Debate on Spahn's Surrogacy Misses the Point: It's About Power and Capital

The debate surrounding Jens Spahn's use of surrogacy abroad has been framed around the wrong questions, according to a commentary by Shila Behjat in Der Freitag. The discussion has focused on whether women should be allowed to decide to rent their bodies for pregnancies, and whether a ban is paternalistic or how to protect surrogate mothers from exploitation. While these are important issues, they are not the decisive ones in this case. Spahn, a CDU politician, has never described his family planning as a project of female self-determination; it was not about expanding women's reproductive rights or enabling new forms of female autonomy. In February of this year, he voted against making surrogacy possible in Germany. The author argues that the real issue is about power and capital, not about women's rights. The commentary suggests that the debate is being led astray, and the correct questions concern the economic and power structures that drive surrogacy. The article is part of the current issue of Der Freitag.