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Guidelines - EU is DIVIDED

From: TOMKIN Jean (RELEX-NEW YORK)
Sent: Tuesday, October 27, 2009 1:08 AM
To: GORSKA   Malgorzata (RELEX); ZARU Davide (RELEX); GEURTS Charles-Michel   (RELEX)
Cc: CURTIS Michael (ECHO); COMBES Isabelle (ECHO); GARAY   AMORES Juan (DEV); ZITO Anna (JLS); OLTEANU Dora (JLS); DE SADELEER Katja   (ELARG); GIAUFRET Emanuele (RELEX-NEW YORK); WIRKUS Tomasz (EMPL); TIMANS Rolf   (RELEX); VAN BELLINGHEN Marc (RELEX); DE PEYRON Kristin (RELEX);   KASSANGANA-JAKUBOWSKA Margareta (RELEX); BOIDIN Jean-Claude   (DEV)
Subject: RE: guidelines for the alternative care of children

Organizations: European Commission, (UN) Guidelines on Children without Parental Care

Ex-adoption agency director must repay theft victims

By TOM BRENNAN | The Tampa Tribune

and JOSH POLTILOVE | The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 26, 2009

Gamete offspring have 'right to know' biological parents

Gamete offspring have 'right to know' biological parents

By Neal Hall, Vancouver Sun October 27, 2010

One Toronto man spent years searching for his sperm donor "biodad" and eventually learned he had 13 half siblings, an unusual civil trial heard Tuesday.

Barry Stevens, a 58-year-old Toronto filmmaker, found out when he was 18 that he was conceived through artificial insemination using donated sperm.

His mother revealed the truth after the death of Stevens' father, who didn't want his children to know.

Stevens spent years searching for his biological father, including 16 years of DNA detective work, before learning that the man who was his father was the husband of the female doctor who had done the artificial insemination of Stevens' mother.

Finding his father was a satisfying experience, lawyer Sean Hern told B.C. Supreme Court Justice Elaine Adair.

Stevens found he had 13 half siblings, whom he met, and may have several hundred half siblings, the lawyer said.

Stevens' documentary about his search, titled Bio-Dad, aired on CBC last year.

The happy-ending story was contained in Stevens' affidavit, which was read in court Tuesday by Hern, one of two lawyers representing Olivia Pratten, 28, who was born in B.C. and now is a Toronto journalist.

Pratten contends that those born through "gamete" donation of sperm and eggs should have the same rights to information about their biological parents as adopted children when they reach age 19.

She wants to have B.C.'s Adoption Act struck down as unconstitutional and replaced with legislation that will preserve the records of gamete donors -- which now only have to be kept for six years -- so they can be revealed to gamate offspring when they turn 19.

Although Pratten was raised by a mother and father, who are separated, she argues that it is important to her well-being and identity to know the ancestral background and medical history of her biological father.

"You can come from the most loving family and you still want this question answered," Hern argued in court.

Pratten's lawyers, including Joe Arvay, have filed in court affidavits of both sperm donor offspring and sperm donors. One donor's affidavit said he believes donors should have consensual contact with offspring seeking to fill in the blanks about family and medical history.

The court was told the sperm donor was paid up to $50 for each donation he made at the Vancouver fertility clinic run by Dr. Gerald Korn, now is in his 80s and retired. The man, who believes he may have dozens of offspring, has registered with the online donor sibling registry, the court was told.

nhall@vancouversun.com

Countries: Canada

Embettled adoption agency defends its role

Embattled adoption agency defends its role
25 October 2009 By Susan Mitchell

It has not been a good year for Sharon O’Driscoll. As chief executive of Helping Hands, which facilitates overseas adoptions from Vietnam, she has been at the centre of a media storm surrounding the issue of how adoptions from the country are arranged.

Last May, it emerged that a bilateral agreement covering adoptions between Vietnam and Ireland had not been renewed.

Without it, no legal adoptions can be processed in Vietnam. Minister for Children Barry Andrews refused to explain why the agreement had not been renewed, and was accused of leaving hundreds of prospective adoptive parents in limbo.

Then an unfavourable draft United Nations report which painted an unflattering picture of Helping Hands was leaked to the press. It emerged that the Adoption Board was also seeking clarification of the fees charged by Helping Hands for its services.

