Dutch fertility doctor accused of using his own sperm
by Michael Cook | 19 May 2017 |
Dr Jan Karbaat was a leading fertility doctor in The Netherlands in the 1980s. Now it appears that he used his own sperm to help some of his patients get pregnant.
Dr Karbaat, who died in April at the age of 89, ran a sperm bank near Rotterdam from 1980 to 2009. About 10,000 children may have been conceived at his clinic.
Now 12 donor-conceived people, and 10 mothers, have sued for access to his DNA to see whether he is the biological father. Court officials have already seized some of his personal items to that a DNA test can be done.
Dr Karbaat’s clinic closed in 2009 after irregularities were detected in its record-keeping.
One of the parties to the lawsuit is Dr Moniek Wassenaar, 36, a psychiatrist. She questioned Dr Karbaat before he died and asked if she might actually be his daughter. He admitted that it was possible, she claims, because they resemble each other. Karbaat told her he was proud of spreading his seed: "He [thought he] was in good health and intelligent, so he could share some of his genes with the world," she said. "He saw it as something noble. He had no concept of ethics and minimised the impact on the children.”
Dr Karbaat, who died in April at the age of 89, ran a sperm bank near Rotterdam from 1980 to 2009. About 10,000 children may have been conceived at his clinic.
Now 12 donor-conceived people, and 10 mothers, have sued for access to his DNA to see whether he is the biological father. Court officials have already seized some of his personal items to that a DNA test can be done.
Dr Karbaat’s clinic closed in 2009 after irregularities were detected in its record-keeping.
One of the parties to the lawsuit is Dr Moniek Wassenaar, 36, a psychiatrist. She questioned Dr Karbaat before he died and asked if she might actually be his daughter. He admitted that it was possible, she claims, because they resemble each other. Karbaat told her he was proud of spreading his seed: "He [thought he] was in good health and intelligent, so he could share some of his genes with the world," she said. "He saw it as something noble. He had no concept of ethics and minimised the impact on the children.”
Saturday, May 20, 2017
The Economist is the world’s best news magazine. Its stylish, intelligent and well-informed coverage has made it the Bible of the global elite. “I used to think. Now I just read The Economist,” the former CEO of Oracle, Larry Ellison, once said.
Part of its appeal is its ideological consistency. Ever since 1843 The Economist has argued that aim of public policy should be to promote the market economy as the best way of achieving prosperity and democracy. A light touch of government regulation is needed only to ensure fairness and legal certainty. Thus it embodies the “classical 19th-century Liberal ideas” which made Britain, and later the United States, a bulwark of capitalism.
Whatever the merits of this ideology in framing public policy for economics and finance, it is ill-suited to questions of personal behaviour.
In principle The Economist supports all autonomous action which is either harmless (in its view) or profitable. Hence, in recent years it has thrown its considerable prestige behind campaigns for the legalisation and regulation of drugs, pornography, prostitution, euthanasia, and same-sex marriage.
And this month it has taken up cudgels in favour of an international market in surrogate mothers and babies. “Carrying a child for someone else should be celebrated—and paid”, is the defiant headline of its editorial. Given the magazine’s influence, this is a significant development. What do you think of it?
Michael Cook
Editor
BioEdge
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"We will never go back to those shameful times"BioEdge Suite 12A, Level 2 | 5 George St | North Strathfield NSW 2137 | Australia Phone: +61 2 8005 8605 Mobile: 0422-691-615 Email: michael@bioedge.org |
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