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Plan proposed to save adoptions

Plan proposed to save adoptions

Posted By MICHAEL PEELING

Posted 18 hours ago

Almost two months after an international adoption agency went bankrupt, leaving 400 Ontario families wondering if they would be able to adopt, the agency's trustee has proposed a plan to rebuild Imagine Adoption and complete 350 adoptions.

To aid the company in getting back on its financial feet under the direction of BDO Dunwoody, couples such as Glen Walter's Carolyn Cormier and Stephane Leclerc have been asked if they would be willing to pay $4,000 on top of the $12,500 they've already paid in adoption fees.

Katherine Heigl and Husband Adopting a Girl

Katherine Heigl and Husband Adopting a Girl

By JOYCE ENG

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Guatemalan soldiers sold children in war - gov't

Guatemalan soldiers sold children in war - gov't

Thu Sep 10, 2009 8:28pm EDT Email | Print | Share | Reprints | Single Page [-] Text [+]

By Sarah Grainger

GUATEMALA CITY, Sept 10 (Reuters) - At least 333 children and probably thousands more were taken by Guatemalan security forces and sold abroad during the country's 36-year civil war, a government report said on Thursday.

Soldiers and police killed children's parents, lied about how they had been found and handed them to state-run homes for sale to adoptive parents in the United States and Europe, said the report, which was based on government archives.

KYRGYZSTAN: ADOPTION REFORM LEAVES KYRGYZ ORPHANS, AMERICAN FAMILIES, IN LIMBO

KYRGYZSTAN: ADOPTION REFORM LEAVES KYRGYZ ORPHANS, AMERICAN FAMILIES, IN LIMBO

Laurie Rich 9/10/09

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Last November, Suzanne Boutilier was sitting outside a Kyrgyz orphanage, cradling the slight 6-month-old baby girl she was set to adopt. She sang to her daughter-to-be and kept returning to a Carly Simon tune with the chorus "Lovin’ you is the right thing to do," and every time she came to the line "Even though you’re 10,000 miles away," she would sob.

In a few days Boutilier would be back in California, and the baby she had been waiting five months to finish adopting would remain at the orphanage. Now, more than a year after she was first matched with the little girl by an international adoption agency -- and told she’d likely be able to bring her home in eight weeks -- she is still waiting. And by all accounts, there is no telling when her wait will end.

Mariela Neagu: Ultima plat? c?tre organiza?ia "Pentru Copiii No?tri" a fost f?cut? de Bogdan Panait

Mariela Neagu: Ultima plat? c?tre organiza?ia "Pentru Copiii No?tri" a fost f?cut? de Bogdan Panait

Mariela Neagu: Ultima plat? c?tre organiza?ia "Pentru Copiii No?tri" a fost f?cut? de Bogdan Panait (Imagine: Mediafax Foto)

ARTICOLE PE ACEEA?I TEM?

Udrea, refuzat? de Curtea de Conturi

Sandu îl amenin?? pe Condescu cu controale efectuate de Curtea de Conturi

Parchetul ia la bani marunti adoptiile internationale

Prosecutor takes on international adoptions

The scandal caused two years ago, the statement Emma Nicholson

tolerance to criminalize illegal international adoptions by

Romanian authorities arrived back in actuality: the Romanian Office

for Adoptions has asked the Prosecutor General in connection with 11 such

3 Nepali kids set to land in US

3 Nepali kids set to land in US

Kantipur Report

KATHMANDU, Sept 9 - After a gap of one and half years three Nepali children are all set to land in the U.S with their new adoptive parents. This was made possible for three orphaned girls —Anita Himali, Anisha Sai and Santi Sai — after the government approved their documents related to inter-country adoption.

The adoptive mothers are Bonnie Lee Donohue of Wisconsin, Michelle Kyla Blanchard-Roma of Louisiana and Dr. Teryl Rae Elam of Alaska.

Donohue, who is a general manager in the food service sector, has been matched with three-year-old Himali, Blanchard-Roma, who is a reputed Louisiana-based attorney, has been matched with two-year-old Anisha, and reputed Alaska-based physician, Elam has been matched with nearly one-year-old Santi.

Remote Support - Children of Galati, "adopted" in Italy

Remote Support  - Children of Galati, "adopted" in Italy

Author: Anca Melinte
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Wednesday, February 4, 2009

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Andreea Marin Banica gesture to take away a girl in Africa has made waves last summer. At that time, 35,000 children worldwide, including disadvantaged children in Galati, was "adopted at a distance" by as many families, churches or small communities in Italy, through a project called "Support remote.

From 1998 until now, the project has helped over 260 children from Galati in the situation of early school or family. The project was possible thanks to collaboration between "Heart of a Child Foundation and AVSI Italy Peoples Development Foundation in Bucharest. Yesterday, the software park, the three foundations met with authorities and some of the children, to take stock of the project lasting , which just ended.

