May 19, 2010

Scarlett Johansson's mom, Melanie Sloan, has adopted a baby girl from Ethiopia, a source tells UsMagazine.com.Sloan missed her daughter's Iron Man 2 premiere because she was en route to the African country to pick up her daughter, Fenan, who is 19 to 20 months old. (Johansson also has a older brother, Adrian, a twin brother, Hunter, and an older half-brother, Christian, from her father's first marriage.)

Sloan was stranded in Germany for several days while traveling to Ethiopia because of the volcano ash cloud."The volcano put the whole adoption process in jeopardy due to time constraints," a source tells Us. "But it worked out in the end."

A rep for Johansson, 25, had no comment. The actress and husband Ryan Reynolds, 33, may soon be following in Sloan's footsteps.

PHOTOS: Can you believe Scarlett and Ryan's (and other couples') age differences?"I have every intention of adopting at some time," Reynolds -- whose older brother is adopted -- told UK Glamour last summer. "I'm very grateful for having my brother in my life. I couldn't be more pro-adoption. There are plenty of kids in the world that need it."

http://m.usmag.com/v/CelebNews/ScarlettJohanssonsMo/?KSID=25cfd02fa06e5d4896f15ff22766f6c0

< Previous Next > Play Video Video 1 of 1 All Video Adoption Struggles  Adoption Struggle To most, it would appear one local business owner had it all; a successful spa, great friends and family. But one thing was missing from Anita Hug's life -- a child of her own. Her journey took her overseas to adopt, and she overcame major obstacles to find the love of her life. Watching Anita and Phiza Hug, they look like any other mother and daughter, but it wasn't always this way. Anita Hug said, "She wasn't eating for me, sleeping for me, her eyes were dead. There was just no life to her." It's been seven months since Anita brought Phiza to the U.S. from India. But getting Phiza home wasn't easy. Anita's intercountry adoption was like a roller coaster. When asked if she thought at some point she wouldn't bring her home, Hug answered, "Yes, I remember calling and thinking I had been robbed of $30,000." $30,000 was the amount of the loan Anita took out for the process. Thousands for the adoption itself-- thousands more for the paperwork. Some forms were hundreds of dollars each and the home studies took months. Anita's search for a child started in Guatamala, but when the adoption was being finalized adoptions in the country shut down. Which brought Anita to India and to Phiza. Photos started coming to the U.S. and Anita finally saw her daughter. Then another disaster when the Indian orphanage lost it's license. Adoptions were put on hold until the facility was reinstated. Hug said, "I got to the point where I was holding a picture of a child I thought would never be mine." After more than a year of waiting and more pictures, Anita finally went to India to pick up her daughter. Thats when another battle began. Hug said, "Uou wait your whole life for this moment and she wouldn't hug me. I would walk into the room and scream and cry. I thought I made the biggest mistake of my life and thought what have I done." But slowly Phiza came around. Now, the child who wasn't allowed outside and survived on bananas and water, smiles, laughs, openly gives kisses. She's learned English in only a few months, picked up on American culture, while her mom realizes all of those hardships were worth it. Hug said, "I was meant to have her. She was supposed to be with me. These kids need homes and its hard to know they could be there until someone has the courage to do it. I'm lucky to have her. I thank God every day." For more information on International adoptions or intercountry adoption visit http://adoption.state.gov/adoption.homepage.html For adopting in New York State visit http://www.ocfs.state.ny.us/adopt/.

http://www.fox23news.com/news/local/story/Adoption-struggle-One-womans-emotional-road/aD6RycWScUmjmArHDxAr4A.cspx

See invitation Patrizia de Luca

http://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/420/response/1316/attach/html/3/4590.pdf.html

Russian FM says US adoptions should be frozen

By JIM HEINTZ (AP) – 2 hours ago

MOSCOW — American adoptions of Russian children must be suspended until the two countries reach a final agreement on adoption procedures, Russia's foreign minister said Wednesday.

Adoptions have become a highly emotional issue since an American adoptive mother sent her 7-year-old boy back to Russia unaccompanied in April, saying she was giving him up because of his emotional problems.

