LONDON, SEPT. 13 (ZENIT.org). -- A brother and sister conceived with donor sperm are pressing to find out who their father is, saying they have a right to know under the European Convention on Human Rights.

Adam and Jo Rose are supported in their quest by Liberty, a civil rights organization, according to a front page story in The Guardian newspaper. They claim that current law, which prohibits information on the donor of sperm, violates Article 8 of the Human Rights Convention, which affirms the right to respect for family life.

The Roses' lawyers say that information such as the donor's blood group and medical history does not imply immediate identification of the person, and must be given automatically. In addition, they maintain that a child conceived by artificial insemination must be treated as an adopted child, and that additional information on the donor's identity can be disclosed but only with the latter's consent.

The Roses' challenge is expected to be the first of many that will descend on the British legal system this fall. On Oct. 2, when the human rights convention and its norms take effect, Britain's legislative system will undergo its greatest change in 300 years.

In another case, a man is desperately looking to have the frozen embryos of his future children adopted before the law requires their destruction.

The anonymous man had his wife's ova fertilized before she died five years ago. The frozen embryos are in Hammersmith Hospital in London and are scheduled under law to be destroyed this January. ZE00091304

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