The Knesset's Labor, Welfare, and Health Committee on Monday will hold a discussion regarding whether the Surrogacy Law should be expanded to include singles or homosexual males.
Currently, surrogacy is only legal for married heterosexual couples with proven infertility or another health issue which makes it dangerous for the wife to carry a child. Recently, a suggestion was made to allow single women who cannot carry a child for health reasons to be allowed to use a surrogate as well.
On Monday morning, Reshet Bet hosted a debate between Kulanu MK Merav Ben Ari and Jewish Home MK Moti Yogev.
"This law allowed women who cannot bear children to give birth and bring children into the world, and I support that," Yogev said. "But the foundation is that the natural family is a mother, father, and children. That is human history. A child is a living being, who deserves a father and mother. And psychology knows that too."
"A child seeks a connection to his mother, and in the suggested surrogacy, he won't know who his mother is. There are situations of lack, such as death or divorce, but we wouldn't choose them at the outset. Who gave us permission to choose to bring a child into a deficient situation?"
Yogev also emphasized that "the law is not specifically against homosexuals. But think about it, any single man can take a surrogate and buy a child. A person who has no energy to invest in a relationship, because raising a child and maintaining a relationship require investment? There's a solution for the rich! You have no energy for a relationship? Buy a child!"
"But we believe in the value of the family. That's a basic Jewish value. This value is accepted worldwide, even in the Muslim and Christian worlds. We believe in strengthening the family and in the good of the child.
"The stance of Judaism and the Torah of Israel, the stance of the ethical world, is that the nuclear family - a father, mother, and children - is the basic family, and represents the past, present, and future. This is the family we educate towards. We want to see the differences and completion in a mother and father. If there are differences, if there are difficulties, we have ways to deal with it, and the Torah of Israel has what to say. But you don't bring a child into a deficient world, out of choice, when he's going to be searching for a connection."