American and Russian officials have reached broad agreement on an adoption pact, and the Russian parliament this month rejected a motion to halt American adoptions.

Sierra Leone: Child Adoption Saga - Parents Demand Children's Return

Ibrahim Tarawallie

19 May 2010

Google Translation:

Germans illegally adopting children from Russia

ICCO contributed to the illegal adoption of 30 Russian orphans and children from disadvantaged families. Photo primamedia.ru
Angelina Strit13: 39 19 May 2010.
In the case of detained three suspects, two women and one man

Nanny of Amalco. 10% discount Caring nanny for the kids, educated governess students
In Germany, began an investigation of criminal cases against the Hamburg firm International Child Care Organisation (ICCO), suspected of organizing illegal adoptions of children by the Germans from Russia. In the case of detained three suspects, two women and one man. They are accused of trafficking in children.

According to prosecutors in Germany, ICCO contributed to the illegal adoption of 30 Russian orphans and children from disadvantaged families, whose age is today from 5 to 10 years. The company did not have a license for the relevant work in Russia.

Organization of International Child's Care continued its activities despite the fact that had been denied a license 4 years ago. At the same time, from a formal point of view, children have been adopted in accordance with the law. Thus, adoptive parents should not worry that they parted with their children. The decision of the authorities of children will not be returned to Russia, they are allowed to remain in German families.

For the adoption of all 30 children citizens of Germany in 2003-2006 paid ICCO 475,000 euros - from 13 thousand to 20 thousand per child, writes RIA Novosti. More than half of that amount went to the American adoption agency that took a work permit in Russia. That is what the agency was in contact with representatives of Russian authorities.

Criminals have found kids in poor and troubled families and in fact "to resell the goods in Germany. Adoption procedure was carried out with violations: foster parents were sending money to the personal account of the leader ICCO Eva-Maria Hofer.

She gained prominence in Germany in 2004, when scolded Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder for the adoption of a small Victorian orphanage in St. Petersburg. Hofer insisted that the politician is too old for such a step. Later, investigators found that fraudsters will review the applications and from persons over Schroeder.

Sam Schroeder in 2006 with his wife Doris Kepf be adopted in St. Petersburg has one child - a boy orphaned Gregory.

ICCO staff did not recognize his guilt. They can face imprisonment of between six months to ten years. Will there be brought to justice the American agency, are not reported.

At the same time, the Commissioner for Children's Rights Pavel Astakhov believes that the trend of recent years, when the Russian adoption on foreign adoptions is increasing quite quickly, within a few years will keep all children in Russia. Maybe in 5-10 years, foreign adoption will disappear altogether. "We can not give our children the world" - said the Commissioner for Children's Rights.

Meanwhile, in the U.S. a new scandal flared up in the center of which a child is adopted in Russia. Spouses Hershou demand money from the largest in the U.S. adoption agency Bethany Christian Services. According to the adoptive parents, the boy who was brought from an orphanage in Krasnoyarsk, was a bad heredity. They claim that they are concealed this fact and now require the adoption agency $ 10 million.

Hershou accuse the company of which they paid for the services of more than 16 thousand dollars in withholding information about the health of the child. Allegedly, the doctor from the agency issued the spouses concluded that the boy from the orphanage in Krasnoyarsk is healthy, but in fact it never even inspected.

Chip and Julie Hershou brought one and a half Roma in Virginia six years ago. In 2006 he was diagnosed with fetal alcohol syndrome. This malformations caused by alcoholism parents. Roma Hershou sent to a medical facility for difficult children and parents went to court.

The agency suggested the chip and Julie to abandon the child, but they have not accepted the offer. Bethany Christian Services stated that the adoptive parents warn of possible risks: the majority of children, whom the Americans to adopt in Russia - with congenital abnormalities. Spouses Hershou parry: the fact that Roma parents were alcoholics, they were allegedly not told. 10 million spouses promise to spend on rehabilitation of Roma, which, however, in their house no longer live.