Jail after £113,000 benefits fraud is cracked

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Jail after £113,000 benefits fraud is cracked

Wednesday, 24 November 2010

Fraudster: Illie Schian got three years

By Nick Tarver

Persons: Illie Schian

Countries: Romania

Baby Girl Abandoned on the Street in China Because she is Blonde

Baby Girl Abandoned on the Street in China Because she is Blonde
Daily Mail Reporter
November 23, 2010

Baby girl in China abandoned on the street... because she is BLONDE

By Daily Mail Reporter
A mother abandoned her newborn baby on the street in China - because the little girl was blonde.
The white-haired Chinese baby was discovered by a passer-by on a street corner in Nanning, Guangxi Province.
The woman who found the child heard a cry and made the shocking discovery.
The little girl was found on the street in Nanning, Guangxi Province with a note and some baby clothes
'I was walking to work and heard cries from a wrapped-up quilt in the corner' she said.
'By opening it I found a baby crying very sadly.'
Police found a bag of baby clothes besides the quilt and an envelope containing 3,900 Yuan, about £390.
On the envelope the mother had written: 'I hope warm-hearted people can help to send the baby to the orphanage house. Wish you all the best.
'My dear baby I am an irresponsible mother and an incapable mother. I am sorry.'
Police suspect but have not confirmed that the mother dumped her child because of the baby's white hair.

Police suspect the mother may have dumped her child because of the baby's white hair
She may have been given up because she was a girl or because her mother could not afford the fine for keeping her.
Most Chinese families are allowed only one child to reduce the 1.3 billion-plus population and cut unsustainable demand on resources.
Many children, mostly girls, are abandoned because of the policy.
The policy also leads to an estimated 13 million abortions every year, with many of those ordered by local authorities. Infanticide is also widespread in many rural areas.
Those who violate the one child law can be fined up to £25,000.

Countries: China

Hague Training in Addis

Organizations: Unicef New York

Countries: Ethiopia

Russia, US to hold another round of talks on adoption

24.11.2010, 14.36

MOSCOW, November 24 (Itar-Tass) - Another round of Russian-American talks on the preparation of the bilateral agreement on issues of adoption will be held in Washington on December 1-3, the press service of the RF Ministry of Education and Science reported on Wednesday.

Director of the department of education and socialisation of children of the Education and Science Ministry Alina Levitskaya will head the Russian delegation at the talks. According to her, “There are reasons to hope that the talks will allow us to remove the remaining disputable questions and thus ensure the earliest signing of the agreement.”

The ministry’s pres service noted that the subject under discussion will be “a number of items of the draft agreement on which the Russian side voiced critical remarks.” In particular, according to Russian experts, “the procedures of the recognition of the decision on adoption in the receiving state, getting of the citizenship of this state by the adopted child, as well as the “organisation of monitoring over the cases of conversion of adopted children, should be specified.”

Meanwhile, both Russian and US negotiators have earlier repeatedly said that they have reached understanding on the main points of the document, and the draft agreement will be signed before the end of 2010.

The Russia-United States bilateral talks on a draft agreement on adoption began this spring after an incident with 7-year-old Artyom Savelyev, who in early April was sent by his American grandmother by plane from Washington to Moscow alone with a letter to the Education Ministry requesting cancellation of the adoption. The boy’s foster mother Tory Hansen said that she no longer wanted to be parent for Artyom, because the boy is unbalanced, cruel, and he has a serious psychopathic behaviour problem. Then the Russian Foreign Ministry stated in connection with the incident that “the further adoption of children in Russia by US citizens would only be possible after the conclusion of the relevant Russian-American treaty.”

Russian officials say they want more control over US adoptions of Russian children and the living conditions those children face in the United States. “We have reached agreement on all principal issues and have seen willingness to sign such an agreement,” children’s rights ombudsman Pavel Astakhov told reporters after US and Russian officials met to discuss the pact. The draft agreement is expected to be approved, and the deal should be signed within the next two months, he said in May. The return to Russia of Artyom Savelyev, who is now 8, caused some officials to demand a freeze on foreign adoptions. Russia’s parliament, however, defeated a motion to suspend adoptions to the United States, the Associated Press reported.

Astakhov confirmed that adoptions to the US have not been “legally suspended” but said they are “effectively suspended” as Russian courts will not rule on adoption cases as long as there is uncertainly about the children’s safety in that country. Under Russian law, only a presidential act or legislation passed by the parliament can freeze foreign adoptions. The new deal will make it obligatory for adoption agencies as well as adoptive parents to report on their child’s health and living conditions, and to “open the door” for social workers to check the facts reported, Astakhov said.

Savelyev’s adoptive mother refused to allow a social worker into the house less than a month before the boy was dispatched back to Russia - a visit that could have prevented the boy’s misfortunes. Russia also has accepted a US proposal to allow adoptions only through US-accredited agencies, the ombudsman said. These agencies work in compliance with the Hague Adoption Convention, to which Russia, however, is not a signatory yet. “This will be an extra guarantee that random people and random organisations will not be involved in such an important and delicate matter as adoption of Russian children in the United States,” Astakhov said.

