It must take undying conviction and courage to fight for what hasn’t been given to an entire community by the patriarchal society that we live in. Yet Akkai Padmashali and her husband Vasu’s unflinching activism for acceptance and inclusion has made them the first-ever transcouple to legally adopt their three-and-a-half-month old son recently. This may be the latest achievement as the first trans person ever to do so but for Padmashali this is certainly not her ‘first’ achievement.

Bangalore-based Padmashali, who tried to kill herself at the age of 12 because it became difficult for her to deal with the pressures of being called out a different gender than what she believed herself to be, has now been battling it out for the rights of the trans community for three decades now. In these 30 years of working with various organisations and the government she has a lot to show, Padmashali first had to fight for acceptance as a transgender person in Karnataka and then to get her marriage registered. Next she became the first transgender person in the country to get a driving license stating her gender as female and the first transperson to receive the Rajyotsava Prashasti, the second-highest civilian honour of the state of Karnataka.

Talking to SheThePeople.TV about the recent adoption of her son, she says she dreamt of adopting a child since the time she was unmarried. “After getting married, I and Vasu, we both felt that we need a child. The adoption of a baby was a long-held desire and a dream for me. But after marrying Vasu, the hope now seemed a reality. So, we approached a few orphanages but they refused to give us a child assuming that transgenders are mostly seen on the streets as sex workers and beggars. Their notion was that if they give us a child then by default the child will be forced into sex work or begging, but that’s not the case with us, I will let my child decide what he wants to do in life. It will be his decision entirely.

As a woman and a feminist, I need to see a child as a child. The assigned sex might be a boy or a male but let me not decide it for my child. I want him to grow as a child who can decide for himself what gender he wants to give himself,” says Padmashali who adopted her son from her sister’s relative.

On how can we as a society let children grow with people of all genders and if we have reached there yet, she is of the opinion that it would only be possible with people who have a progressive outlook. She recounts one incident from her life when she visited one of her friends’ houses where the friend’s mother shut the eyes of her 2.5-year-old grandson so he couldn’t see Padmashali, just because she is a transwoman.

On October 2, 2019, the Intercountry Adoption Accreditation and Maintenance Entity (IAAME) suspended the approval of A Love Beyond Borders (ALBB) for failing to maintain substantial compliance with accreditation standards.

During this suspension, ALBB must cease to provide all adoption services in connection with intercountry adoption cases. ALBB is required to transfer their cases to another accredited or approved adoption service provider. If you have an open case with ALBB, please contact them directly to find out how the suspension will affect your case. We also encourage families to review the information published by IAAME about selecting a primary provider/adoption service provider and the accreditation/approval requirements.

Affected families may wish to review information about Case Transfer Responsibilities on the Department of State’s website.

The Department of State does not review or approve case transfer plans and has a limited role in their execution. The Department communicates with competent adoption authorities about the accreditation status of agencies and persons and case transfer plans, as needed. The Department also facilitates communication to the public about the outcome of accrediting entity determinations.

For more information, see IAAME’s website. If you have any questions about this announcement, you may direct them to IAAME at contact@iaame.net.

In-depth afternoon for adult adoptees a great success

Last Saturday Plan Kiskeya organized an information meeting & in-depth afternoon with the theme "Haiti & Identity". In the Nieuwe Poort in Rotterdam a group of more than 30 Haitian adult adopted people came together to delve into their Haitian background and the different identities from their Haitian origin, Dutch context and, of course, African heritage.

Hostess Iris van Lunenburg, also adopted from Haiti and known from, among other things, the television program "Iris investigates", opened the afternoon and connected the parts that followed.

Marcel Catsburg, writer of the recently published book "Land without rest - fault lines in Haitian soil", presented a cultural and historical perspective to better understand today's Haiti.

Clinical chemist Jos van der Stappen shared his DNA expertise, the possibilities but also the limitations of kinship research that are important for those who want to find their family through DNA research.

On 8 March 2016, in the framework of the 34th session of the UN Human Rights Council, the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography organized a side event, with the support of the European Union and the Permanent Mission of Uruguay, on tackling illegal adoptions and addressing the rights of victims. The side event was organized in the context of the presentation of the thematic report of the Special Rapporteur (A/HRC/34/55) to the Human Rights Council.

