An Australian couple has allegedly abandoned a Down syndrome baby born to a surrogate mother in Thailand.
The couple, who remain anonymous, paid 21-year-old Pattharamon Janbua $11,700 (€10,800) to give them a baby but when she gave birth to twins - a boy and a girl - they only took the girl home to Australia.
The baby boy has Down’s syndrome along with a congenital heart condition and is critically unwell.
The 21-year-old surrogate mother (who has named the little boy Gammy) has no genetic link to the child. She was implanted via IVF with embryos created from the Australian woman’s fertilised eggs.
She originally agreed to become a surrogate mother because of her family's financial problems and the arrangement was set-up through an agency.
The couple reportedly told Ms Janbua to have an abortion when they found out four-months into the pregnancy that one of the babies had Down syndrome.
"I would like to tell Thai women – don't get into this business as a surrogate. Don't just think only for money ... if something goes wrong no one will help us and the baby will be abandoned from society, then we have to take responsibility for that," Ms Janbua said, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Ms Janbua is a Buddhist and thinks abortion is a 'sin'.
A Hope For Gammy campaign was set up on Go Fund Me and has been inundated by donations. So far, over $50,000 (€46,000) has been raised to pay for Gammy’s urgent medical care.
