International Surrogacy as Disruptive Industry in Southeast Asia

During the last two decades, a new form of trade in commercial surrogacy grew across Asia. Starting in India, a "disruptive" model of surrogacy offered mass availability, rapid accessibility, and created new demands for surrogacy services from people who could not afford to access surrogacy elsewhere.

In International Surrogacy as Disruptive Industry in Southeast Asia, Andrea Whittaker traces the development of this industry and its movement across Southeast Asia follow­ing a sequence of governmental bans in India, Nepal, Thailand, and Cambodia. "Through a case study of the industry in Thailand, the book offers a nuanced and sympathetic examination of the industry from the perspectives of the people involved in it: surrogates, intended parents, and facilitators. The industry offers intended parents the opportunity to form much desired families, but also creates vulnerabilities for all people involved. The book demonstrates the need for new forms of regulation to protect those involved in international surrogacy arrangements.