Separated-at-birth twins get married

[Richard]

LONDON (AFP) - Twins who were separated at birth and adopted by different sets of parents later married each other without realising they were brother and sister, a peer has told the House of Lords.

David Alton, an independent, pro-life member of the Lords, said the brother and sister were granted an annulment after a high court judge ruled that the marriage had never validly existed.

The Catholic politician -- who discovered the case after talking to a judge -- used it to highlight perceived deficiencies in the government's proposed Human Embryology and Tissues Bill, which is currently going through parliament.

The bill is designed to make it easier for lesbian and gay couples to have children through assisted reproduction, recognising same-sex partners as legal parents of babies conceived through donated sperm, eggs or embryos.

But it contains no provision to require the identity of the donor to be disclosed, potentially meaning a child could not be told they were conceived by assisted reproduction.

Alton raised the case of the married twins -- who were born after IVF treatment -- during a debate on December 10, details of which only appeared on Friday.

"There are implications for everybody involved, but the needs of the child will always be paramount, and it is right that we should therefore make the process as transparent as possible," Alton told the Lords.

IVF -- which increases the chances of multiple births -- meant such cases could become more common if the law does not require children to be told they were donor conceived and have access to their genetic history, he said.

"The right of children to know the identity of their biological parents is a human right," he added Friday.

"There will be more cases like this if children are not given access to the truth. The needs of the child must always be paramount."

The identities of the twins and details of their relationship and marriage have been kept secret, but it was known they were separated soon after birth and never told they were twins.

They only discovered they were blood relatives after the wedding.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080111/wl_...l7AAADW7oF

[Polly]

That must have been an incredible shock!

[Sily]

Yikes!  icon_bussi  <- -  bro and sis at wedding.

[Polly]

I wonder whose idea it was to separate these twins at birth and not try to adopt them out together.

[Astrojewels]

I don’t understand why a woman would go to the trouble of IVF only to adopt the babies out, there is something not right about this story. IVF is expensive and emotionally draining, was it an experiment or is this story just something for people to think about?

[GertrudaRose]

I don't know about the IVF situation, but I do know that my twin was given to our father and I went with our mother.  I have never met her and have no idea where she is, or even her name.  I can see where this situation can happen.  Although adoption isn't as common as it once was, I think this is still something to think about when considering the rights of all involved.

[Polly]

Oh my, GR.  I would wonder all of the time what happened to my twin if I was in your shoes.  Do you wish to find her?

[Astrojewels]

GR,
I am with Polly, have you ever looked for her or your father, what was the reason why your parents did this?

[GertrudaRose]

I didn't know anything about it until I was 15.  That was when my mother told me this story:  She had been married for some time to the man I thought was my father, let's call him Bob.  She had an affair with a man named Dick.  Dick was married to a woman that could not bear children.  When my mother became pregnant, Dick and his wife wanted the child.  When it turned out to be twin girls, Dick and his wife took one of the girls and my mother kept me.  My mother gave me the first & last name of my biological father, turns out to be a very common name.  That's all of the info I have because my mother died and Bob took any information he had to the grave.  He always refused to talk about it.  I haven't really wondered about it much, although every time I see a psychic-type person, I am told that my father wants me to know who he is (how do they know I've never met my father?)!

[Polly]

Wow, that leaves me kind of speechless, GR.  Wow. :)  The sheer complexity of human relationships floors me sometimes, like now.  You said you haven't wondered about it much but I hope it all works out the best for everyone involved.  If your father contacted you, would you meet him?  If I am being too personal just let me know.  :)