U.S. surrogate mother for TV talent Mukai gives birth to twins

TOKYO — An American woman has given birth to twin boys on behalf of Japanese television personality Aki Mukai and her husband, Nobuhiko Takada, former professional wrestler, the managing office of the couple said Tuesday.

December 9, 2003 at 14:10 JST Japan Today

The office said the woman gave birth to the twins in late November in the United States.

It was the third in vitro fertilization attempt by Mukai, 39, who had her womb removed in 2000 due to cancer three years ago while she was pregnant, following two failed attempts in the United States.

She had to terminate her pregnancy and was forced to undergo a hysterectomy, and has since pursued the possibility of having a child via a surrogate mother.

Embryos, created via in vitro fertilization using Mukai's eggs and her 41-year-old husband's sperm, were implanted in the womb of the surrogate mother.

Experts said they are paying attention to the Justice Ministry's handling of the twins in case Mukai and her husband apply for Japanese citizenship for the twins.

Although the Japanese government has been promoting legislation for fertility treatment, a health ministry panel in April compiled a report banning surrogate birth and mediating it, but it allows sperm and egg donation from third parties.

The Justice Ministry has rejected an application by a Japanese couple in their 50s to register the births of twin baby boys born to an American surrogate mother in the United States and application by Mukai could be rejected as well.

Under the current Japanese law, for such a baby born to a surrogate mother to be registered as Japanese, the surrogate mother would have to legally stand as their mother, after which the couple could adopt them and bring them to Japan, according to the Justice Ministry.

Mukai has been promoting for surrogate births to be legally allowed in Japan.

There are only two cases in Japan of children being born to surrogate mothers — in 2001 and 2002, both at the same hospital in Nagano Prefecture. (Kyodo News)