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'Immensely sorry’: Tasmania to introduce redress scheme for historical forced adoption practices

Mothers affected by historical forced adoption practices will be eligible for financial payments and counselling support under a new redress scheme the Tasmanian government says will be the best of its kind in Australia.

The scheme will cover practices that took place between 1950 and 1988, when unmarried mothers were forced into giving up their babies because of the social stigma surrounding pregnancy outside marriage.

It is estimated more than 11,000 forced adoptions occurred in Tasmania during this time, part of around 150,000 adoptions across Australia between 1951 and 1975.

Many women were sent to maternity homes and had their babies taken immediately after birth.

 

QUEST FOR ORIGINS - QUETE DES ORIGINES - About Us

We are a non-profit organization (registered under the French law of 1901, number W381015733), a recognized
public interest organization founded by dedicated volunteers. Our quest is simple: to understand our origins.

 


 

photo rebecca.jpg

 

Bjoern Seibert, the power behind Queen Ursula’s throne – POLITICO

Von der Leyen's chief of staff is the man to call to get things done in Brussels. But for a growing number of critics, he has too much control.

 

By NICHOLAS VINOCUR,
MAX GRIERA
and NETTE NÖSTLINGER

 

He’s known as the man to call to get things done in Brussels. He leans on party bosses to exert his sway over the European Parliament. And he manages the European Commission, an institution of 32,000 employees, like an extension of his brain, watching over everything from social media posts to mid-level staff appointments.

When babies become commodities

According to team.recherche, the Argentinian public prosecutor's office is investigating 48 cases of surrogacy. The charge: human trafficking. The investigation was triggered by a baby intended for a German couple. The research provides insight into a multi-billion-dollar business.

By Lea Busch, Marie Blöcher, Annette Kammerer, NDR

In November 2023, the German couple Heike and Claude traveled to Buenos Aires to welcome their baby. Ruby* was born in Argentina to a surrogate mother. Heike and Claude were already in their late 50s at this time. They had previously arranged for the baby through an agency and paid almost 50,000 euros for the service.

Back in Germany, Ruby catches a cold. Heike takes the approximately six-week-old baby to the hospital because of breathing difficulties. The staff are puzzled: Ruby only has Argentinian documents. Heike's advanced age also seems to be noticed. Furthermore, she appears unsure of herself in handling the child. The hospital contacts the youth welfare office. They fear the child's welfare is at risk and take Ruby into care.

"New dimension"

From Illegal Adoptions to Enforced Disappearance: Analogies in Favour of Victims’ Redress

By Vivian J. Salles Vieira Pinto

Introduction

On 9 April 2025, the Federal Regional Court of the 6th Region issued a landmark ruling in Maria Concebida Marques and others versus the Union and Minas Gerais State (Lawsuit 1000920-39.2017.4.01.3801/MG), recognising illegal intercountry adoptions from the 1980s as enforced disappearances and awarding compensation to the victims. This blog post summarises the case and analyses the Court’s legal reasoning.

Context: Irregularities in Adoptions during the 80s

Three families – three mothers and two biological siblings – appear as plaintiffs in this case. A judge had ruled the children to be in an “irregular situation” due to poverty, declaring the mothers unfit to care for them; some were even subjected to mental assessments that resulted in interdiction. The children were later adopted abroad, to France and Italy. The families claim to be victims of crimes against humanity, including the enforced disappearance of children, arguing that removals served hidden interests behind abusive adoption practices rather than the children’s best interests.

Adoption Action Adoption Law Reform – Aotearoa New Zealand

Welcome

This website is a place for supporters of adoption legislative reform in
New Zealand

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This year, 2025, marks 70 years of the Adoption Act 1955 being used to permanently and legally sever people from their whānau and family.

Adoption Action 2025 event marking 70 years of the Adoption Act 1955

Looking for answers: Two Scandinavian women search for their roots in Bangladesh

Two women, Asha and Elisabeth, were born in Bangladesh but moved to Europe in the 1970s as infants, after being adopted by a Danish and Norwegian couple respectively. All these years later, they are on a mission in their birthplace to trace their roots

 

Asha holds a childhood picture of herself while exploring the Old Railway Station in Dolkhola, Khulna, where she was found by someone named Dolly Mondol. Photo: Mehedi Hasan

Asha holds a childhood picture of herself while exploring the Old Railway Station in Dolkhola, Khulna, where she was found by someone named Dolly Mondol. Photo: Mehedi Hasan

 

Elisabeth wanted to know the truth about her own adoption. After two years of searching, she was not only reunited with her mother, but she also found an unknown adoption archive.

Illegal adoptions


 

In January 2022, Elisabeth Fjalsett (49) and her husband Henrik Fjalsett are at home in Arendal when they watch the documentary series "Norway Behind the Facade" about Norwegian foreign adoptions.  


 

The program uncovers several objectionable aspects of adoptions from abroad. Both unethical and criminal methods have been used to find children who are later adopted to Norway. 