O’Driscoll has, in the main, shunned the media, but over the past week, appears to have reversed that strategy. She is now keen to shed some light on a number of the concerns raised, in particular media coverage of the draft UN report.

This described the information Helping Hands provides to the public as ‘‘at least somewhat misleading and consequently disturbing in its implications’’.

Parents who have adopted from Vietnam in recent years paid $11,100 (€7,400) to Helping Hands. Of that, $9,000 was paid as ‘‘humanitarian aid’’ to regional authorities in Vietnam.

O’Driscoll acknowledged that Helping Hands had not always lodged that humanitarian aid to identifiable bank accounts.

About €3 million has been paid out in total and sizeable sums - she was unable to disclose the precise amounts - were paid over in cash. Helping Hands did not receive audited accounts from the Vietnamese.

‘‘It’s just the way things are done," O’Driscoll said.

She added that Helping Hands had repeatedly expressed concerns about the lack of accountability for money paid out in Vietnam in humanitarian aid, and had raised the issue a number of times with the Adopt ion Board. ‘‘We made recommendations about this to the Adoption Board as far back as 2006.

We said greater accountability was needed and we continued to make that point," she said.

That said, she does not believe the money is going astray. ‘‘I go out there every eight weeks and I see the progress that is being made on the ground with the money," she said.

O’Driscoll said criticism of Helping Hands in the draft report from the UN International Social Service (ISS) solely pertained to a recent $1,000 increase in the fee levied for humanitarian aid. The report’s authors claimed Helping Hands had not clarified this increase.

‘‘The first we knew about this was when we read it in the papers," said O’Driscoll. ‘‘We had never even been contacted by them about it. We wrote to them and they sent us a set of questions, which we subsequently responded to."

A recent letter from the UN body confirmed there had been a mix-up over the initial questionnaire, which was sent to the wrong address, and that the recent response ‘‘clarified very well the main questions’’ it had. It said this would be reflected in its final report.

O’Driscoll said she had also responded to similar queries from the Adoption Board.

She feels aggrieved at the leaking of elements of the ISS report and details of correspondence between Helping Hands and the Adoption Board.

‘‘The draft ISS report was leaked inappropriately and was done to cause trouble, in my view. Stuff from the Adoption Board was mysteriously leaked. I’m assuming my most recent response will be leaked too," she said. ‘‘But it is very hurtful to the applicants and the children involved, many of whom are of school age. I have raised it with the department and the Adoption Board. What is the agenda?"

The amount paid in humanitarian aid by Irish parents is agreed in informal round table discussions with Vietnamese authorities, O’Driscoll said, adding that she believed the amount should be decided at government level.

The bilateral agreement that was agreed between the Irish and Vietnamese governments, and which expired in May, contained a clause stipulating that humanitarian aid be paid to the donor country. It failed to specify the amount, whereas bilateral agreements that the Vietnamese have with other countries specify the precise amount.

O’Driscoll said the amount charged to parents in Ireland was similar to the amount paid by parents in other countries who were also adopting from Vietnam. ‘‘There is a misconception about this," she said.

Other sources rejected that statement. In France, for example, parents pay half that amount for the processing of the application and the humanitarian fee combined.

O’Driscoll said all money paid to Helping Hands by adoptive parents was placed in a holding account. ‘‘We receive none of that money," she said.

‘‘The $9,000 is paid directly to regional authorities and the remaining $2,100 is used to cover medical checks, the processing of all documentation, translation and notarisation, and transport costs. We make the payments on the parents’ behalf. We don’t charge for the service. We are funded entirely b y the HSE."

Helping Hands has received funding of €1.6 million from the Health Service Executive since 2006.

O’Driscoll said there was ‘‘simply no chance’’ that an Irish parent would end up with a child who was put up for adoption in the circumstances that were outlined in a report in the Daily Mail last weekend.

The report read: ‘‘In a dingy shack, young women wait to give birth. Soon, for a few dollars, they will hand their newborn to desperate Irish couples."

O’Driscoll said Helping Hands existed to protect people from such a scenario. Such an adoption would never be registered in Ireland in the first place, according to O’Driscoll, as the adoption had to be referred through the Vietnamese Central Authority.

