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Ulet Ifansasti / Getty Images file
Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway visit Borobudur temple in Magelang Regency, Indonesia, on Nov. 28.
OSLO, Norway -- Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway secretly traveled to India in order to care for infant twins born to the surrogate mother of a gay palace employee unable to get a travel visa, the palace said Monday.
Armed with a diplomatic passport that granted her immediate access, the future queen jumped on a plane in late October when the employee, who is also a friend, and his husband were unable to travel to care for their newborns.
"For me, this is about two babies lying alone in a New Delhi hospital," Mette-Marit said in a statement. "I was able to travel and wanted to do what I could."
She did not alert Indian authorities and spent several days with the babies at the Manav Medicare Center, where staff assumed the wife of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway was a nanny.
UK's Duchess Kate is pregnant with her first child
Subterfuge
While the princess was away, her name continued to appear in the official palace calendar and her absence from a parliamentary dinner was not explained.
A relative of the two fathers eventually took over from Mette-Marit and the fathers received a visa in November, when they brought the babies back to Norway, the palace added.
Surrogacy is a hotly debated issue in Norway and the government discourages Norwegians from paying surrogate parents for children.
Protestant Norway was the second country in the world in 1993 to register same-sex partnerships while same-sex marriage has been legal since 2009.
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The princess acknowledged the debate and insisted she is not taking a side and only did what a friend had to do.
"Sometimes life presents you with situations with few good solutions. This was one of those," she said. "There is an important debate going on about surrogacy and this was not meant as taking a side."
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Leave a Comment:
Pretty incredible... I guess 'bravo' for her courage...
If having a baby can be outsourced to India, what kind of job can not be outsourced?
Sitting here bitching about outsourcing jobs can't be outsourced.......yet...
What this came down to is that there were two babies who needed more than just institutionalized care. The womb that had given birth to them had done it's job and was gone. I would have done the same thing for a friend of mine who was in need.
The babies are first, politics second.
Absolutely! Bravo to you, Princess.
Am I the only one who thinks this is the creepiest story NBCNews has ever run with? Norwegian princess travels to India to care for children that aren't hers.
Actually, that sounds like a Disney movie. I guess there's nothing to see here....
Yes. :-)
Next question?
I guess you missed the coverage of the RNC in Tampa.
Yes, it is only you.
Excellent Lady!
She definitely has a big heart. What a class act!
"Norway princess makes secret trip to play nanny" Ok, I won't tell anybody. SHHHHHHH. This SECRET is safe with me. NOBODY, and I mean NOBODY will find out.
The princess of Norway traveled to India to care for a couple of babies a homosexual employee had purchased, but claims she isn't taking sides on the issue of buying babies.
I guess you only care about pre-born babies. Good for her!
Good for her. How is taking care of babies taking sides? Bob, I hope most of us would do this for employees, acquaintances, colleagues... She was the only one who could get a visa fast.
Please! Do not refer to Norway as "Protestant". That country is no more Christian than our own (the U.S.A.). Dr. Martin Luther (instigator of the Reformation) is rolling over in his grave!
Bravo! Such a heartwarming story!