NEWS MIDDLE EAST

Egypt jails US couples for adoption

The couples, all Christians, were trying to adopt children from a Christian orphanage [AFP]

Two US couples have been jailed for two years in Egypt for illegal child trafficking.

Seven other people were also sentenced in the case, first of its kind in the country, which became publicly known earlier this year after the US embassy in Cairo reported it was suspicious of the couples after they tried to get their adopted children out of Egypt.

Home » Adoptie » Verklaring adoptiebureau Wereldkinderen Home » Adoptie » Verklaring adoptiebureau Wereldkinderen Verklaring adoptiebureau Wereldkinderen Reportage: Wereldkinderen stopt per direct met adoptie vanuit Ethiopië Wereldkinderen legt adoptieprocedures Ethiopië voorlopig stil en start nieuw onderzoek Wereldkinderen legt tijdelijk de adoptieprocedures in Ethiopië stil. Er worden vooruitlopend op onderzoek voorlopig geen nieuwe adoptieaanvragen in behandeling genomen en lopende procedures worden aangehouden. Ethiopië is een van de armste landen ter wereld en heeft een nauwelijks ontwikkeld rechtsysteem. Volgens gegevens van Unicef zijn miljoenen kinderen in deze regio wees of halfwees. De positie van vrouwen is achtergesteld. Door grote armoede zijn ouders vaak niet in staat voor hun kinderen te zorgen. Vanuit onder meer de Verenigde Staten is er een grote vraag naar adoptiekinderen uit Ethiopië. Het aantal kinderen dat geadopteerd wordt in Westen is in vier jaar tijd toegenomen van 854 naar 3031. De grote armoede in Ethiopië en de vraag van westerse landen om in meer adopties te bemiddelen leidt tot mogelijke misstanden bij adopties uit Ethiopië. Eerder zijn in met name hierover buitenlandse media berichten verschenen. Wereldkinderen heeft in het voorjaar dossieronderzoek naar reeds afgeronde adopties gedaan. Hieruit bleek dat de achtergrondgegevens van kinderen niet altijd overeen kwamen met de informatie zoals die in de dossiers was opgenomen. Wereldkinderen heeft hierop een analyse gemaakt, het beleid aangepast en nieuw onderzoek geïnitieerd. Dit veldonderzoek naar lopende procedures is inmiddels afgerond maar heeft de twijfels niet weg kunnen nemen. Er zijn opnieuw maatregelen nodig en breder onderzoek in Ethiopië is vereist. In overleg met de Ethiopische en Nederlandse overheid, onze contactpersonen en kinderrechtenorganisaties aldaar zal dit onderzoek worden vormgegeven. De achtergrondinformatie van de kinderen in de 25 lopende procedures zullen individueel nagetrokken worden. Per individuele casus zal worden besloten of er sprake is van verantwoorde adoptie en recht wordt gedaan aan de belangen van kind en de biologische familie. Alle direct betrokkenen bij lopende adoptieprocedures uit Ethiopië zullen persoonlijk worden geïnformeerd. Zodra meer bekend is over het onderzoek en de uitkomsten daarvan zullen wij dit delen met alle betrokken partijen. 17 september 2009 Reportage: Wereldkinderen stopt per direct met adoptie vanuit Ethiopië Wereldkinderen legt adoptieprocedures Ethiopië voorlopig stil en start nieuw onderzoek Wereldkinderen legt tijdelijk de adoptieprocedures in Ethiopië stil. Er worden vooruitlopend op onderzoek voorlopig geen nieuwe adoptieaanvragen in behandeling genomen en lopende procedures worden aangehouden. Ethiopië is een van de armste landen ter wereld en heeft een nauwelijks ontwikkeld rechtsysteem. Volgens gegevens van Unicef zijn miljoenen kinderen in deze regio wees of halfwees. De positie van vrouwen is achtergesteld. Door grote armoede zijn ouders vaak niet in staat voor hun kinderen te zorgen. Vanuit onder meer de Verenigde Staten is er een grote vraag naar adoptiekinderen uit Ethiopië. Het aantal kinderen dat geadopteerd wordt in Westen is in vier jaar tijd toegenomen van 854 naar 3031. De grote armoede in Ethiopië en de vraag van westerse landen om in meer adopties te bemiddelen leidt tot mogelijke misstanden bij adopties uit Ethiopië. Eerder zijn in met name hierover buitenlandse media berichten verschenen. Wereldkinderen heeft in het voorjaar dossieronderzoek naar reeds afgeronde adopties gedaan. Hieruit bleek dat de achtergrondgegevens van kinderen niet altijd overeen kwamen met de informatie zoals die in de dossiers was opgenomen. Wereldkinderen heeft hierop een analyse gemaakt, het beleid aangepast en nieuw onderzoek geïnitieerd. Dit veldonderzoek naar lopende procedures is inmiddels afgerond maar heeft de twijfels niet weg kunnen nemen. Er zijn opnieuw maatregelen nodig en breder onderzoek in Ethiopië is vereist. In overleg met de Ethiopische en Nederlandse overheid, onze contactpersonen en kinderrechtenorganisaties aldaar zal dit onderzoek worden vormgegeven. De achtergrondinformatie van de kinderen in de 25 lopende procedures zullen individueel nagetrokken worden. Per individuele casus zal worden besloten of er sprake is van verantwoorde adoptie en recht wordt gedaan aan de belangen van kind en de biologische familie. Alle direct betrokkenen bij lopende adoptieprocedures uit Ethiopië zullen persoonlijk worden geïnformeerd. Zodra meer bekend is over het onderzoek en de uitkomsten daarvan zullen wij dit delen met alle betrokken partijen. 17 september 2009