Under the previous bilateral agreement, every adoption had to be conducted through a mediation agency licensed by both central authorities, O’Driscoll said.

‘‘They have a very stringent process, as do we. I have always found them very diligent. The paperwork is examined and re-examined.

‘‘We also got them to introduce a database to ensure there is a clear trail of all the documentation. It gives added protection," she said.

‘‘We have no worries or concerns over the eligibility of any of the children we have facilitated adoptions for."

Barry Andrews has said he will consider the ISS report - which is expected to be published in mid-November - before deciding whether to renew the bilateral agreement with Vietnam.

The question beckons: if the minister is as concerned as he purports to be, why is his office trying to process 20 applications that had already been received by the Vietnamese before the bilateral agreement lapsed?

O’Driscoll was reluctant to be drawn on this. She evidently doesn’t want to offend the man who may hold the key to the survival of her organisation. ‘‘I don’t know," she said.

The Helping Hands saga has overshadowed other concerns that have been raised about the inter-country adoption process in Ireland.

They include the bureaucratic minefield people face when being assessed for adoption and the failure to ratify the Hague convention (aimed at improving the inter-country adoption process). Ireland committed to ratifying it in 1993 and we will be the last country in the European Union to do so.

O’Driscoll said Helping Hands had been inundated with calls from concerned adoptive parents and prospective adoptive parents in recent months.

‘‘It is desperate for them. Many are up to are eight years in the system," she said.

‘‘I have seen the draft ISS report and there is nothing in that report we did not know before. I think the big thing that is being forgotten is that the Vietnamese commissioned the ISS and the Unicef report.

There were a huge number of domestic adoptions in Vietnam last year. Nobody is reporting that. There were 12,000 domestic adoptions and 3,000 intercountry adoptions - which is unlike any other donor country.

They are improving their processes all the time and they want to improve their processes. That is being lost."

Persons: Sharon O'Driscoll

Countries: Vietnam, Ireland

Organizations: Helping Hands, Ireland

Child trafficking ring busted

Oct 23, 2009

Child trafficking ring busted

BEIJING - POLICE in north China have busted a ring of baby traffickers suspected of pocketing up to 400,000 yuan (S$80,800) through the sale of 52 children, state media reported on Friday.

Police arrested 42 suspected ring members who allegedly trafficked 19 boys and 33 girls in northern Hebei and Shanxi provinces as well as eastern Shandong and the capital Beijing, Xinhua news agency said.

The case came to light after Zhao Dongsheng and his two sons confessed to police that they had bought 13 babies from two women living in Shanxi's Yingxian county in May, the report said.

Countries: China

‘Christen moet tegen nota Rouvoet ingaan’

‘Christen moet tegen nota Rouvoet ingaan’
Geplaatst: 24 oktober 2009 06:33, laatste wijziging: 23 oktober 2009 21:13
door onze redacteur Petra Noordhuis
VOGELENZANG - Christenen hebben de plicht om tegen de gezinsnota van minister Rouvoet in te gaan. Die oproep klonk vrijdag op een studiebijeenkomst van het rooms-katholieke Centrum voor de Sociale Leer van de Kerk.

