted Reproductive Medicine Bill on third-party reproduction, which was submitted to the House of Councillors on February 5, 2025, by four parties: the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), the Komeitō Party, the Democratic Party for the People, and the Japan Innovation Party.
The speakers will outline the main issues inherent in the bill and provide the following overview and explanations.
1. Is it a crime to protect a child’s right to know their origins?
If this bill is passed, donor-conceived children are granted access to only a very limited set of donor information, such as age, blood type, and height, when they reach 18 years old.
However, in exchange for this minimal assurance, providing donor information to the child before adulthood will be considered a breach of confidentiality and even regarded as a criminal offense.
Can we truly say this bill protects the right to know one’s origins? Or does it, in fact, violate a child’s right to know their origins?
2. Is the government allowed to take away reproductive rights?
This bill not only prohibits access to reproductive treatment in Japan for couples who are not legally married (e.g., women in same-sex relationships) but also contains extraterritorial provisions, effectively closing off all avenues for family formation through third-party reproductive treatment both domestically and abroad for unmarried individuals.
Isn’t it a violation of fundamental human rights for the government to use the law to draw a line between which families are considered legal and which are not?
To further explore the implications and legitimacy of legal intervention in individuals’ reproductive decisions, we have invited Yudai Kouno, an attorney at Kinoe Legal Law Office, which specializes in reproductive medicine, to share his insights.
Speakers
- Minato Ayahara, Famiiro Network for Unconventional Kinship in Japan
- Chiaki Shirai, Professor, Shizuoka University (Sociology of Families, Medical Sociology), Famiiro Network for Unconventional Kinship in Japan
- Yudai Kono, Attorney at Law, Kinoe Legal Law Office
YouTube LIVE
For those unable to attend in person, the press conference will be available on YouTube for later viewing.
We welcome members of the media to join us for this important discussion.