A wonderful project

As we testified Dr. Anna Burtea, executive director of "Heart of a Child" project began ten years ago, in an attempt to find solutions for abandoned HIV positive children in hospital. "Managed to find families in which her to stay, but it was very difficult for us to support them financially. I found Peoples Development Foundation in Bucharest which relate to AVSI Italy and a wonderful project that should be applied in Romania.

It is a distance adoption project which means that an Italian family or a group of friends or a church or a class of students donate some pennies quarterly reaching a child from another country. In Galati was 260 children directly benefited from this aid, not to mention the indirect beneficiaries - families, brothers and sisters.

With this program and other funding have managed to open day care centers in Galati and Pechea, kindergarten in Cudalbi, and to cover part of costs for family houses that we have "told us Dr. Anna Burtea .

L?cr?mioara Rediu Peoples Development Foundation representative, said that over the 12 years of the project operate in Romania, have been supported over 3,500 children in seven counties. Now that funding has stopped, Romania, EU member, needs to solve social problems:

"We try to convince the authorities and the people responsible, those who can do something that is not an effort, it is our duty, a way to express our solidarity to exercise quality people", has Anna said Burt.

Testimonials

"The Foundation came into my life when I was in sixth grade. He helped a lot during this time. Only half expecting packages. I got money, I received training in eighth grade, I was a volunteer at the Day Center, helping children to fear. You know what they say: Why you, why get "told us young Gabriela Popa, now in the final year of high school.

Over the ten years of project, the children of Galati and families in Italy were linked to heart relationships. Here are just a fragment of a letter sent by the supporters of Italy to the child "adopted" in Galati: "Thank you immensely because you gave me your smile every time you receive letters from you. I am very happy and grateful to good Lord, because he gave me the opportunity to know and give you my life. Once you meet me, you belong in my life and always will be.

We will return with an exclusive interview with Simona Carobene, representative AVSI Italy.
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Copii din Gala?i, „adopta?i" în Italia
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A billion dollars of exports of Children (Social)

A billion dollars of exports of Children (Social)


         The old system of international adoption, practiced until 2004, has put more than one billion euros in the pockets of those who brokered the departure of Romanian children abroad.

Nearly 30,000 Romanian children were adopted internationally in 1990 till the end of 2004, when the new legislation came into force on the legal status of adoptions, which ended the "export" of children. Figure, detected Theodora Bertzi, head of the Romanian Office for Adoptions (ORA), was first circulated by sociologist Alin Teodorescu, according to a study in 2003. "If from 1997 until 2002, after the establishment of the moratorium were made for acts of international adoptions 10,000 children, the figure of 30,000 seems excessive for the period 1990-2004," said Bertzi.

$ 30,000 for a child

In addition, says boss TIME, Romanian NGOs were funded outside the families could receive children for international adoption, money that would have invested in programs in Romania. Besides these sums, the families gave foreign NGOs, the local partner, amounts between 30,000 and 50,000 euros, to adopt a Romanian child, said Bertzi. A simple calculation shows that Romanian children in these years has paid at least one billion euros.

Diana Nistorescu, executive director of the Federation of NGOs Active in Child Protection (FONPC), said that NGOs had money outside "afford to pay the fees of Child Protection which had priority in obtaining permits, benefiting ".

She added that "the old system was corrupt from the highest level until the last maternity, but was anyone punished. Bogdan Panait, chairman of the Authority for Child Protection (ANPDC) says that "most of the amounts taken for Romanian children remained abroad, where they were used including the election campaigns of politicians who supported the international adoptions.

Take the signature

Secretary of State TIME explain the large number of children who went to a foreign family in very simple ways of making adoptions, but also by the existence of trafficking networks. "Before 1997, adoption is made at the village hall. Came mother, the sign that he put the baby for adoption, the adoptive family and then sign for delivery. The transaction is easy, and the child had as a commodity," according Theodora Bertzi. The trafficking of children, reported both by the European community as well as by representatives of NGOs and of those who deal with child protection, is now in a process of "sleep, awaiting unlock international adoptions, the representative added TIME.

Nepotism between NGOs and state

Before the moratorium established in 2001, which provisionally closed valve adoptiior international Romanian laws "is clear connection between children and money, which led to the corruption of the system," said Bertzi. It maintains that there were several methods used for child trafficking clear violation of international law and signed by Romania.

