Ricky Martin announced last week that he was the father to several weeks old twin baby boys born through a surrogate, but didn’t provide much more information about it. The 36 year-old singer said he was “elated to begin this new chapter in his life” and from the way his statement was worded it sounded like he would be raising the twins alone, but that wasn’t directly said. It’s possible he has either a female or male partner but doesn’t feel like disclosing that information to the public.

A high-ranking member of the religious community has spoken out about Ricky’s decision to become a maybe-single parent through surrogacy. The cardinal of Honduras says Ricky is somehow buying children like products, which is disrespectful of human life. A Mexican talk show host also calls Ricky selfish for his actions:

The Puerto Rican singer recently fathered twin boys, born to a surrogate mother, who is rumoured to be a cousin of the singer.

And, following on from congratulations from his pop peers, those who aren’t happy about Martin’s new paternal role are speaking out now.

The cardinal of Honduras, Oscar Andres Rodriguez, accuses the singer of going against human dignity.

On a visit to Chile, the Catholic leader said, “What Martin did diminishes the dignity of a human being. You can’t just buy or rent life. It’s even worse when someone famous and in the public eye is doing it.”

And he isn’t alone - Mexican talk show host Esteban Arce has also spoken out against Martin.

On his show Matutino Express, Arce said, “I don’t think it’s right to deny children of maternal figures, just because you have a big ego.”

[From Contact Music]

If the mother really is Ricky’s cousin, the boys may at least have contact with her and know their history when they get older. If it’s his first cousin, though, that brings up all sorts of genetic questions if his sperm was used to inseminate her. (Update: it’s also possible that another woman’s eggs were used and that his cousin was just the surrogate, which would mean there are no genetic issues of course. Thanks Bleeker!)

How is it ego-driven to have children? That’s one of the most selfless things you can do. This guy should be applauded.

On Monday we reported a story that an unnamed magazine editor called Ricky’s new role as a father “icky” because his reasons for doing it were not known. The editor said that magazines are not too eager to publish the photos of the twins because they don’t think Ricky is willing to talk much about it. No one calls it icky when single moms like Sheryl Crow, Meg Ryan and Mary-Louise Parker chose to adopt.

Ricky is shown getting his star on the Walk of fame on 10/16/07. Credit: Nikki Nelson / WENN

Singer Ricky Martin, 36, surprised a lot of people by announcing last Wednesday that he would be raising twin boys that were born a few weeks ago through gestational surrogate. MSat said that pretty much settled the case on those gay rumors, and she could be right. The NY Daily News writes that there’s not a high demand for the photos given the kind of mysterious way they appeared without warning.

Celebrity magazines, which usually start sparring over exclusive photos the second a famous sperm hits an egg, are backing off, top editors tell us.

“We aren’t jumping like we usually do,” one editor said. “We don’t think he is going to tell the backstory, so the whole thing just seems kind of icky.”

Martin’s rep John Reilly said they’ve received inquiries from various media outlets, but wouldn’t comment on whether Ricky is negotiating.

Word in magazine land is that someone will end up running a photo of Martin (who admitted last week that he is now caring for twin sons delivered through an unnamed surrogate) and his babies somewhere in the glossies, but that the family isn’t cover-worthy.

“When someone seems like they are hiding something, it’s a big turnoff to the public, who want to share in celebrities’ lives,” another editor spilled. “No one really cared about Clay Aiken becoming a single dad, either.”
The National Enquirer, naturally, has reporters hot on the trail of the mystery mama.

[From The NY Daily News]

I can’t wait to see what The National Enquirer digs up. They’re on fire lately and keep getting the exclusives.

It’s pretty obnoxious for their insider to say it’s “icky” that a single guy is choosing to raise two kids on his own. How is that icky? Does single man automatically indicate “pedophile” to these people? Having children is a human desire, and I find it touching that he wants to bring up kids and now has twins. I’d love to see those photos and hear more about it, but editors are right that some vague explanation of how the babies came about isn’t going to cut it. People want to know why he didn’t go the traditional route and if he’s truly single or has a partner helping him. Either way, congratulations to Martin. Wouldn’t you rather hear of a singer raising twins than hooking up randomly with some other celebrity for 2-3 months at a stretch? You all know who I’m talking about.

Ricky Martin is shown at the Latin Grammy Awards on 11/8/07. Credit: PRN / PR Photos

If there is still any shred of doubt as to Ricky Martin’s sexual orientation, his latest move most likely removes it. Taking a page from the Clay Aiken book of fathering children, the Latin singer announced that he has recently become a father to twin boys, carried by a surrogate. The babies reportedly will be in Martin’s care full time, and he has decided to take the rest of the year off from his busy schedule of denying gay rumors to be a full-time dad.

There won’t be much “livin’ la vida loca” for Ricky Martin these days — he’s now the father of twin boys.

The Latin superstar had the children via a surrogate mother, and the babies were born a few weeks ago, according to a statement from his representatives.

