Essentially, it's also family planning that has occupied so many experts, parents and would-be parents interviewed in this issue. In developed countries, this term has turned into what some call family over-planning. It is an issue that generates troubling moral questions.

When is it the right time for parents to have a baby?

For those who can't conceive naturally, should society provide a means of helping, such as in vitro fertilization, for all, or just for those who can afford it?

Last week, the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology held its annual conference in Prague. It has been 28 years since the first test-tube baby was born in the United Kingdom. Since then, more than 3 million have been conceived via in vitro fertilization (IVF) worldwide, 56 percent of them in Europe.

A large percentage of these babies are born prematurely because they are more likely to come in multiples: twins, triplets and so on. Czech parents of these are in luck in a way because neonatal care here is among the best in the world ČŘ" and successful at saving extremely premature babies. The line between miscarriage and delivery has never been more fine.

But premature babies often have serious health and developmental problems. And, troublingly, a large number of parents who feel they cannot or will not accept the burden of caring for such babies longterm simply walk away, leaving them in state care ČŘ" legally.

While clearly a medical marvel that has saved the lives of hundreds of babies, such an advanced perinatal system has had an unexpected outcome. The Czech Republic now has over 5,000 children in state orphanages, a larger percentage per capita than in most of Europe.

Many of these can never be adopted. The law specifies that, as long as the mother occasionally "expresses interest," a child is legally bound to her and cannot be put up for adoption. As a practical matter, if a mother sends a postcard every six months, a child can remain in an orphanage until he or she is 18.

Meanwhile, many who want children and would have no physical barrier to having them have been robbed forever of that chance.

The illegal sterilization of Romany women in the Czech Republic, which many say is still occurring, is shocking. The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg has ruled that the systematic practice has been in place in recent years, demanding that hospitals apologize to patients who were tricked or intimidated into signing consent forms.