One of these was the creation of a national network based on nepotism, between representatives of state institutions who were in the care of children and NGOs allowed to do international adoptions. "I found the bosses, who were at the Bureau of Adoptions, whose daughter was a lawyer and a company working on adoptions. So here is how the information flow. Or a director of swing, or was swing, whose face had a foundation in Contact other foundation outside, all the lawyer girl. She clearly knew where the children are the families who came and brought him there. The moment had families who wanted a child, it was made immediately adoptable. These were not in law incompatibilities, but they exist. For it could not have been punished, "says Bertzi.

Mothers, cheated the state and lawyers

Another method of obtaining a Romanian child was subverting systematic mothers, especially after 1997. First, lawyers interested NGOs to persuade the mothers, usually poor, as it is better for children to be raised several years of rich families abroad. Finally, mothers signed a notarial act in which he agreed to give families of children abroad, not knowing but that the separation was final, said Bertzi.

Simultaneously, social workers tried to separate the child from the mother and the staff was the cradle where the child is placed in the Register or the mother's family visits. So, by law, if a child appears obvious that was not visited by his family for more than six months, he became adoptable. Before 1997, the network traffic was in maternity and pediatric sections. "If you have information? Medical staff working there. Absolutely no remuneration for the job. It's hard to prove, that none of the parties would have any interest to say that he gave / give or take money," said head TIME.

Theodora Bertzi show that in May began receiving complaints from mothers tricked in the past, which now require children to be given back, but authorities can not do anything for them.

Traffic valve was closed

Romanian authorities say now in Romania, there was no framework that would allow such type of trafficking in children. "No can do traffic now. There is a clear procedure is that the new law who connects the hands," said Theodora Bertzi. Opinion shared by Secretary of State Bogdan Panait: "The law has cut much slack. We did not have signs that they would such things happen, plus corrupt foundations no longer permit or no longer object of now ". Diana Nistorescu from FONPC said: "I think it's very hard to steal the children of maternity or no network traffic. Such information usually sweating, being involved large sums of money".


Source: Newspapers 

http://www.presa-zilei.ro/stire/3692/export-copii.html

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Un miliard de dolari din exportul de copii (Social)


        Vechiul sistem de adoptie internationala, practicat pina in 2004, a bagat peste un miliard de euro in buzunarele celor care au intermediat plecarea copiilor romani in tari straine.

Aproape 30.000 de copii romani au fost adoptati international din 1990 pina la sfirsitul lui 2004, cind a intrat in vigoare noua legislatie privind regimul juridic al adoptiilor, care a pus punct "exporturilor" de copii. Cifra, semnalata de Theodora Bertzi, seful Oficiului Roman pentru Adoptii (ORA), a fost pentru prima data vehiculata de sociologul Alin Teodorescu, pe baza unui studiu din 2003. "Daca din 1997 pina in 2002, dupa instaurarea moratoriului, au fost facute acte de adoptie internationala pentru 10.000 de copii, cifra de 30.000 nu pare exagerata pentru perioada 1990-2004", a declarat Bertzi.

30.000 de dolari pentru un copil

In plus, spune seful ORA, ONG-urile romanesti erau finantate de familiile din afara ca sa poata primi copii spre adoptie internationala, bani care ar fi trebuit investiti in programe in Romania. Pe linga aceste sume, familiile dadeau ONG-urilor straine, partenere ale celor autohtone, sume cuprinse intre 30.000 si 50.000 de euro, pentru a adopta un copil roman, afirma Bertzi. Un simplu calcul arata ca pentru copiii romani s-a platit in acesti ani minimum un miliard de euro.

Diana Nistorescu, director executiv al Federatiei ONG-urilor Active in Protectia Copilului (FONPC), spune ca ONG-urile care aveau acesti bani din afara "isi permiteau sa plateasca taxe celor de la Protectia Copilului prin care aveau prioritate la obtinerea autorizatiilor, fiind favorizati".

Ea a adaugat ca "vechiul sistem a fost corupt, de la cel mai inalt nivel pina la ultima maternitate, insa nu a fost nimeni pedepsit". Bogdan Panait, presedintele Autoritatii pentru Protectia Copilului (ANPDC) spune ca "majoritatea sumelor luate pentru copiii romani ramineau in strainatate, unde erau folosite inclusiv in campaniile electorale ale politicienilor care sustineau adoptiile internationale".

Luati pe semnatura

Secretarul de stat ORA explica numarul mare de copii care au mers la o familie straina prin modalitatile foarte simple prin care se faceau adoptiile, dar si prin existenta retelelor de trafic. "Inainte de 1997, adoptia se facea la primaria de comuna. Venea mama copilului, care semna ca isi da copilul spre adoptie, apoi semna si familia adoptatoare de luare in primire. Tranzactia se facea usor, iar copilul ajunsese ca o marfa", potrivit Theodorei Bertzi. Sistemul de traficare a copiilor, semnalat atit de comunitatea europeana, cit si de reprezentantii ONG-urilor si ai celor care se ocupa de protectia copilului, se afla acum intr-un proces de "adormire", in asteptarea deblocarii adoptiilor internationale, a adaugat reprezentantul ORA.