4 reacties
3 waarderingen

Discussies over het gezin zijn vaak ideologisch gekleurd, constateert prof. dr. René Hoksbergen, emeritus hoogleraar adoptie. In de jaren zestig en zeventig werd de functie van het gezin gebagatelliseerd, volgens hem. ,,Een irritante ontwikkeling'', vond hij dat. Hij is blij dat minister André Rouvoet van Jeugd en Gezin erkent dat het gezin belangrijk is.
Vorig jaar bracht Rouvoet de nota 'De kracht van het gezin uit'. Het rooms-katholieke Centrum voor de Sociale Leer van de Kerk wijdde er vrijdag een studiebijeenkomst aan, waarop een kleine vijftig geïnteresseerden af kwamen: ouders, priesters en mensen die vanuit hun werk met het gezin te maken hebben.
Hoksbergen was een van de sprekers. Er bestaan volgens hem veel misverstanden over het gezin. Zo leeft het idee dat veel kinderen niet meer in een gezin opgroeien. ,,Terwijl zeven op de acht kinderen opgroeit bij beide biologische ouders.'' De ouders zijn meestal ook getrouwd met elkaar, zegt Hoksbergen. ,,Mensen die ongehuwd samenwonen, trouwen bijna altijd als er een kind komt.''
Carolien Tax, actief in het CDA en in de rooms-katholieke kerk en hoofdredacteur van jongerentijdschrift Omega , vindt het jammer dat het in de gezinsnota vooral over probleemhuishoudens gaat. ,,Er wordt gedaan alsof elk gezin een potentieel probleem is. Waar blijft de aandacht voor de kracht van het gezin?'' Rouvoet lijkt wel de minister van probleemhuishoudens, zegt ze gekscherend.
In de centra voor jeugd en gezin ziet ze weinig heil. Mensen willen volgens haar opvoedtips die bij hun geloofsovertuiging of levensbeschouwing aansluiten. ,,We moeten vechten voor het bijzonder onderwijs en met andere parochianen over de opvoeding praten'', vindt ze daarom. Het leren van andere, gelijkgezinde ouders kan nooit worden vervangen door de gezinscentra, volgens haar.
Minister Rouvoet definieert het gezin in zijn nota als 'elk leefverband van één of meer volwassenen die de verantwoordelijkheid dragen voor de opvoeding van de kinderen'. Tax heeft daarmee moeite. ,,Zo ongeveer alles valt eronder, ook samenwonenden, homostellen, zelfs een man die een harem heeft en twintig kinderen.'' Zij ziet het gezin met een vader en een moeder als het ideale gezin.
Contract
Ook prof. jhr. dr. Frans Alting von Geusau heeft moeite met de in de nota gebruikte definitie. Hij is emeritus hoogleraar 'internationaal recht' en 'westelijke samenwerking', maar is als spreker uitgenodigd omdat hij vader is van zes getrouwde kinderen. ,,Die allen niet voor het huwelijk hebben samengewoond'', voegt hij daaraan toe.
Het gezin als leefverband omschrijven, haalt het gezin onderuit, vindt hij. ,,De belofte van het leven is in Nederland gereduceerd tot een contract. Het huwelijk kan makkelijk worden beëindigd. Waarom moeten wij als christenen, die de dragers zijn van de beste boodschap over het huwelijk, daarin meegaan en concessies doen over de definitie van het gezin? Het huwelijk is een belofte aan elkaar en aan God. Liefde is geen romantische aangelegenheid, je hebt de essentiële plicht om bij elkaar te blijven. Voor het CDA is het de hoogste tijd om vanuit de C te spreken en niet vanuit concessies. Anders dragen we bij aan de verwarring die over dit onderwerp bestaat. Verloedering van de taal, is het begin van verloedering van de geest.''
Tot zijn spijt heeft hij nergens in de nota iets teruggevonden over de voorbereiding op het huwelijk en over de rol van de kerk. ,,Het gezin is een door God zelf gegeven opdracht. Als zo'n nota verschijnt, hebben we als christenen de plicht ertegen in te gaan.''
Net als Alting von Geusau dat heeft gedaan, combineert prof.dr. Leonard Besselink zijn hoogleraarschap met de opvoeding van zes kinderen. Nederland is niet gezinsvriendelijk, houdt hij de aanwezigen voor. Werk en gezin zijn moeilijk te combineren, door onder meer wachtlijsten bij de dure kinderopvang en te weinig mogelijkheden om flexibel te werken.
René Hoksbergen vindt daarom dat de gezinsnota wel een aanvulling kan gebruiken. Ouders moeten in de gelegenheid worden gesteld om de tijd te nemen voor hun kinderen. Het gezin is volgens hem de kern van de samenleving en verdient daarom blijvende aandacht van de overheid en van de ouders. ,,Je wilt je kinderen toch goed afleveren aan de samenleving?''

Countries: Netherlands

Persons: Rene Hoksbergen

Skin deep

When Nisha Grayson was in second grade, her school class in California, US, put up a performance. “Don’t come!" Nisha told her mom on the day of the event. Stephanie Grayson went anyway. When she walked into the classroom and a child shouted “Whose mommy are you?" Nisha just hunched up, blushed and kept silent.

“She didn’t want anyone to know I was her mom," Stephanie says.

“I’m tired of explaining to everyone why you’re white and I’m black," the seven-year-old told her mom after the performance.