“The children, delivered via gestational surrogacy, are healthy and already under Ricky’s full-time care,” said the statement. “Ricky is elated to begin this new chapter in his life as a parent and will be spending the remainder of the year out of the public spotlight in order to spend time with his children.”

A representative said there was no further information on the details of the children’s birth.

[From the AP]

Congrats to Ricky, and kudos to the nameless “gestational surrogate” who made it all possible. That is truly a selfless act right there. I don’t know if I could do it- if I carried something for 9 months and then gave birth to it, it’s mine, dammit! Twin boys are surely a lot of work, so even if there’s no mom in the picture, I hope Ricky has some help. I wonder if this means he will finally come out to his adoring public? At this point, what does he have to lose, really? His days as a Latin heartthrob are pretty much over anyway. Coming out might be the best thing to happen to his career since William Hung sang “She Bangs” on American Idol.

Picture note by JayBird:Here’s Ricky Martin receiving his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in October. Photographer: Nikki Nelson. Images thanks to WENN.

Ricky Martin has done an extraordinary amount of charity work in his attempts to bring attention to child trafficking. While a lot of celebs sign on to champion a cause and never do much more than attend a few fancy dinners, a select few remain devotedly committed to their cause – and Martin is definitely one of them. On Saturday he went to Siem Reap, Cambodia, where he met with young victims of human trafficking that were used for sexual exploitation. The stories shared are truly heartbreaking, and highlight how incredibly important this cause really is.

Martin held infants and listened to a 14-year-old rape victim’s song during his visit to a shelter in the northwestern city of Siem Reap, home of the famed Angkor temples. “She sings like an angel,” Martin said after the girl finished a song she composed about the plight of trafficking victims. The girl was among 65 victims sheltered at the rescue center of Afesip, a French non-governmental group working to combat human trafficking in Cambodia.

The pop star also held the 3-month-old daughter of a 22-year-old woman who was sold by her father to a brothel and is now HIV-positive. The woman broke down in tears as she urged Martin to keep fighting against human trafficking. “I’m not going to stop,” Martin said, pounding his fist on his knee as he sat on a tiled floor. “All of you are my heroes. You are a gift of my life.”

Martin, who arrived in the country Wednesday, met with Interior Minister Sar Kheng and visited various projects run by non-governmental organizations fighting child trafficking and sexual exploitation.

[From Yahoo! News]

Ricky Martin first learned about the horrors of child human trafficking in February when he attended a U.N. conference about it. Since then he has actively campaigned to bring attention to the cause in Latin America. He said that Cambodia is a model for change, as they already have over 200 NGOs devoted to ridding the country of the crime. Martin said he plans to take the information he learned in Cambodia home and use it to “motivate people, organizations, governments in Latin America.” Cambodia and Thailand are still the worst havens for child human trafficking in the world, but Martin is right, they’ve made some important inroads. He’s had a ton of publicity in Latin America for his attention to this cause, and hopefully will stick with it and help bring on much-needed change.

Here’s Ricky Martin at the 8th Annual Latin Grammy Awards on November 8th. Images thanks to PR Photos.

I think Ricky Martin has confused continental dining with continental adopting. The hip-shaking, bon bon eating singer has publicly pronounced that he would like to adopt children, “perhaps adopting ‘one from each continent’ if possible.”

“’It’s something we want to begin to create this year, a family of many colors,’ the 35-year-old pop star told reporters Wednesday in Puerto Rico, where he is scheduled to perform this weekend.

“Martin, who isn’t married, said he doesn’t expect special treatment in the adoption process.

“’I want to do it right,’ he said. ‘I don’t want any problems or misunderstandings. … Some think as celebrities we can manipulate the system to have a quicker adoption.’

“Martin, whose hits include ‘She Bangs,’ ‘Shake Your Bon-Bon’ and ‘Livin’ La Vida Loca,’ started the Ricky Martin Foundation to help children in need.”

[From MSNBC]

What the hell does he plan on adopting for Antarctica? A child-sized penguin? He could dress it up with a hat and little red shoes and include it in all the other family activities. Man, that’d be so cute. I would totally support Ricky Martin adopting a penguin. I feel conflicted about this whole celebrity adoption thing. On the one hand, I think a lot of them are doing it for the good publicity. I mean, nannies do most of the child-rearing, so what do they care if they add another kid to the pack? On the other hand, it’s impossible to know another person’s real motivations, and it is great that so many celebs are highlighting international adoption. Ricky Martin has actually done some pretty cool things for kids, so I really can’t make fun of him. Dammit. He’s done a lot of work to put an end to human trafficking and child predators in his native Puerto Rico. That’s a pretty important issue that is definitely not getting enough attention. Alright Ricky Martin, you have a pass on this one. But I expect to see you holding flippers with a penguin and six little children really, really soon.

Picture note by JayBird: Pictures are from Ricky Martin’s performance in Calabria, Italy on July 19, 2007. Images thanks to PR Photos.