In January, the conservative Italian government commanded state institutions to halt the recording of births for couples of the same gender. Now, they’ve escalated the situation: a state prosecutor in the northern part of Italy has mandated the invalidation and reissuing of 33 birth certificates for children of lesbian couples, jeopardizing their access to healthcare and education. Mothers who didn’t give birth are receiving letters informing them that they’re being retroactively excluded from their children’s birth certificates. New birth certificates are being generated, indicating only one of the child’s mothers.
Human Rights Watch released a global report in February, focusing on violence and prejudice against lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ+) women. The report highlighted that the concerns of LBQ+ activists across 26 countries centered around access to fertility treatments and the rights of non-biological lesbian mothers. In January 2022, a U.S. court replaced lesbian mother Kris Williams’ name on her child’s birth certificate with that of the sperm donor, who sought custody. Additionally, a Japanese draft law from December 2022 proposed prohibiting fertility treatments for unmarried women.
In Italy, lesbian couples lack access to fertility treatments, same-sex couples cannot legally marry, and there’s ambiguity about the registration of both same-sex parents. Many lesbian couples travel abroad for fertility treatments and childbirth, and then present the birth certificates to local authorities. Italy’s recent actions undermine this already expensive, precarious, and challenging path to legal parenthood. During interviews conducted for the 2023 investigation, concerns about parental rights among queer women often outweighed traditional LGBT rights issues, such as marriage equality or the decriminalization of same-sex activities. Lesbians are focused on establishing and safeguarding their families, irrespective of the government’s stance on their lives and relationships.
The right to form a family is safeguarded by international agreements like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and the European Convention on Human Rights – all of which Italy has ratified. Italy should promptly reinstate the women removed from their children’s birth certificates and lift the ban on registering children born to same-sex couples. Authorities should enact comprehensive bills recognizing the legal parenthood of non-biological lesbian parents.