Last year a 61 year old Japanese woman acted as gestational carrier for her daughter who had a uterine problem.  That, however, is not the point of this entry.  Recall that I pay  attention to ART legislation in other Countries and that Japan has a rather restrictive ART policy.  You have no idea !

Dr. Yahiro Netsu is a proponent of ART in all its forms, arguing that they should be available for all Japanese women who are infertile.

In 1998, Netsu was expelled from Japan's gynecology association for performing in-vitro fertilizations with eggs and sperm of donors who were not married to each other.   After being reinstated, he became a pioneer when he performed what is thought to be the country's first successful surrogate birth.

The Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and its 15,000 members, has banned such procedures.  Interestingly, however, the Government has not deemed ART procedures to be illegal.  Thus, individual clinics are free to perform ART ? though in reality few actually do.

Dr. Netsu has had such an effect that the Japan Society of Fertilization and Implantation will for the first time address the subject of surrogate births.