9

Response to Christian World Adoption Statement September 16 2009-09-17

Foreign Correspondent approached Christian World Adoption at least half a dozen times requesting an interview with the organisation, but received no response to emails or phone messages. Foreign Correspondent was fully prepared to travel to CWA's head office in South Carolina to conduct the interview. CWA chose not to respond and therefore not to participate in the program.

Foreign Correspondent disputes a number of claims and assertions in a statement from CWA posted directly to producer Mary Ann Jolley well after the program `Fly Away Children' aired. We understand the statement has been widely circulated by CWA to its constituents, clients and others.

We will deal only with the disputed claims.

1) "The lady called Michelle, who is shown in the video interviewing children to be adopted, was not a CWA staff person…"

Nordic Adoption Council

Panel Discussion

Debate in Reykjavík

Saturday 16 - 17, the 5th of September 2009.

Moderator: Inga Näslund, Adoptionscentrum, Sweden.

Ethiopian children exploited by US adoption agencies Andrew Geogheghan reported this story on Tuesday, September 15, 2009 07:22:00 Listen to MP3 of this story ( minutes) ALTERNATE WMA VERSION | MP3 DOWNLOAD This transcript is a record of the Radio National broadcast. It will be replaced by the updated local radio broadcast at 10am. TONY EASTLEY: In Australia, international adoptions are handled by the Government and are highly regulated, but that's not the case elsewhere in the world. In the United States international adoptions are a big business, where a large number of private international adoption agencies are paid on average $30,000 a time to find a child for hopeful parents. The number of Americans adopting Ethiopian children has quadrupled, especially since American celebrities adopted African children. A Foreign Correspondent team has been investigating American adoption agencies operating in Ethiopia and has uncovered some alarming practices. Africa correspondent Andrew Geoghegan reports. ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: Famine, disease and war have orphaned around five million Ethiopian children. It's not surprising then that the business of international adoptions is thriving here and Americans in particular are queuing up to adopt a child. EXCERPT FROM DVD: This is Yabets. He's five years old and both of his parents died; it says they died of tuberculosis. Can you smile? Oh, nice smile. ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: This is the sales pitch from an American agency Christian World Adoption. In a remote village in Ethiopia's south the agency has compiled a DVD catalogue of children for its clients in the United States. EXCERPT FROM DVD: Father has died. I'm not certain what he died of and this is the mother. Hoping for a family who can provide for them, they're just really desperate for people to take care of their children. ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: Incredibly though, many of the children being advertised are not orphans at all. American Lisa Boe was told by Christian World Adoption that the little boy she'd adopted was an orphan, but she soon had doubts. LISA BOE: There was a picture of the people that had found him, and there's a man and a woman in the picture. I point to the woman and he calls her mamma. I would never, never have brought home a child that has a mum. Never. ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: At least 70 adoption agencies have set up business in Ethiopia. Almost half are unregistered, but there's scant regulation anyway and fraud and deception are rife. Some agencies actively recruit children in a process known as harvesting. EXCERPT FROM DVD: If you want your child to be adopted by a family in America, you may stay. If you do not want your child to go to America, you should take your child away. ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: Parents give up their children in the belief they'll have better lives overseas. But many have little understanding of the process or that that they may never see their children again. EYOB KOLCHA: It was considered good for the children in the community and the people came. ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: Eyob Kolcha worked for Christian World Adoption before quitting in December 2007. EYOB KOLCHA: There was no information before that time, there was no information after that. ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: Did their parents realise that they were now legally someone else's children? EYOB KOLCHA: They didn't understand that. I don't think most people, most parents understand even elsewhere in Ethiopia right now. MUNERA AHMED (translated): I have no words to express my feelings and my anguish about what happened to my children and what I did. ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: After her husband left, Munera Ahmed gave up two sons - one 12 months old and the other five through another adoption agency. She has had no word about her children since she handed them over; that's despite guarantees that she'd be kept informed. The agency has now closed. MUNERA AHMED (translated): As a mother not to be able to know my kids' situation hurts me so much, I have no words, no words to express my emotions (crying). ANDREW GEOGHEGAN: About 30 Ethiopian children are leaving the country every week, bound for a new home, new parents and an uncertain future. This is Andrew Geoghegan in Addis Ababa for AM. TONY EASTLEY: And you can watch the full story tonight on Foreign Correspondent at 8pm.

.

Ukraine pours cold water on Elton's wish to adopt baby (AFP) – 16 hours ago KIEV — Elton John may not adopt a Ukrainian orphan because the former Soviet republic's law allows foreigners to adopt only if they are married, officials told AFP Monday. Sir Elton "does not have the right to do it because there are certain obstacles which cannot be overcome," Lyudmila Balym, an official within Ukraine's ministry for family, said. She said Ukrainian law stipulates that foreign adoptive parents must be married couples and added that homosexual marriage is not recognized in the country. The singer-songwriter married his long-time partner, David Furnish, in December 2005 in Britain where same-sex marriages are authorized. Balym added that the age difference between adoptive parents and the child must not exceed 45 years under Ukrainian law. Sir Elton, 62, and Furnish, 47, do not fulfill this criterion either, she said. Sir Elton revealed on Saturday that he wanted to adopt a 14-month-old boy he had met in a Ukrainian orphanage, saying the youngster called Lev had "stolen his heart". The singer-songwriter, visiting the Ukraine with his AIDS charity foundation, performed for children at the orphanage, some of whose parents had died of the disease. He follows a long line of pop stars, Hollywood celebrities and politicians seeking to adopt a child -- and he is not the first to find his private life a problem. Controversy surrounded fellow megastar Madonna's adoption of two children in Malawi. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman and other Hollywood names have also made headlines by adding orphans from impoverished countries to their families. US actress Mia Farrow adopted 10 of her 14 children in countries ranging from India to South Korea and Vietnam. Sir Elton's adoption bid has already sparked heated debate in the young boy's homeland, with some expressing shock at the idea of giving the child to a gay couple. "They are going to destroy this child's life," said Oleg, a 29-year-old serviceman from the area of the orphanage who only gave his first name. "They will make him camp, just like they are. He is in all likelihood HIV positive, the best thing they could do is leave him to live out the rest of his life in peace." "He will be seen as a pansy from the start and will become one without doubt," added Igor, a 43-year-old journalist. It will not be possible to confirm whether the toddler is HIV positive until he reaches the age of 18 months, said staff at the orphanage, which is in the eastern city of Makeyevka. But others supported the idea and said it could give the youngster the chance of a better life. "Why not? At least the child will have a normal life," said Lyudmila Batikhina, a medical assistant at the orphanage. Irina Kuzmenko, a student in the city of Donetsk not far from Makeyevka, went as far as to say she envied the child who had been picked out by the wealthy singer. "Does it really matter who your parents are as long as they love you?" she said. "I want him to adopt me too," she joked. Ukraine has one of the fastest rising HIV rates in Europe. Two years ago Sir Elton gave a free concert in the main square in Kiev attended by tens of thousands of people to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS in the country. The star has sold more than 250 million records worldwide, with 29 consecutive Top 40 Hits and 35 gold and 25 platinum albums.

