Doctors and widows sound the alarm: new law bans the use of sperm from fallen soldiers
26 January 2024 22:07
A recent law in Ukraine prohibits women from using the frozen sperm of their deceased husbands to conceive children. 
tried to look into the issue to find out why this happened and how to proceed.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed the law “On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on Ensuring the Right of Servicemen and Other Persons to Biological Paternity (Maternity)” at the end of November 2023.
The law stipulates that “in the event of the death or declaration of death in accordance with the established procedure of a person whose reproductive cells are stored, their storage is terminated with subsequent disposal”.
The widows of Ukrainian soldiers are outraged by this ban, as clinics will start disposing of previously frozen sperm in March. Medical advocate Olena Babych shared the story of one such widow whose husband froze his sperm before going to the front.
“Recently, our lawmakers have focused on the financial aspect of cryopreservation of biological material from military personnel and passed a law that prohibits the use of sperm after a soldier’s death. Since March, clinics have been obliged to dispose of it,”
– babych said.
She expressed surprise at the fact that widows of servicemen who would like to have a child with their deceased husbands are now forced to look for unofficial ways to do so.
“How do you explain to a grieving woman who, just a couple of months ago, was preparing documents with her husband to have a child, that while her husband was defending the state and died, our lawmakers literally deprived him of the right to be a father after his death? I’m sorry, but I still cannot understand the motives behind this ban,” Babych added,
– babych added.
This post provoked a strong reaction from both doctors and ordinary Ukrainians.
Media personality Olesya Ostafyeva also expressed her outrage over the situation in a Facebook post, noting that the decision was unacceptable from the point of view of the demographic crisis and moral aspects.
“Instead of supporting the families of the heroes, we are losing the opportunity to continue their lineage,”
– ostafyeva said.
According to her, the state, which demands the recognition of Russian aggression as genocide, is pursuing a policy that contradicts this principle.
“The most disgusting thing is that the ban and the decision in March to destroy is motivated by the fact that it is not necessary to pay and provide benefits to the children of fallen soldiers. You know, we have social protection at such a level that everyone has children for money,”
– ostafyeva emphasised.
What is the law?
TheLaw “On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on Ensuring the Right of Servicemen and Other Persons to Biological Paternity (Maternity)” Was adopted by the Verkhovna Rada on 22 November 2023.
It provides for the termination of storage and further disposal of reproductive cells of a person who has died or been declared dead.
The law will come into force on 22 March 2024.
It should be noted that 13 women are among the initiators of the law.
In paragraph 3 of the law’s Final and Transitional Provisions, MPs added the following provision: “in the event of the death or declaration of death in accordance with the established procedure of a person whose reproductive cells are stored, their storage is terminated with further disposal”, authored by the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Health, Medical Care and Medical Insurance, Mykhailo Radutskyi.
Mykhailo Radutskyi refused to comment to the editorial board to comment on the reason for the adoption of this amendment and advised to contact the press secretary.
Reaction of doctors
Famous embryologist Olga Malyuta in her commentary said that there is no law in Ukraine that prescribes the postmortem use of the material.
“There is neither a ban nor permission. Previously, if a man prescribed in the contract the right of his partner to use the material in the event of death, and there was a notarised power of attorney for the woman to use sperm, or the embryos were already frozen, then the clinic could legally obtain permission to carry out IVF programmes,”
– explained the doctor.
The appearance of a law stating that sperm must be disposed of for her is also unclear.
“Many military personnel have already frozen the material, considering the worst case scenario. For many, this is hope. We are living as a nation in the midst of genocide, literally. And for clinics, the emergence of such a point simply ties their hands, and many clinics are now freezing sperm at their own expense, expressing solidarity and support for the military, because they feel it is their public duty,”
– malyuta said.
The embryologist noted that most doctors are in favour of legally prescribing the possibility of using postmortem material.
“Many people say that the law is read incorrectly, that such a clause will apply only to those military personnel who take advantage of this free programme from the state. But I, as a performer, do not understand this. I want to see the law read unambiguously. Therefore, changes are definitely needed. Most embryologists are in favour of legally prescribing the possibility of using postmortem material. And not to prescribe that it should be disposed of,”
– the doctor summed up.
Obstetrician and gynaecologist of the highest category, reproductive specialist Serhiy Baksheiev in his commentary said that with this law, MPs are destroying the entire system of motivation to defend our country and respect for our country, and show disrespect for the families of soldiers on the part of those MPs who initiated and pushed this law on the citizens of their country.
“Respect for the gene pool of one’s nation is a certain level of social protection in any civilised country. If Ukraine plans to become independent and authentic, and still wants to restore what we are talking about, for example, the strength and will of the Ukrainian Cossacks, we must at least preserve a part of our gene pool, and today it is the best in war, and the worst in the rear. The best guys have been fighting at the front since 2014. If we want to preserve our gene pool, we have to take care of it,”
– baksheev said.
He noted that as for postmortem reproduction, i.e. having a child after a person’s death, this issue has not been fully resolved either legally or ethically around the world.
“That is, we can argue about whether to perform postmortem reproduction or not. But all disputes over this law are based on two factors. Reproductive technology clinics are obliged to store reproductive cells. And we are talking not only about men’s sperm, but also about the possibility of storing women’s eggs. We have many female defenders in the Armed Forces of Ukraine who can preserve their reproductive eggs before going to the front line. Clinics store reproductive cells, but they have to destroy them when death is confirmed. Why shouldn’t they continue to store them for free, shouldn’t they give people the opportunity to decide this in the legislative field after the war?”
– the gynaecologist believes.
According to him, this law was not drafted in such a way that if we state the death of a soldier and reproductive cells are stored, they can be kept until the end of the war if the family wishes.
“Maybe it was necessary to make a separate bank of reproductive cells of fallen soldiers and store them in some separate cryobank. But not to destroy them. In my opinion and the opinion of doctors, it is the destruction of reproductive cells that is the Muscovites’ strategy to destroy the nation’s gene pool,”
– baksheiev summed up.
As this article was being written, an official commentary was issued by the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Health, Medical Assistance and Medical Insurance, Mykhailo Radutsky, who did not explain the reasons for the amendment but promised to remove the problem by March.
“Today, social media and the media have spread reports that women have been banned from using frozen biomaterial from their dead husbands for fertilisation. This applies, in particular, to the wives of Ukrainian fallen soldiers – our Heroes.
We believe this situation is wrong and unfair to our Heroes and their memory. We believe that every Hero has the right to continue his or her family – and there should be no formal, purely bureaucratic approach to this issue regarding fallen Heroes,”
– he said in a post on Facebook.
Radutsky noted that if modern medicine allows this to be done, and if the family wants it, then any bureaucratic obstacles should be removed.
“If the families of the Heroes are told that there are some problems with the storage of biological material, that it can be destroyed, then by March we will definitely remove this problem. The Verkhovna Rada will not hesitate to vote for the necessary changes, including to the Civil Code and other laws. We are interested in ensuring that every Hero has a continuation of his or her family. It is only fair and it is fair to the people who gave their lives for their country. The memory of our fallen Heroes should live on not only in street names and memorial plaques, but also in their children, who will be the best memory of them,”
– the politician summed up.