Some 1,800 Russian children were adopted in the United States last year, according to Russian officials. Some 3,000 US families are estimated to be in various stages of adopting children now from Russia.

Countries: United States of America, Russia

Some chiefs in the Northern Region recently called for the abolition

of practice of adoption and expressed anger with the practice particularly the provision in the adoption law that hands

adopting parents complete ownership of the adoptees.

The chiefs expressed the anger in Mzuzu at a function organised by The Law Commission aimed at getting views

from civil society on what should be included in the reviewed and Adoption Law which is being tailored ‘to reflect

modern issues.’

“Adoption should end; it’s like selling a thing that does not speak. Orphans always have relatives and whatever law

we implement, it will always bring us problems in the future,” said Inkosi Mtwalo of Mzimba.

T/A Mwakaboko of Karonga said he understood the idea of adoption but did not like the permanent ownership of by

others rather than natural parents.

“Just look at Jumani [Johansson]. We are having problems now because his name was changed and his natural

parents cut off,” said Mwakaboko.

He, however, said whoever puts his child for adoption should not demand tokens because assistance rendered to the

child is enough for the parent to be thankful.

T/A Marlowe of Rumphi said he was against the permanent ownership phrase in the law and said those wishing to

adopt should only assist in providing for the child. T/A Mkumpha 3 of Likoma and Chizumulu Islands shared the

view.

However, Alan Chinula, a commissioner in the exercise, said the chiefs’ fears are baseless since the child can choose

to go back to their parents after reaching maturity age.

He added that the new adoption law would make it tougher for foreigners to adopt in Malawi saying child shopping

would end and that the matching process would be emphasised.

Northern Chiefs calls for an end to adoption practices | Malawi Voice http://www.malawivoice.com/latest-news/northern-chiefs-calls-for-an-...

2 von 7 24.11.2010 15:20

He asked government to adopt the Hague Convention which he said

would be an additional tool in the adoption exercise as it centralises adoption and reinforces the Convention on the

Rights of the Child (CRC).

Social workers who attended the function accused chiefs of hypocrisy saying they were just defensive adding that

they were not looking after the children in the villages.

The current Adoption of Children Act was enacted in 1929; a law which, chairperson of the Special Law Commission

on the Adoption Act, Justice Esme Chombo, said is too old and doesn’t reflect issues like HIV, poverty and

modernity.

Countries: Malawi

Une grave affaire atterrit au tribunal d'Alger

Une grave affaire atterrit au tribunal d'Alger : un réseau de trafiquants achète des bébés à des mères célibataires et les revend en France

2010.10.01 Wahiba Slimani/Version française Amel Adjou

Taille de la police:

Le rapport de l’enquête préliminaire a démontré que ce médecin est impliqué dans le déplacement de 25 enfants vers la France, et ce à partir de 1998, mais ce sont, en tout 36 personnes qui y sont impliqués, dont les mères célibataires, des Français d’origine algérienne, et une faune de trafiquants de tous bords.

Des sources dignes de foi ont affirmé à Echorouk que le dossier du médecin impliqué dans le réseau de trafic d’enfants illégitimes en direction de la France est ficelé et le mis en cause sera jugé cette semaine par le tribunal correctionnel de Sidi M’hamed, à Alger-centre, après près d’une année d’investigations policières. Cette affaire devra en principe dévoiler la face cachée d’un réseau dont on sait presque tout et presque rien. D’un coté, l’étendue et la gravité de l’affaire sont connues de tous, d’un autre, on n’en sait rien sur les coupables, les personnes impliquées en aval comme en amont. Tout ce qui a été dit en sous-sol à ce jour, ce sont des faits d’une extrême gravité, et qui consistaient en le « rachat » d’un réseau de trafiquants d’enfants chez des mères célibataires en difficulté, auquel ils achetaient leurs bébés moyennant des sommes modiques, avant de les revendre en France via un réseau spécialisé.

Countries: Algeria, France

19-10-2010 - Laatste nieuws adoptiebemiddeling Ethiopië

De directeur van Wereldkinderen is onlangs op bezoek geweest in Ethiopië. De reden voor dit bezoek was het bespreken en evalueren van de situatie, ontstaan na het besluit van Wereldkinderen van augustus 2009 om tijdelijk te stoppen met bemiddelingen.

Dit besluit werd genomen omdat er onduidelijkheden bleken in een aantal dossiers van kinderen. Voor Wereldkinderen is het van primair belang om te beschikken over duidelijke achtergrond informatie. Om het Ministerie MOWA, dat in Ethiopië verantwoordelijk is voor de regelgeving op het gebied van internationale adoptie, te betrekken bij het proces van het verkrijgen van de juiste achtergrondinformatie heeft Wereldkinderen dit Ministerie gevraagd om de dossiers van de kinderen in het Wereldkinderen fosterhome te controleren.

De gevolgen van het besluit om tijdelijk te stoppen met bemiddelingen zijn groot geweest. Zowel voor de kinderen in het fosterhome als voor de aspirant adoptie ouders betekende dit een vertraging in de adoptie procedure.

Het afgelopen jaar heeft MOWA procedures aangescherpt en de houding ten aanzien van afstand is kritischer dan voorheen.

