Monday September 19, 2005
Viking “Sperm Ships” En Route to UK
LONDON, September 19, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Entrepreneurs say they will begin floating “sperm ships” in the North Sea off of the UK coast, in order to take advantage of international law allowing them to provide anonymous sperm donations for infertility treatments to UK couples, after the country tightens UK law forbidding anonymous donations starting in April.
Ole Schou, founder of Cryos International – the world’s largest sperm bank based in Aarhus, Denmark, which already exports sperm to 40 countries, is acting as a consultant to companies who plan to float ships in the North Sea off the UK coast. Based on the Dutch floating abortuary model, the sperm boats will provide anonymous sperm donations to British single or lesbian women and women with sterile husbands.
“Taking advantage of the international shipping legislation would not be illegal,” Schou said in an interview with the Guardian news. “The idea is to have ships staffed with professional people from the local country. UK doctors would be employed and take care of UK patients. There is a market for hundreds of ships in Europe and the most obvious markets will be around the UK and Italy. It is just a question of how quickly they can organise. The finance is there because it is such a huge market.”
Aarhus is a university town where anonymous student donors abound, and donor interest is high because of the $40 paid per donation. According to the Cryos website, 7,000 pregnancies were recorded by 2003 from sperm donated by Cryos donors. Every selected donor can be used to impregnate up to 10 women. Schou said that other banned practices such as sex selection of the child may also be incorporated into the floating fertility clinic concept.
See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
British Lesbian to Bear Child with Sperm Bought on Internet
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2003/jul/03070209.html
Swedish Sperm Donor Forced To Pay Child Support To Lesbian Recipient
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2002/jun/02062106.html
Court Ruling on Child Support has Sperm Donors Thinking Twice
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2004/jul/04072907.html
Uk Lesbians Launch Internet Sperm Bank
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2002/jun/02062609.html
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