At the address indicated or via videoconference: EFA and Fnepe are pleased to invite you to participate in the presentation of the action research report conducted by sociologist Laura Biteaud. The author's presentation will be followed by two roundtable discussions.
Between "trust" and "betrayal": the impact of illicit practices in international adoption on families' experiences
A complex reality with multiple repercussions
Based on testimonies, this report is a deep dive into the journey and experiences of families, parents, and adoptees, uncovering the illicit practices of international adoption, often revealed during the search for origins. In addition to the repercussions that, like a shock wave, reach well beyond the family itself, the study sheds light on the "adoption system" as a "sociological object" and its consequences, leading to proposals for improvement in the fields of adoption and the search for origins.
Forced adoptions in Switzerland have so far received little research. According to historian Rahel Bühler of the Zurich University of Applied Sciences and Arts (ZHAW), the procedures were mostly legally correct, but unmarried mothers were under enormous social and official pressure.
Young women were "put under severe psychological pressure and forced to consent to an abortion, sterilization, or adoption of one or more of their children." The Federal Office of Justice records this under the heading "Victims of Coercive Welfare Measures and Out-of-Home Care."
Unlike, for example, indentured children, forced adoptions have received little public attention. From a scientific perspective, the events have also been little studied. "There are many unanswered questions," says Rahel Bühler (44) of the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW). The historian has co-authored recent studies on adoptions in forced situations in Switzerland since the 1960s.
DAVANAGERE: A special-needs child from Amulya Orphanage in Davanagere will soon join his adoptive family in Italy, marking the tenth international adoption from the facility.
The child's adoptive parents were chosen through Central Adoption Resource Authority's (CARA) selection process after his teenage biological mother expressed her inability to raise him.
Tarun, 3, with walking disabilities, will be transferred to his adoptive parents through DC G M Gangadharswamy on May 13.
T N Kavitha, the district child protection officer, said: "Govt-specialised adoption agency Amulya Kendra, Davangere, rceives legally free adoption (LFA) recommendations from the district child welfare committee in keeping with rules for orphaned, abandoned, and surrendered children."
The officer further said: "A 19-year-old unwed mother had surrendered Tarun about three years ago. When the Italian couple showed interest in adopting him, we completed the formalities." The couple had satisfied all adoption criteria.
While law prohibits direct adoptions, the process is based on an assessment of prospective parents' health, psychological well-being, social standing, and financial capability.
Post-adoption monitoring continues for two years with quarterly welfare updates.
Buttigieg alluded to plenty of advice he received on his children's hair from Black parents on social media. "They're like, 'let me tell you how to do it,'" he said.
Today, there are plenty of resources for parents who adopt children of a different race, a process known as transracial adoption. But that wasn't always the case.
For transracial adoptees who grew up in White families decades ago, these TikTok videos and the attention this subject is now getting bring mixed emotions. It's encouraging to see how far things have come in terms of adoptive parents working to better understand their children's needs. But these viral positive posts aren't reflective of what they experienced.
In a landmark judgment, the Chhattisgarh High Court has held that women employees who adopt children are also entitled to childcare/child adoption/maternity leave since it is a fundamental right of every mother under Article 21 of the Constitution, irrespective of the mode of attainment of motherhood, to give motherly care and attention to their new-born children.Justice Bibhu Datta Guru...
Korean adoptees worldwide are grappling with a devastating possibility: they were not truly orphans, but may have been made into orphans.
For decades, adoptees were told they were “abandoned”, “rescued” or “unwanted”. Many were told their Korean families were too “poor” or “incapable” to raise them – and they should only ever feel grateful for being adopted.
But these long-held stories are now under scrutiny.
Our recent research interrogates the narratives that have obscured the darker realities of intercountry adoption. Rather than viewing adoption solely through the lens of “rescue”, our work examines the broader power structures that facilitated the mass migration of Korean children to western countries, including Australia.
Truth and Reconciliation Commission confirms human rights violations, including false records of missing children as orphans by omission of parental consent by brokerage agencies , and first acknowledges the issue of state responsibility Insufficient data to find roots Even if an adoptee with a rare ankle disease needs genetic information from their family history, it cannot be disclosed without the consent of their biological parents The government must first issue a sincere apology and correct errors in adoption records to restore family reunions
May 11th is 'Adoption Day'. According to the Special Act on the Promotion and Procedure of Adoption revised in 2005, it became a legal commemorative day the following year to establish adoption culture and promote domestic adoption. The day before, the 10th, is also a legal commemorative day, 'Single-parent Family Day', which was established in accordance with the Single-parent Family Support Act revised in 2018 to increase public understanding and interest in single-parent families and to break down prejudice. Although it is not widely known, civic groups that opposed the establishment of Adoption Day played a major role until the government commemorated Single-parent Family Day.
