JIPUKTUK (Halifax) – Between the 50s and 80s a number of African Nova Scotian newborn children were removed from their families where it was deemed that the mother was unable to care for her child, this coupled with the stigma of not being married.

Although some of these children for a short period were cared for in their home communities, eventually they were removed and placed/adopted into other homes, towns, cities and even provinces.

For example, my sister’s children were said to be adopted in Ontario.

Theresa Viola Brown was born at St Martha’s Hospital in Antigonish on January 15th 1972 and James Arnold Brown, was also born at St Martha’s Hospital in Antigonish on June 28 1969. These two children my family has never had the opportunity to know and love or even see. My sister, the mother of these two children passed away in August 2016, without ever knowing what became of her children.

From 2012 to 2916, I travelled to Ontario ten times to seek information from Adoption Services of Ontario, before doing so I contacted Nova Scotia Adoption Services to seek information, to no avail. Adoption Services of Ontario would always inform me that there was nothing they could do and that it was the home province that was responsible for providing the information that was being sought and that Nova Scotia was one of the few provinces without open files.

Children failed by the institutions of care are subjected to a system that sets them up for failure

Santosh was only 14 years old when 3 policemen barged into his house in Delhi's north district. The chaos, the screaming, the image of his elder brother Ravi (17) being dragged by the collar escaped his comprehension. All he felt was fear, as he hid behind his mother who was begging the police to let go of her son.

While two policemen dragged Ravi out of the house, one stayed behind. Few minutes later, a voice called out - "woh doosre ko bhi le aa" (bring the other one also). His mother could not protect Santosh; he followed his brother's fate. In that moment, he ceased to be a "child'; he became a "juvenile" - a "child in conflict with law".

Santosh and Ravi were taken to a police station where they were kept for two days. In those 48 hours, two children, caught in the net of India's criminal legal system for an alleged crime, were ripped off the virtues of their childhood. They were physically and psychologically assaulted, their lives altered, their conscience scarred, for reasons they never understood.

The Quint interviewed many children like Santosh and Ravi in an attempt to document the pains of navigating our criminal justice system as "children in conflict with law". We also interviewed lawyers who represent such children before juvenile courts, as well as child rights activists. We also visited juvenile homes in Delhi to grasp the perils of institutional response to juvenile delinquency.

After searching for her birth father, Mariah Mills was shocked to learn his famous identity — and devastated to find out he'd died.

This article was originally published as "I Found My Dad...Too Late" in the December 2007 issue of Cosmopolitan.

I've always known I was adopted. My mom and dad explained that although my birth parents really loved me, they hadn't been ready to take care of a baby. I had a happy, "normal" childhood with a loving family, but a huge question mark remained.

In Saint Paul, Minnesota, where I grew up, adoptees don't have access to their birth parents' names until they turn 19. So I spent my childhood wondering what they were like. The social services agency provided some info about them at the time of my adoption, so I knew general details, like their ages (19 and 21) and hair color (both brown). The older I got, the more anxious I was to know where my ancestors came from and where I got my looks. Because I was raised as an only child, I especially wanted to find out if I had siblings.

I thought about my birth parents most on my birthday. I'd wonder if they were thinking Hey, whatever happened to our daughter? I had a recurring fantasy that when I finally found them, they'd invite me to dinner, and lots of family members would be thrilled to meet me. It sounds silly, but that's what I wanted to happen.

Ten-year-old Wasuthon Nielsen also called “Guide” came to Denmark from Thailand three years ago after his adoptive mother brought him with her to her Danish hometown of Taulov, where she lives with her Danish husband. Now the Danish authorities have decided to deport Wasuthon back to Thailand, Fredericia Dagblad writes.

Wasuthon came from Thailand where he lived with his aunt and grandparents. When his aunt, Praphatsanun Nielsen, married her Danish husband Niels Jørgen Fries Nielsen she moved to Denmark. At first, Parphatsanun went to Denmark without Guide who then stayed with his grandparents. Niels first wanted to see if Parphatsanun liked the life in Denmark before they brought Guide, he explains.

