To Be and Not To Be. The Uncertain Identity of Unborn Children

In the Italian legal system, the juridical status of the unborn child is not clearly defined. In 1975, the Constitutional Court ruled that the fetus is a human individual, but not a human person. Ever since, the unborn child’s rights have sometimes been denied and sometimes affirmed. For instance the Assisted Fertilization Act states that it is necessary to consider the rights of all parties involved «including offspring», but most courts tends to recognise the existence of a right to the child as a right over the child. Such contradictions reflect the difficulties in reaching an optimal balance between the respect for human life from the outset and the values at play in reproductive technologies.