In his welcoming remarks, H.E. Mr Ricardo González Arenas, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Uruguay to the United Nations in Geneva, commended the report of the Special Rapporteur on illegal adoptions for bringing attention to the phenomenon and for providing specific recommendations to prevent and combat it. The Latin American region, like the rest of the world, has experienced the plight of illegal adoptions, in particular with commercialism and abuses in intercountry adoption processes. He stressed that progress has been made since the 1990s with the ratification of international instruments such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its optional protocols and the 1993 Hague Convention, to ensure that adoption processes comply with child rights principles such as the best interests of the child, the principle of subsidiarity, the prohibition of direct and independent adoptions, and the prohibition of improper financial gain. He underscored the need for ensuring coordinated responses from both receiving countries and countries of origin to prevent illegal adoptions, and to address the rights of victims of past and present large scale illegal adoptions in their search for truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-repetition.

H.E. Mr Peter Sørensen, Ambassador and Head of the European Union Delegation to the United Nations in Geneva, also welcomed the decision of the Special Rapporteur to address the issue of illegal adoptions, in particular the large scale systemic and systematic aspect of the phenomenon. In addition, he welcomed the work carried out by the Hague Conference on Private International Law, especially its expert group on the financial aspects of intercountry adoption, and the working group on preventing and addressing illicit practices in intercountry adoption. The European Commission supports the effective implementation of the safeguards set out in the 1993 Hague Convention - to which all EU Members States are party - by participating at the meetings of the Special Commission of the Hague Conference on Private International Law, which aim to improve the functioning of the Convention and serve to exchange best practices.

In her introductory remarks, the Special Rapporteur explained that her thematic report analysed the various forms and trends of illegal adoptions and proposed specific recommendations to tackle the phenomenon from a child rights perspective, with the ultimate goal of putting the best interests of the child at the centre of adoptions, prevent illegal adoptions, and address the rights of victims of illegal adoptions. The report contained two major contributions to the discussions and recommendations on the topic, namely an enhanced focus on the so-called "enabling environment" in which illegal adoptions flourish, and the answers that transitional justice measures can provide to the quest of victims for truth and origins, accountability, reparations and guarantees of non-repetition.

The event included distinguished presentations by the following speakers:

Holt International Children's Services Invites Qualified Candidates to Apply for the Newly Appointed Role to Lead, Launch and Grow Its Adult Adoptee Community and Supporting Initiatives

Eugene, Oregon, July 16, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Holt International Children's Services, the nation's leading international adoption placement agency and not-for-profit child welfare organization, announced its intention to hire its first director of adult adoptee community outreach, beginning with a nationwide search starting today. Holt International first pioneered international adoption in 1956 and today remains the global leader with a long-standing commitment to holistically support adoptees for life – because adoption is a lifelong journey.

The director of adult adoptee community outreach will oversee the planning and implementation of outreach strategies to better understand and support the diversity and voices of within the adult adoptee community. This person will launch, grow and manage a thriving and interconnected community of adult adoptees spanning multiple locations, different lived experiences and many generations. The director will be responsible for building trusted networks and relationships, and informing how Holt can best support, magnify and celebrate a healthy and diverse adult adoptee community.

“The needs of adoptees evolve as they grow older and mature. We have a responsibility to understand this evolution in order to take appropriate action to serve and support them,” said Steve Kalb, LMSW, Holt International’s director of post-adoption services, and a Korean adoptee. “This new hire will allow us opportunities to connect with and support adult adoptees across the country. By engaging with established communities and elevating the voices of those who feel isolated, we can walk beside adoptees as they teach us the best ways to address their changing needs.”

Studies suggest that adoptees benefit from support services into adulthood. The director of adult adoptee community outreach will provide support and opportunities for adult adoptees by directing and managing heritage tours and regional activities and events, offering additional resources for mental and physical well-being support, and giving adult adoptees the opportunity to share their own experiences with younger adoptees. This person will also facilitate the organization’s adult adoptee advisory board, which will provide insight, feedback and recommendations from adult adoptees on how the organization can elevate its adoption services for children and their families.

An adoption racket in Hyderabad was unearthed as a consequence of a raid by Goan police and childline NGO on Christian children’s home in Goa. A lady by the name Venus Habib who ran the place was arrested on the charges of kidnapping, torturing and assaulting 8 girls between the age of 11 and 12.

Laity of the church nearby the orphanage where some of the girls went, noticed burn marks on them and notified the childline NGO by calling 1098. Vasco police is alleged to have not responded to the complaint of law student Anu Joglekar who made the call to the childline NGO.