Parphatsanun quickly found a cleaning job in Denmark and settled in. She then went back to Thailand and got an official adoption for Guide approved before she brought him back to Denmark with her.

Today Guide is in the Danish third grade where he, according to his teachers, is making a lot of process. Guide himself is also enjoying his time in Denmark “I like math and gymnastics,” Guide says. He also says that he likes cartoons and playing video games.

In Guide’s free time he plays Esport at a local club. At home, he frequently has friends visiting to play football or badminton in the garden. Soon Guide is going to a disco night with his class at their school.

Figures from Statistic Finland show that the pandemic did not affect international adoption in Finland in 2020 and 82 children born abroad were adopted last year which is an increase of 3 children compared to the year before.

Out of the 82 children, Thailand remains a popular choice for Finnish families looking to adopt and a total of 23 children from Thailand were adopted in 2020. 12 Russian children and 11 children born in the Philippines were also amongst the 82 children adopted in Finland last year. Thailand has also been the most common adoption country in previous years. The number of children adopted from Russia increased significantly from previous years.

Domestic adoptions, on the other hand, declined steadily in 2020. A total of 211 children born in Finland were adopted last year which is 80 fewer than in 2019. According to Laura Lipasti, chief actuary at Statistics Finland, this is partly explained by the new Maternity Act which makes it possible to recognize two mothers for a child born through assisted reproduction even before the child is born and this has reduced the need for adoptions within families.

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2021

5 year old girl from Hungary : approval matching 06/08/2021

7 year old boy from Hungary : approval matching 06/08/2021

The Nepalese girl Dipika, who has been living in Nepal with her adoptive mother for years, receives a humanitarian visa for Belgium.

Prime Minister Charles Michel has stated this. The Bruges adoptive mother Bénédicte Van de Sande has been waiting for more than three years in the Nepalese capital Kathmandu for permission to come to our country with Dipika. The woman then went to Nepal with her husband Khatiwada Gyanendra to pick up their child. But the adoption was not recognized.

Husband Khatiwada Gyanendra returned to Bruges, while his wife remains in Kathmandu with daughter Dipika. A support committee was recently set up that asked, among other things, to grant Dipika a humanitarian visa. The severe earthquake in Nepal and the dramatic consequences of that earthquake have now led to the Belgian government granting Dipika a humanitarian visa. The visa is valid for two years and does not rule on the legality of the adoption procedure. That file will be further monitored by the Federal Public Service (FPS) Justice, the Michel cabinet reports.

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The Advisory Committee of the VCA consists of:

Representatives of adoptees and adoptive parents.

Representatives of the facilities working in the areas of responsibility of the VCA (these are the Support Center for Adoption, services for social research, adoption services).

Representatives of the employees of those facilities.

Independent experts.

In France, the official adoption service of Seine-Maritime (Normandy) has publicly said that gay couples are "deviant" and therefore should also adopt "deviant" children, such as children with disabilities or psychological problems. Discriminatory statements that cause a stir among our southern neighbors.

It was Pascale Lemare of the adoption service who made the bold statements on the local radio France Bleu. According to her, gay couples are "deviant in terms of social and biological norms". "If they provide children with deviant problems in their adoption plans… If they have open expectations, then they can indeed adopt children," it said. An interest group has already filed a complaint and the government of President Macron spoke of "impermissible discrimination".

Four gay couples with adopted children

Correspondent Frank Renout states in 'The Morning' that the gay people in France themselves are not surprised. Marie-Claude Picardat of the French Association of Gay Parents says the advisory boards that decide on adoptive children are sometimes homophobic, rejecting gays and lesbians as adoptive parents.

Same-sex marriage was legalized in France five years ago. Since then, according to Picardat, only four married gay couples have adopted children.

NEW DELHI: The priority for adoption may be given to those who are from the same state as that of the child so that the social and cultural milieu is preserved, a senior official said.

At present, people get a choice of three states from where they wish to adopt.

NEW DELHI: The priority for adoption may be given to those who are from the same state as that of the child so that the social and cultural milieu is preserved, a senior official said.

At present, people get a choice of three states from where they wish to adopt.