A Thai surrogate mother has broken down in tears while speaking about how the baby she was paid to carry was abandoned by an Australian couple who refused to take him home once they found out he had Down syndrome.
Pattharamon Janbua has told of her pain for the child, saying she loved the baby boy, now six months old, like he was her own.
There are now fears baby Gammy may not survive after he taken to hospital on Friday when he contracted a lung infection as it emerged his mother had received more than $50,000 in donations from all over the world to care for the boy.
The 21-year-old mother - who lives 90km south of Bangkok - had been paid a total of about $16,000 by the couple to give birth to the baby but when she gave birth to twins - a boy and a girl - they only took the girl back to Australia.
Ms Janbua - who already had two other children aged three and six - told the ABC she felt sorry for baby Gammy.
'This was the adults’ fault. And who is he to endure something like this even though it’s not his fault?' she said.
'Why does he have to be abandoned and the other baby has it easy?
'I chose to have him, not to hurt him.'
Ms Janbua said she treated the six-month-old like he was one of her own children.'I love him, he was in my tummy for nine months, it’s like my child,' she told the ABC.Never think that you’re not my child, that I don’t care for you.'
An online campaign set up for Gammy has raised more than $50,000 after his heartbreaking story was shared.
Baby boy Gammy has a congenital heart condition and is critically unwell.
The couple, who have remained anonymous, 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.
The couple paid an extra $1673 when they first realised - three-months into the pregnancy - that Ms Janbua was having twins for them.
Ms Janbua is a Buddhist and thinks abortion is a 'sin'.
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 Australian man and his ethnic-Asian wife could not conceive a baby themselves.
Ms Jambua, from a village in Chon Buri province in southern Thailand, gave birth to Gammy and his twin sister in Bangok hospital.
'Because of the poverty and debts, the money that was offered was a lot for me,'
In my mind, with that money, we could educate my children and we can repay our debt.'she told the ABC.
However, when the babies were born the agent took the girl away and delivered her to the Australian couple who Ms Jambua has never met.
She never received the remaining $2341 that she was owed by the agent and is now struggling to keep her baby alive.
Gammy's tragic story has caused outrage on Twitter.
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