Kalyan Illegal Adoption Case: Baby sold for one lakh due to financial hardship, deal made within the premises of the Tehsil office

Kalyan Tehsil Office: Baby sold for lakhs at Kalyan Tehsildar's office; Is repeated abortions a life-threatening situation?


Dombivli: She had two miscarriages earlier, and if she has a child, her life is in danger….so the baby deal…and that too within the premises of the Kalyan Tehsil office… an attempt to buy and sell a newborn baby has been exposed. In this regard, a case has been registered at the Titwala Taluka Police Station against the child’s parents and the couple who are preparing to adopt the child illegally. The police have registered a case based on the complaint filed by the District Women and Child Development Department and started an investigation.

The action was taken based on information received through the Child Helpline of Thane District Women and Child Development Department. The parents of the child confessed to the police that they were selling the child for Rs 1 lakh due to their financial situation.

Immediate action is taken if the adoption process of young children is implemented illegally through the District Women and Child Development Department. In this way, the coordinating officer of the District Women and Child Development Department had received information about the Child Helpline. Upon learning that a couple was coming to the Kalyan Tehsil Office to prepare mutual documents to implement the adoption process of a child, Shraddha Narkar, coordinator of Thane District City Child Helpline, immediately reached the Kalyan Tehsil Office. It was noticed that a couple was present there to adopt their child to another couple. Since this was a serious matter, Shraddha Narkar took help from the local Mahatma Phule Chowk police.

The baby is safe with his mother Ashish from Dombivli.

Romanian Parliament - Ralu Filipe - Elena Bustea

GOOGLE TRANSLATION:
 
 
Dear colleagues,

Parliamentary groups of the Greater Romania Party in the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies will vote against the candidacy of Mr. Ralu Filip the high dignity of the president of the National Council of Broadcasting, for several reasons. First, he has no specific training function that concern, no vocation of such a mission, not a man of no radio, no television man, no man of film, no man of the theater, no expert communications, and the certificate of revolutionary, you do not know how to obtain, can not replace the knowledge of specialty and general involved in the coordination of Romanian broadcasting. Moreover, in 2001, Mr. Ralu Filip had plenty of money in public television, as the moderator of "Brief on two" încasând from TVR amounts too large in comparison to low production audience question.

The contract of cooperation signed by Mr. Philip with Romanian Television provide for payment of not less than 1923 dollars per month for "artistic interpretation of roles to show Horia conducted by Romanescu, whose show was moderated itself Ralu Filip. Rating issue was very small for prime time. Despite sus?inerilor fanteziste the moderator, that the audience was close to the show "Surprise, surprise," about it summarizes the entire experience of Mr. Filip audiovisual collection of the important amounts of pay TVR, ie from public money, or, more explicitly, the taxpayers pocket for some benefits of a quality television doubtful.

In connection with your work from 1990 - 1991, it is true, Mr. Philip, that period, you have dealt with international adoption, as procurator of some foreign families, you've written a series of favorable articles in the newspaper that work, "Curierul National", and that you received a car from several Italian families, as a reward for services too?

As further proof that you are not as clean as you claim, reproduce an excerpt from a report prepared in 1999 by two senior officers, which incriminates that you have taken 5,000 U.S. dollars bribe the mafia traffickers of children. At that time, you publicly accuse him of breach of law officers from the brigade combat organized crime, which deals with the illegal copies and file them instrumentaser? a lawyer Ileana Busta, which, by Irene Foundation, was an important link in export of Romanian children. Financial interests were so high that the honest officers who wanted to punish the perpetrators triggered a campaign of intimidation by Colonel Albu, brigade commander, the top leadership of the Ministry of Interior, particularly General Mircea Muresan, the frames of the Prosecutor General, etc..

As shown in the report, "political structures of the time they tried mu?amalizarea case, sending it to resolve Col. Albu, which has to gird and more spirits and increase pressure on officers. They have used the press to television. This includes the role Ralu Filip journalist who was bribed by lawyer Scott Busta and its foundation, led to a television broadcast on Dudu Ionescu COMPLAINTS to officers for indiscipline, for violations of work rules, requiring sending them Prosecutor on hand, and what has happened. " Here's criminal profile of the person waiting today for the vote to be elected president of CNA!

Greater Romania Party Calls imperative that Mr. Ralu Filip, here's to us clearly what is true of these allegations and why did not, until now, no reply and explanations. Nomination dumisale by PSD is a recognition of a career exception or, conversely, is a reward for role in the abolition of OTV, the most balanced television that has existed in the Romanian broadcasting landscape?

Sir Philip, You said, not long ago that the PRM parliamentarians would not have the moral capacity to decide in a matter related to the essential restriction of freedom of expression. Now is our turn, representatives of the strongest opposition party, to say openly that you do not have the moral capacity to lead the National Council of Broadcasting. Accordingly, the parliamentarians vote Greater Romania Party will be a negative one! (Applause in the stormy Group PRM)