A police team along with a volunteer from the NGO raided two flats belonging to Ms. Habib and rescued the girls. 6 of the 8 girls were found with injury marks. The investigating officer said “the accused used to torture the victims regularly and assault them with a belt and water pipes”. They were also branded in their legs and hands using hot knives for petty reasons. Thankfully, medical examinations revealed that they were not sexually abused.

Initially, when the police tried to find documentation related to the adoption of the girls, they couldn’t find any. A team went to Andhra Pradesh to investigate the origin of the girls. The Hindu reported Sub Inspector Ritesh Tari as saying, “The police team is visiting Andhra Pradesh to find out if the accused adopted the girls or bought them from their parents.”

But a Telangana man who supposedly supplied the babies to Habib has been arrested and the police suspect that they might have stumbled upon an adoption racket. The name of the orphanage hasn’t been mentioned in any MSM report. But data shows that Venus Habib is associated with a UK based charity, Yashua Sanctuary.

Faith: Parents seek to adopt from Macedonia

Marketta Gregory12:50 a.m. EST January 22, 2016

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(Photo: Provided)

When Hannah Butler was a girl, she dreamed of starting an orphanage.

Nadendla Manohar, son of former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Nadendla Bhaskara Rao, has been remanded to judicial custody till August 28 for his alleged connection with the child adoption racket in the state, which was busted in April 2001.

Manohar, who is general secretary of the Sparsh Welfare Association, a voluntary organization running a children's home near Somajigudda in Hyderabad, and Jaleel Hussain, president of Sparsh, were produced before the metropolitan magistrate by the Crime Investigation Department of the state police on Friday.

Their bail applications have been posted to August 19 for hearing and their plea for medical assistance has been referred to the jail superintendent.

The CID had filed charges against the seven persons accused in this particular case of the adoption racket under sections 120(B), 341, 372, 419, 420, 465, 468, and 471 of the Indian Penal Code as well as various sections of the Orphanages and Charitable Homes Act.

The police had registered a first information report on June 8, 2001, at the Punjagutta police station on a complaint from M Eswar Rao, project director of the district women and children's welfare (WCW) department.

Taking note of the big racket of illegal sale of children for adoption existing in many parts of the country, a court here has urged the authorities to make it an offence punishable under the Indian Penal Code.

Noting that no steps have taken by the government on the 20-year-old recommendations of the Law Commission for making a legal provision to cover the cases where a woman and child is sold, the court said that there exists an urgent need and a valid justification to extend the scope of legal provisions.

Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau observed that childrens are sold in adoption market, terming it as "Baccha Baazar" for children like for potatoes, tomatoes and onions and a "big racket of illegal sale of children for adoption exists in many states".

"I am pained to observe that even after 20 years of the above recommendations of the Law Commission of India the recommended amendments are yet to be deliberated upon by those who have been entrusted with the responsibility of framing the laws in this country," she said.

"In this background, I reaffirm the recommendations of the Law Commission of India (Supra) and hold that there exists an urgent need and a valid justification to extend the scope of legal provisions so to cover the cases where a woman or a child is sold whatever be the immediate or ultimate objective of the transaction," the court held.

IT doesn’t matter what your church allegiance is, or even if you have none; most people think that the Missionaries of Charity, the religious order founded by Mother Teresa, is a good thing.

The order, with 4,500 nuns, is dedicated to ‘wholehearted free service to the poorest of the poor’. The nuns care for refugees, former prostitutes, the mentally ill, sick and abandoned children, lepers, those with Aids, the aged, the convalescent. They run schools staffed by volunteers to educate street children. They run soup kitchens to feed the destitute. All this is provided free of charge and open to anyone regardless of religion, race or caste.

The Missionaries of Charity have a pretty impressive résumé, one probably unmatched anywhere in the world. But then there is poverty in India probably unmatched in any other country with its own space programme.

India has one of the fastest growing economies in the world and a growing middle class, but poverty, although dropping, is widespread. In 2014, the Rangarajan Committee, heading by a former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, said the population below the poverty line in 2009-2010 numbered 454million (38.2 per cent of the population) and in 2011-2012 had dropped to 363million (29.5 per cent of the population). In India poverty means poverty. According to the government’s own figures, rural poverty in 2011 meant having less than 816 rupees, or £9.33 a month, or 31p a day.

There is still ample need for the Sisters of the Missionaries of Charity.