Nisha, now a petite 26-year-old with a quick smile, was adopted from Goa by an all-white family at the age of six months and raised in “the white part of America", as her father Randy puts it. The couple never taught Nisha anything about her birth country or culture, though they did retain her name and abided by one request the birth mother had made: never to cut Nisha’s hair. She didn’t cut it until she went to college. Stephanie says she figured “everyone would love each other" and that would be enough for Nisha to adjust to her adopted life in the US.

It wasn’t, though. After spending a few weeks with Nisha and her friends in southern California, it’s evident that she’s surrounded by love, and always has been. She herself is a caring, kind woman, working with adults with disabilities at United Cerebral Palsy in San Diego. But there is a sorrow about her, an insecurity and vulnerability that lurks just beneath her dark chocolate brown skin.

Countries: United States of America, India

2010-termen pentru inchiderea caselor de copii din Maramures

Eveniment | 22 Octombrie 2009 - 20:55 | Numar vizualizari: 489

VIDEO Fundatia Hope & Home for Children (HHC) Romania a facut astazi un nou bilant al activitatii sale in Maramures iar una dintre concluziile pe care cei implicati le-au facut publice a fost aceea ca, pana anul viitor, se va pune lacat la toate cele trei centre de plasament care mai functioneaza acum in judet. Minorii institutionalizati acolo urmeaza sa fie impartiti in asa-numitele case de tip familial, cat mai aproape de localitatile din care provin. Maramuresul ar fi astfel primul judet din Romania in care mult-hulitele case de copiii sunt definitiv inchise.

HHC are un plan de bataie amplu la nivel national. Astfel, in urma unor negocieri cu Autoritatea Nationala pentru Protectia Copilului se intentioneaza desfiintarea tuturor centrelor de plasament pana in 2016, dupa cum a declarat directorul fundatiei, Stefan Darabus. Misiunea nu este una tocmai usoara avand in vedere ca, la ora actuala, vorbim de aproximativ 150 de astfel de institutii in Romania, cu peste 11.000 de copii aflati in grija statului.

La bilantul facut astazi de HCC Romania a luat parte si reprezentanta organizatiei internationale ARK Trust, Sue Fox, structura care este partena HHC UK si care a dezvoltat la nivelul Romaniei un program special destinat descentralizarii sistemului de protectie a copilului in judetele Maramures si Bacau. “Speram ca pana de Craciun toti copii aflati in centrele de la Ocna Sugatag si Delavrancea Baia Mare sa fie mutati in case de tip familial”, a punctat Sue Fox (vezi VIDEO1). Alaturi de ea la prezentarea proiectului a luat parte si Delia Pop, directorul de programe al HHC UK.

Directorul Stefan Darabus a explicat ca, in ce priveste cela de-a treia casa de copii care este inca in picioare, la Sighetu Marmatiei, lucrurile se vor derula ceva mai greu. “Daca pentru primele doua – Ocna si Delavrancea vom avea patru case de tip familial, pentru Sighet s-a luat in calcul nevoia de a amenaja cinci astfel de locuinte. Ieri (n.n. 22 octombrie) am avut o intalnire cu autoritatile judetene si cu reprezentantii Directiei Copilului, cu care am cazut de acord asupra unei colaborari in vederea inchiderii acestor centre. Speram ca pana la final de an sa avem si un protocol incheiat in acest sens”.

Reprezentantii HHC au aratat ca e nevoie ca Directia Generala de Asistenta Sociala si de Protectie a Copilului sa se implice mai mult in ceea ce inseamna preventia abandonului. “Mare parte din activitatea noastra s-a axat si pe reintegrarea in familii a copiilor. Directia poate sa faca mai multe pe prevenire. Suntem totodata frustrati de ritmul lent in care se intocmesc documentele – incepand cu intrarea la comisi si pana la ajungerea in instanta”, apunctat Darabus (vezi VIDEO2).

Pentru constructia viitoarelor case de tip familial din Maramures, unde urmeaza sa fie dusi copiii de la Sighet, dar si in cazul centrului de plasament Onesti din Bacau, vizat de asemenea pentru descentralizare, HHC se bazeaza si pe un sprijin financiar din partea Guvernului. Momentan, din cauza problemelor politice aparute la nivel central, oficialii de la Autoritatea Nationala de Protectie a Copilului au intarziat sa ia o decize in ce priveste cele doua proiecte de inchidere a centrelor. “Asteptam sa vedem ce se intampla”, a mai spus directorul HHC Romania.