.

Seven Nepali kids handed over to adoptive parentsKantipur Report

Kathmandu, September 15 - The Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare (MWCSW) has handed over seven children to their foreign adoptive parents, after a gap of one and half years. Three Nepali orphans were handed over to American adoptive parents, another three children to French parents and one to British parents, all of whom have been residing in the country. The seven Nepali children were officially adopted after the government approved their documents regarding inter-country adoption.

Officials at MWCSW stated on Monday that the six adoptive parents are planning to take their new children to their new homes at the earliest date possible. Only one child will remain in Nepal with her British parents, who are currently residing in the country. This is good news for both the parents and the children, who have been involved in the adoption process for the past seven months.

The concerned authorities, including MWCSW, have also recently given the go ahead to the adoption documents belonging to another 14 children and the adopting parents. Officials stated that they have already informed Nepali representatives of the Nepal-based international adoption agencies about the approval. This means that other prospective parents can begin plans to return home, with their adopted children.

Over 80 children, who have already gone through matching process, (in which prospective parents are paired with orphans) are awaiting the decision of the recommendation committee. The recommendation committee, comprises representatives from the ministries of home and law, as well as MWCSW, who will collectively make the final decision. The committee selects children in accordance with the adopting parents' preferences. The applications of over 300 prospective foreign parents for adoption are also simultaneously being examined MWCSW.

Agency restructuring may not be enough

ADOPTION: Planned restructuring of troubled Imagine Adoption agency would focus on Ethiopia, but city couple wanted to adopt child from Panama

Posted By FIONA ISAACSON/Examiner Staff Writer

Updated 16 hours ago

A possible restructuring of Imagine Adoption may not be able to help a Peterborough couple trying to adopt from Panama, which hasn’t been identified as a “target country” by the trustee in bankruptcy.

CWA Response to Australian TV Broadcast

Christian World Adoption (CWA) has taken great strides over its many years of work in the field of inter-country adoption to ensure that its practices, and the practices of those it works with, are both ethical and legal. This is paramount to CWA because the rights and well being of each child has always been our foremost concern.

Inter-country adoption is extremely difficult work. It is difficult because of the layers of law involved, which are necessary in order to safeguard children’s rights; because of the rigorous accreditation that agencies like CWA voluntarily submit to; and because of the practical challenges of communicating about complex concepts with people whose language, education level and culture differ so greatly from our own.

In any field, there are instances where someone with a critical or even cynical perspective can take a limited amount of information and mold public perception to suit their purposes. More directly to the point, if someone desired to discredit the work of inter-country adoption agencies using limited amounts of information, perhaps taken out of context and without rebuttal, there is opportunity for them to do that. But there is always another side of the story.

CWA was recently asked to participate in the production of an investigative journalism program addressing Ethiopian adoption. Taking into consideration the amount of resources that would need to be devoted to that process, CWA elected not to participate. This decision was based on the reality that the critics of inter-country adoption are many. We determined that the greater good would be served by focusing on our work, rather than on trying to change the minds of those who may have a negative agenda.

September 14, 2009

Elton John wants to adopt Ukrainian orphan who 'has stolen his heart'

Lucy Bannerman and Rosemary Bennett

7 COMMENTS

RECOMMEND? (1)