Nepotism intre ONG-uri si stat

Inainte de moratoriul instaurat in 2001, prin care se inchidea provizoriu supapa adoptiior internationale, legislatia romana "facea clar legatura intre copii si bani, care au dus la coruperea sistemului", spune Bertzi. Ea sustine ca au fost mai multe metode folosite pentru traficul de copii, incalcari clare ale legislatiilor internationale semnate si de Romania.

Una dintre acestea a fost crearea unei retele interne, bazate pe nepotism, intre reprezentantii institutiilor statului care aveau in grija copiii si ONG-urile autorizate sa faca adoptii internationale. "Am aflat de sefi, care erau la Biroul de Adoptii, a caror fiica era avocat si lucra la o firma de adoptii. Deci iata cum circula informatia. Sau o directoare de leagan, sau fost leagan, a carei fata avea o fundatie, in legatura cu alta fundatie din afara, tot avocata fata. Ea stia clar unde, care sint copiii, familiile care veneau si ii aduceau acolo. In momentul in care aveau familii care doreau un copil, imediat acesta era facut adoptabil. Astea nu erau in lege incompatibilitati, dar ele existau. De asta nici nu puteau fi pedepsite", povesteste Bertzi.

Mamele, pacalite de stat si de avocati

O alta metoda de obtinere a unui copil roman a fost pacalirea sistematica a mamelor, in special dupa 1997. Pe de o parte, avocatii ONG-urilor interesate le convingeau pe mame, de obicei sarace, ca le e mai bine copiilor sa fie crescuti citiva ani de familii bogate din strainatate. In final, mamele semnau un act notarial prin care erau de acord sa-si dea copiii familiilor din strainatate, fara sa stie insa ca despartirea era definitiva, spune Bertzi.

Paralel, asistentii sociali incercau sa desparta copilul de mama, iar personalul leaganului unde era plasat copilul nu trecea in registru vizitele rudelor sau ale mamei. Astfel ca, potrivit legii, daca un copil aparea in evidente ca nu a fost vizitat de familia sa timp de mai mult de sase luni, el devenea adoptabil. Inainte de 1997, reteaua de trafic era in maternitati sau sectiile de pediatrie. "Cine avea informatiile? Personalul medical care lucra acolo. Categoric exista o remuneratie pentru treaba asta. E greu de dovedit, pentru ca nici una dintre parti nu ar avea vreun interes sa spuna ca a dat/da sau a luat bani", spune seful ORA.

Theodora Bertzi mai arata ca a inceput sa primeasca plingeri de la mamele pacalite in trecut, care cer acum sa li se dea copiii inapoi, dar autoritatile nu mai pot face nimic pentru acestea.

Supapa traficului a fost inchisa

Autoritatile romane sustin ca acum, in Romania, nu mai exista cadrul care sa permita un asemenea tip de trafic de copii. "Nu se mai poate face trafic acum. Exista o procedura clara, este legea asta noua care ii leaga de miini", spune Theodora Bertzi. Parere impartasita si de secretarul de stat Bogdan Panait: "Legea le-a taiat mult din elan. Noi nu am avut semne ca s-ar mai intimpla astfel de lucruri, plus ca fundatiile corupte nu mai au autorizatie sau nu mai au obiect de activitate acum". Diana Nistorescu de la FONPC spune: "Imi e foarte greu sa cred ca se fura copii din maternitati sau ca exista retele de trafic. Astfel de informatii transpira de obicei, fiind vorba despre sume mari de bani".


Sursa: Cotidianul

 http://www.presa-zilei.ro/stire/3692/export-copii.html 


About Ilie Coroama

Ilie Coroama

Ilie Coroama, born in Romania, is the founder of Walk in the Light Ministries. As a child he ran through the forest with his mother in front of the invading armies of World War II. He can still remember the terror and hear the bullets whistling past his ears.

As a young man Ilie was involved with the Romanian underground church and was a key regional leader in an organized Bible smuggling operation involving 30 operatives. Taking Bibles and other materials into Russia earned him the title ‘spy’ by the Communist Romanian government.

Ilie was trained to hide and transport Christian materials across the border. As a leader in the underground movement, he had been trained by operatives from the West and knew what to say if captured. Many times he would be stopped on the street and God would give him just the right words to say so that the police would let him go.

On other occasions he was arrested and imprisoned for days and weeks at a time, beaten and interrogated. Each time he was set free but in 1974 word came that he was about to be arrested again and charged with espionage. This time someone in the underground network had talked and Ilie knew that if captured he would be executed.