Conform statisticilor intocmite la nivel de judet, anul trecut in Maramures mai erau institutionalizati 302 copii. Acum s-a ajuns la cifra de 208, din care o parte a fost deja inclusa in programul de reintegrare sociala, avand peste varsta majoratului, iar pentru alta parte se fac eforturi de introducere in mediul familial.

Trebuie spus ca activitatea HHC in Maramures nu a fost lipsita de critici de-a lungul vremii, unii dintre cei implicati in activitatile de descentralizare fiind acuzati ca s-au imbogatit pe seama proiectelor pentru orfani. Cifrele indica faptul ca, in urma eforturilor facute de aceasta fundatie, in judet au fost inchise mai mult de zece centre de plasament, fiind create in locul lor aproximativ 40 de case de tip familial.

Larisa Tivadar

Organizations: Hope & Homes for Children, Absolute Return for Kids (ARK)

How Our Children 29 Kids Were Trafficked To America!

Written by Peep Reporter

Wednesday, 21 October 2009 00:00

All roads seem to lead back to the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children's Affairs in the strange case of 29 children from Sierra Leone supposedly 'adopted' by U.S agency MAPS (Maine Adoption and Placement Services) in 1997 with the active collaboration of HANCI (Help A Needy Child International - S.L).

HANCI deny any wrongdoing in this affair. In a frantic response to our story published last Friday 'American, Give Us Back Our Trafficked Children', HANCI sent us a copy of an earlier press release (HANCI Director Says Tabloid Report Not True - Torchlight July 6, 2009) published in a local paper and a profile of HANCI's Executive Director, Dr. Roland Foday Kargbo.

Neither of these appeared to answer pertinent questions we raised. Neither did the visit of HANCI's PRO who, basically, read us annotated responses of Dr. Roland Foday Kargbo.

It is true that back in 2004 or so, the Inspector General filed charges against the HANCI Executive Director and two others. INTERPOL, the international police agency, was even brought into the matter.

Although the cases were dismissed in 2005 not because the court found the 'adopted' were 'legal' but for lack of police prosecution - it now appears clear that elements of the Social Welfare Ministry were integral part of a CHILD TRAFFICKING SYNDICATE.

Despite HANCI's strenuous objections they have not been able to produce a SINGLE SCRAP of paper with signatures of 29 poor Sierra Leoneans accepting they had agreed to adoption of their children by families in America. If they indeed had any, they would have produced them by now.

MAPS, the American 'adoption' agents are hiding behind their fingers. They too refuse to disclose any information because of so called 'confidentiality' laws. They ended their 'programme' here in Sierra Leone in 2005. In an e-mail dated August 20, 2008 they claim they 'forwarded all past placement reports and photos on children who were adopted through this programme to the Ministry of Social Welfare'.

As we said earlier, all roads lead back to them… None of the parents whose children HANCI took into their 'Special Child Orphanage' in Makeni in 1997 have received news of their children in the twelve years since then.

They have not signed any documents authorizing adoption of their children. If HANCI, MAPS or anyone else can produce them, we will apologize. From the extensive documentation available for us and background checks on the Net - this seems to have been the case…

In 1997 HANCI opened a Child Survival Centre in Makeni. This centre 'supposedly' was to 'help' educate and maintain children of indigent families who were having difficulties feeding and educating their children.

According to the testimony given by Abubakar Kargbo, his little sister FATIMA (3 years) and brother MUSTAPHA (then 10) were placed in HANCI's care. Let's not forget the circumstances at the time, the AFRC-RUF had just massacred over 6,000 people in Freetown and were and would remain in effective control of Makeni for almost another two years.

Sierra Leoneans normally don't look a Gift Horse in the mouth. Parents rushed to place their children in HANCI's Child Survival Centre. Abubakar said they visited the two children and took sweets to them for several weeks until they 'disappeared'.

At No TIME did HANCI raise the question of adoption.

