Dutch researchers advocate abolishing age limit for donor children looking for their father

Abolish the age limit for children who want to know who their donor parent is, the researchers write in their advice to the Dutch Health minister, Ernst Kuipers. That is reported by the Dutch newspaper NRC. Instead, the researchers from the University of Humanities, research agency Pro Facto, and the organisation Fiom, advice the minister to give donor children access to information at any time. They argue that children are best at deciding when they are ready for this and that the government should not control it.

Currently, only children of twelve years and older can get some data about their biological parent. They are allowed to know details like hair colour or employment. The identity of donor parents can only be released after the children are 16. This legislation dates from 2004 and mainly aimed to protect the privacy of donor parents.

Now, the researchers argue that access to information about one's origin is a fundamental human right, also for children. If they do not get this information, they can experience this as an injustice or a missing part of their identity, NRC writes.

Minister Kuipers writes in a letter to the Dutch lower house that he will decide about the issue before the summer.