Cambodia bans commercial surrogacy

The ministry issued the ban on October 24, although an official law has yet to be passed, the report said.
The decision comes as little surprise, as Minister of Health Ang Vong Vathana indicated in early October that he was concerned about the existence of commercial surrogacy in Cambodia.
International consultancy firm Families Through Surrogacy, which operates in Cambodia, said the decision was likely motivated by external pressure rather than domestic concern.
The industry was unregulated until its ban on October 24. 
"Western governments are increasingly uncomfortable about their citizens engaging in surrogacy in environments with no regulatory laws in place," Sam Everingham, a director at Families Through Surrogacy, told dpa on Thursday. 
"What is concerning is the conflation by some critics of surrogacy arrangements with child-trafficking. These are poles apart," Everingham said.
Cambodia's ban follows similar ones in Thailand, India and Nepal, although commercial surrogacy markets still operate in Ukraine, Georgia, Greece, Canada and the US, according to Everingham.