This is verified by the agreement signed with HANCI which we reproduced here as Document One. The specimen agreement (January 13,2009) basically notes that HANCI has 'admitted' the kids into their Child Survival Centre and notes the names of two 'Social Workers' HENRY ABU and JOHN GBLAA who could be contacted in case of 'enquiries about your ward'.

The document is signed by Dr. Roland F. Kargbo. If these children are missing - 12 years after HANCI accepted them - it is precisely Dr. Roland F. Kargbo who must account for their whereabouts - Pure and Simple.

What was unknown to these poor parents was that a Memorandum of Understanding had been signed between HANCI and MAPS. Dr. Kargbo, in fact later confessed that MAPS, not HANCI, had opened the Child Survival Centre and employed the two gentlemen Henry Abu and John Gblaa whom HANCI described as its 'social workers'. We quote from MAPS letter to Theresa Vamboi; (Social Welfare) dated August 17, 2004. In the Fall of 1996, MAPS received a phone call from Dr. Roland Kargbo, Director of Help A Needy Child International (HANCI) in Sierra Leone, West Africa. He was looking for an American agency to collaborate with to save some of his country’s children. He told us that a 9 year civil war had created many thousands of displaced people, including many orphaned children.

In December of 1996, Jennifer Sylvester (Director) and I flew to Freetown. A good faith plan was developed to open a child survival center with HANCI. The Child Survival Center was established in Makeni in January 1997. MAPS paid HANCI personnel Henry Abu as Program Director and John Gbla as the Social Worker. We committed to finding families for 15 orphans, but the number soon swelled to 29. All copies of these 29 cases have sent DHL to Henry Abu along with photos and post placement reports.

So the parents of these children had not been 'informed' of the agreement between MAPS and HANCI. This proposed M.O.U is dated March 13, 1997 and all we have is a poorly photocopied facsimile which will not reproduce too well here (we will make this available to relevant authorities when needed).

* A child placed for adoption is a gift and is treated by the adoptive family as though it were born to them.

* Adoption is a special way of providing a home and family for a child who does not have one.

* Children will only be placed with parents who have a home study approved and accepted by both the U.S and Sierra Leonean Embassy personnel designated for that purpose.

* Every 3 months for the first six months, a progress report will be supplied to HANCI with copies to the Ministry of Social Welfare of Sierra Leone.

* Sometime in the future the adoptive family, including the child, may visit Sierra Leone and meet with surviving relatives of the child as well as to become familiar with the native area of the child.

These first five clauses of the proposed M.O.U clearly prove that what Maine Adoption and Placement Services planned, in collaboration with HANCI, was a CHILD ADOPTION SERVICE from Makeni. Indeed it wouldn't take a genius to figure out that an ngo so-named would be primarily interested in ADOPTIONS.

Of course MAPS does not carry out its placements for free but we were unable to discover exactly how much it charges for its 'service'.

And, as usual, Sierra Leoneans do not look a 'Gift Horse' in the mouth. We do not have any concrete proof that MAPS paid cash money to facilitate the 'adoption' of these 29 children. What we DO KNOW is that no CONSENT FORM was ever signed by any of these children's parents.

According to the adoption laws of Sierra Leone any adoption processed must be APPROVED by the Ministry of Social Welfare - exactly how an adoption process NOT consented to by the parents was so 'approved' are questions both HANCI and the Ministry need to answer to our satisfaction.

Following this 'approval' a High Court can then rule on an application. The courts are supposed to satisfy themselves that the 'moral interests' of the child will be served by adoption. But in mid 1997, with Makeni under rebel control, we doubt very much whether the courts stood on the letter of the law too much. Unfortunately the documents are all in custody of INTERPOL - otherwise we would Name and Shame judges and lawyers who involved themselves in this shameless and tardy procedure.

In Sierra Leone it appears that the only way a sole or surviving parent can irrevocably relinquish his or her parental rights to his or her child is at the Ministry of Social Welfare in the presence of either the Minister and/or the Chief Social Development Officer.

The U.S itself may argue that none of its laws were broken. The Hague Adoption Convention on Protection of Children was only domesticated into U.S Law on April 1, 2008 (11 years after these children were trafficked from Sierra Leone).

At present here we stand. These parents have not seen their children in over 12 years. Abubakar Kargbo, now in his twenties, has a little sister Fatima, who is now about 17. Is she materially better off than she would be in Sierra Leone? Perhaps - but this is not the point.

