Legal harmonization and reproductive tourism in Europe (Reprinted from Human Reproduction, vol 19, pg 2689-94, 2004)

Legislation of ethical issues illustrates the uneasy mix of ethics and politics. Although the majority has the political right to express its moral views in the low, a number of important ethical values like autonomy, tolerance and respect for other people's opinions urge the majority to take the minorities' position into account. Ignoring pluralism in society will inevitably lead to reproductive tourism. Although European legislation and harmonization in the domain of medically assisted reproduction is presented as a partial solution to this phenomenon, it is argued that European legislation should be avoided as much as possible. Regulation of these private ethical matters should be left to the national parliaments. A soft or compromise legislation will keep reproductive travelling to a minimum. Reproductive tourism is a safety valve that reduces moral conflict Grid expresses minimal recognition of the others' moral autonomy. (c) 2004 European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology. All rights reserved.