The non-profit organization Root House, which has been advocating for the rights of overseas adoptees for 22 years, has been at the forefront. The organization's co-representative, Kim Do-hyun, pointed out, "(At the time of the establishment of Adoption Day), the Roh Moo-hyun administration was immersed in the romantic idea that if they increased domestic adoptions through campaigns, overseas adoptions, which were criticized domestically and internationally, would disappear," and "In reality, overseas adoptions have never decreased because of domestic adoptions." He criticized, “The purpose of establishing Adoption Day is flawed and its policy goals have never been achieved, but the government does not accept this reality. Every year, the Prime Minister comes out and gives awards to adoptive parents and adoption agencies at a large hotel attended by 2,000 to 3,000 people, saying, ‘Domestic adoption is a beautiful thing, so please participate.’”
Kim Do-hyun, co-representative of the non-profit organization Roots House, is proposing, “Let’s change ‘Adoption Day’ on May 11th to ‘Adoption Truth Day’” at the office in Changui-mun-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the 28th of last month. Representative Kim said that related organizations have been commemorating ‘Adoption Truth Day’ since 2020, and that social awareness is changing as the ‘truth’ about human rights violations against overseas adoptees and biological parents is being revealed. Reporter Lee Jae-moon
Since 2011, Roots House, together with overseas adoption organizations, birth family groups, and the Unwed Mothers' Family Association, has independently declared May 11th as "Single Moms' Day" and has held international conferences in the National Assembly for nine years, ending in 2019, to raise our voices in minimizing child adoption. Ultimately, Representative Kim said that the government also designated Single-Parent Family Day right before Adoption Day, meaning that it should first focus on social reconstruction so that birth mothers and children are not separated.
Agartala: A few-days-old infant was rescued from Khowai hours after she was handed over to a childless couple by her biological parents in lieu of alleged pecuniary benefits, sources in the police department said.
The shocking incident occurred at Katlamara hospital where the baby girl was born. However, due to the timely intervention of the police, the baby was rescued.
The biological parents of the baby hail from the Katacherra area of Simna Assembly constituency.
According to police sources, the child's parents had been struggling to make two square meals.
They took the decision to ensure that the baby gets a good life. Admitting the fact that they had allowed a family to adopt their baby, the biological mother of the child, Laxmi Rani Sarkar (Das), said,
The Child Welfare Committee (CWC) in Alappuzha has rescued a newborn boy after uncovering an illegal adoption arrangement involving a woman who allegedly handed over her baby to a childless couple in Muhamma.
According to Alappuzha CWC chairperson G. Vasanthakumari, the woman, a native of Alappuzha and married with three children, gave birth to the baby on February 25 at the Medical College Hospital in Kottayam. Conceived through an extramarital affair, she had kept the pregnancy secret from her family. "The woman, reportedly working in the UAE, returned to Kerala solely for the delivery. She was accompanied at the hospital by another person, believed to be the woman from Muhamma who later took custody of the baby," said Vasanthakumari.
After the birth, she briefly returned to her home in Alappuzha while the couple took the newborn to their residence in Muhamma. The case came to light on March 7 when an Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) supervisor from Muhamma reported the suspected illegal adoption to the authorities. The District Child Protection Unit launched an inquiry, and the CWC summoned both parties. Officials explained the legal consequences, urging the mother to either raise the child herself or allow the CWC to take custody.
She initially agreed to take the child back. "However, a follow-up revealed that the child had been handed over to the couple again. After a second round of counselling, the mother once more promised to care for the child. Yet, the pattern repeated, and the child was transferred to the couple a third time," Vasanthakumari added.
This is the story of Princess Victoria Gouramma, the princess of Coorg, who was deposed by the British. Her story is not just a footnote of colonial history. It is a reminder of resilience, heartbreak, and a young girl’s fight for belonging in a world that was never ready to fully accept her.
On a rainy spring morning of 1852, a usual day for Londoners, when they suddenly gathered curiously around the docs as an unusual figure stepped ashore. She was clad in a simple silk robe, a 11-year-old girl, with dusky skin, solemn eyes, steps down as she clutches her father's hand.
She was Princess Gouramma of Coorg. She was a royal from India, which was now annexed under the British rule. Beside her was her father, the deposed King Chikavira Rajendra, who hope for justice from the Queen of England. Little did they know that the little girl, bright and eager, was about to be swept into the heart of British royalty, which would turn into a lifetime of quiet battles against prejudice, loneliness, and betrayal.
In the pages of history as we go along adopting, acknowledging and embracing new curriculum, there are often stories that we continue to ignore. Princess Gouramma's story is also one such forgotten story, however, it continues to hold the haunting mirror which reflects even what royals like Meghan Markle may have faced centuries later. Princess Gouramma's life shows that even when the British monarchy embraced a person of colour, the acceptance was only skin-deep.