These children have been abruptly separated from their biological parents. God only knows what they have been told by their adoptive parents is the fate of their biological parents.

How a Little African Child adjusts to being placed in an alien environment (Maine is one of the most Lily White of all U.S States) with no contact with their homes or roots is a mystery.

In July last year, Abubakar Kargbo found out that MPAS had initiated the adoption process without parental consent. He e-mailed MAPS and got the following reply.

Dear Mr. Kargbo,

Due to confidentiality, MAPS is unable to disclose any information about individuals who may or may not have been assisted by MAPS in some form. As such, we regret that we are unable to address your request.

We want to reassure you, however, that MAPS consistently makes its best efforts to adhere to all applicable standards and laws governing intercountry adoptions.

Additionally, we help ensure that children adjust well after their adoptions through post placement supervision and referral guidance to support services, if needed.

Kind regards, MAPS Staff

Yes, this is how we leave our children to the tender mercies of strangers!

I'm sure MAPS is making its 'best efforts', 'but this does not address the initial fraud and deceit involved in the fake 'adoptions'. It may be difficult, at this time, to reunite the children with their biological parents. But can anyone tell me why they should continue to languish without news of their children? Or why those involved in this shameful Trafficking Scam should not be PUNISHED?

http://www.peepsierraleone.com/daily-news/129-how-our-children-29-kids-were-trafficked-to-america.html

Countries: Sierra Leone, United States of America

Organizations: Help a Needy Child International (HANCI), MAPS (Maine Adoption Placement Services)

HANCI not receiving funds from foster parents’ - Director clarifies.

HANCI not receiving funds from foster parents’ - Director clarifies.
20 Oct 2009
The Executive Director of Help A Needy Child International (HANCI), Dr. Roland F. Kargbo over the weekend refuted a front page story in a local tabloid headlined "180 Sierra Leoneans illegally adopted in the USA." He enlightened that detractors of the organisation hold the view that HANCI is receiving money from foster parents of the adopted children on behalf of their parents which is a major misconception and described the publication as false, misguided and intended to tarnish the hard won reputation of HANCI which has been operating in Sierra Leone for over 13 years.
"My organization has over the years integrated thousands of orphans and abandoned children in Sierra Leone that nobody is talking about except the peddling of false accusations meant to smear the organisation's renowned reputation," Dr. Kargbo articulated. He further noted that in 1996, while in search of donor partners overseas, he came in contact with an American adoption organisation called the Main Adoption Placement Services (MAPS) which volunteered to sponsor the orphanage in Makeni. He also revealed that when officials of MAPS visited HANCI Sierra Leone in 1996, they were taken to the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children's Affairs where they were heartily welcomed and that MAPS informed the relevant stakeholders that if any parent is eager for his/her child to be adopted, the organisation was prepared to do so. He went on to maintain that the idea did not appeal to HANCI's existing partners because they did not want to get involved in inter-country adoption so the operations of MAPS became a separate programme.
With HANCI, he continued, MAPS opened an orphanage at No. 3 Mission Road in Makeni, called Child Survival Center, coordinated by Henry Abu and John Gbla and is registered and supervised by the Ministry of Social Welfare. "Since then, HANCI separated from MAPS. I can challenge anyone on this. Over the years, this matter came up in court and was prosecuted by the then Attorney General who established that the 23 adoptions by MAPS were legal and the matter was discharged," Dr. Kargbo revealed.
He said from 2008 to now, there has been lots of scandals in the media about the work of HANCI that caused SLANGO to form a committee to investigate the matter in which parents of the affected children and officials of the Ministry were invited but lamented that the latter were treated with levity.
He reiterated that CHERITH International adopted the children in question but underlined that although the organisation is not operating in the country, its Director is here but that nobody questions him on the issue, including the Probation Officer of the Ministry who approved and presented the documents to the High Court.
According to the HANCI Executive Director, the Ministry works with international organizations that facilitated adoption of the children but that nobody is questioning the Ministry that has all the relevant up-to-date documents.

Countries: United States of America, Sierra Leone

Organizations: MAPS (Maine Adoption Placement Services), Help a Needy Child International (HANCI)