Dit betekent onder andere dat MOWA stelt dat alle kindertehuizen programma´s moeten ontwikkelen in de regio ter ondersteuning van deze families, gericht op het versterken van de gezinsstructuur.

Sluiting fosterhome
Een ander belangrijk besluit wat genomen is, is het sluiten van het Wereldkinderen fosterhome. De belangrijkste reden is dat volgens de regelgeving kinderen pas in een fosterhome geplaatst mogen worden ná de rechtbankzitting waarin de adoptie uitspraak wordt gedaan. Omdat adoptieouders, volgens de nieuwe richtlijnen, bij deze zitting aanwezig moeten zijn, kan de zorg van het kind direct worden overgedragen aan de adoptieouders zelf.

Dit impliceert een andere werkwijze. Wereldkinderen onderzoekt de verschillende mogelijkheden voor het starten van een nieuwe werkwijze in Ethiopië.

Dit was een verdrietig besluit. Het Wereldkinderen fosterhome heeft sinds haar oprichting goed werk verricht voor de in het huis opgenomen kinderen. De directeur, mevrouw Yeshareg en haar staf hebben in samenwerking met de programma coördinator van Wereldkinderen in Nederland de zorg gehad over ruim 100 kinderen. Veel kinderen werden in een ernstige gezondheidssituatie in het fosterhome opgenomen. De kinderen werden goed verzorgd, niet alleen op medisch gebied maar ook op het gebied van verdriet/rouwverwerking en de voorbereiding op adoptie.

Adoptieprocedures voorlopig niet hervat
Wereldkinderen zal in de nieuwe werkwijze directe samenwerking zoeken met tehuizen, die de missie en visie van Wereldkinderen delen op het gebied van preventie, familieondersteuning en adoptie. Wereldkinderen verwacht dat het nog wel enige tijd zal duren voordat deze nieuwe werkwijze operationeel wordt. Tot die tijd zal Wereldkinderen de adoptieprocedures vanuit Ethiopië niet hervatten.

Organizations: Wereldkinderen aka NICWO

Countries: Ethiopia

Inga auktorisation för Vietnam/No authorization for Vietnam

Datum: 2010-11-17

Inga auktorisation för Vietnam

Adoptionscentrum har ansökt om auktorisation att arbeta med internationella adoptioner i Vietnam hos Myndigheten för internationella adoptionsfrågor (MIA). Ansökan avsåg barn med i förväg kända särskilda behov vid tre specifika center i Vietnam.

Förra veckan beslutade MIA att avslå ansökan. En ny lag om adoption träder i kraft den 1 januari 2011. Det pågår ett arbete att utforma de detaljerade tillämpningsföreskrifter som lagstiftningen förutsätter. MIA anser att det idag är för tidigt att låta en svensk organisation återuppta adoptionssamarbete med Vietnam.

Adoptionscentrum kommer inte att överklaga beslutet.

Ämne:	Adoption
Land:	Vietnam

Organizations: Adoptionscentrum

Countries: Vietnam

Pune youth grapple with live-in relationships' googlies

Anuradha Mascarenhas Posted online: Fri Nov 19 2010, 11:05 hrs

Pune : Live-in relationships may be frowned upon for many reasons, but that couples studying in Indian colleges invariably have no clue about how to handle a child that may come along the way is an undeniable one. Counsellors at a few city adoption centres say many students, living with their partners, have been approaching them with problems of an unwanted pregnancy.

‘We had two cases recently. One was that of engineering students who told their parents that they are staying in hostels but shared a flat and are in a live-in relationship. The students were extremely worried about the pregnancy as the other means of aborting the foetus had failed. They went ahead with the delivery and sent the child to our centre to be adopted,” says Madhuri Abhyankar, director of Society of Friends of Sassoon General Hospital (SOFOSH)'s adoption centre Shreevatsa.

SOFOSH has now set up Matruka, a support group for such unwed mothers, and at any given time there are ten such women who meet regularly. Some of them are economically disadvantaged while a few are well educated and unmarried. From 1974 till 2009, SOFOSH has registered 2,574 adoptions. As part of the adoption week November 14-21, it has decided to conduct counselling and pre-adoption meetings.

Organizations: Society of Friends of Sassoon Hospitals - SOFOSH

Countries: India

Astakhov to demand moratorium on adoptions by US citizens

Astakhov to demand moratorium on adoptions by US citizens

Tags: child adoption, Pavel Astakhov, News, Society, Russia, World

Nov 12, 2010 15:21 Moscow Time

Pavel Astakhov. Photo:RIA Novosti

The Children Rights Commissioner for the Russian President Pavel Astakhov says he is prepared to raise the issue of imposing a moratorium on adoptions of Russian children by US parents.

This will prove the case if the signing of an intergovernmental agreement to that end is delayed.

Russia raised the issue of signing this kind of agreement with the United States following a spate of tragic incidents involving adopted kids.

According to the Russian Prosecutor’s Office, prior to 2006, when Russia toughened the adoption rules, US foster parents had killed 12 adopted Russian children.

Countries: Russia, United States of America