By: Swati Deshpande

MUMBAI: International adoptions hold a fascination for many adoption agencies across the country. For the child, it is an opportunity to get a
family's love. But in a rising number of cases, children given in for adoption abroad, are abandoned or forced to come back to India for other reasons. And when that happens, usually they have nothing to fall back on. To fill in this lacuna and to ensure a safety net for cross-border adoptions, the Bombay high court is for the first time suggesting the establishment of a National Children's Trust Fund for their rehabilitation.

Justice Dhananjay Chandrachud is in the process of finalising path-breaking guidelines on foreign adoptions and the steps that need to be taken to ensure the welfare of these children. On Friday, the judge at an in-chamber hearing in which Asha Bajpai of TISS and additional solicitor general Darius Khambatta are participating, the court considered shortlisting several key systemic changes to the procedure. The judge is of the view that children who are abandoned or forced to return to India cannot be left to chart their course through unknown territory and with no institutional help. In a radical proposal, it was suggested that $5,000 should be deposited by each foreign adopting parent/s before the adoption is finalised. The funds thus collected would then be used for supporting children who return to India.

In one case, that is still pending before the Bombay HC, Jennifer Haynes, now 27 and adopted 20 years ago by a US couple, was sent back on certain charges. She moved the high court, saying she has no identity left and nowhere to stay. In another case, a 14-year-old girl also adopted by a US family is now back after she developed psychiatric problems. The question is who would fund her treatment-Wide Horizons for Children (WHC), the adoption agency that had placed her for adoption and then flew her back in 2008 September or Indian government's Central Adoption Resources Agency which gave the permission to bring her back or the Indian Council for Social Welfare (ICSW) under whose care she is now. The Indian council wants the adoptee parents and the WHC to pay for the medical treatment.

The HC has said that proper psychiatric evaluation prior to such international adoptions is also a must.

Advocate Jamshed Mistry, who has dealt with several cases of issues cropping in foreign adoptions, said that what needs to be done immediately is to ensure that records of foreign adoptions must be scrupulously kept by the agency that facilitated it for the 60-year period as mandated by the Hague Convention to which India is a signatory. But the practice is sometimes not followed. On adoption by a foreign national, the process of naturalisation of the child ought to begin immediately.

Mayura Janwalkar / DNA

Mumbai: Jennifer Haynes, 28, who was abruptly deported to India from USA in July 2008, has lashed out at an affidavit filed by Central Adoption Resources Authority's (Cara) deputy director Jagannath Pati.

Calling the affidavit filed by Pati "evasive", Haynes has stated that the Americans for International Aid and Adoption (AIAA) and Clarice D'souza of the Kuan Yin Trust in Mumbai have failed to abide by their undertaking given to the court about her relocation to the USA. She has urged the court to initiate suo-motto contempt proceedings against both the agencies.

Haynes had moved the court after her brusque deportation to India owing to incomplete documentation during her adoption twenty years back. Pati, in his affidavit filed last month, claimed that the US embassy has stated that they have "insufficient information to come to any conclusion" and it is "attempting to locate Jennifer in Mumbai to discuss her situation." Cara, too, has washed its hands off saying that they came into existence only in 1990 while Haynes was adopted in 1989. "Saying that they did not exist at the time of the adoption is no answer to the apathy that Jennifer has been subjected to," said Haynes's advocate Pradeep Havnur.

Haynes was deported on July 2, 2008 and is put up at a shelter home in Chembur since then. Haynes, in her rejoinder to the Cara's affidavit, has stated that the US Embassy's claim of trying to "locate" her in Mumbai shows its "casual approach". The Cara is well aware of her whereabouts and can easily inform the embassy of her address. Havnur however, said, "After the last hearing on July 8, the US embassy officials have made attempts to contact Jennifer but have not yet spoken to her."

Haynes has also said that the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) should bear the expenses of her stay in India as it their "unlawful and unfair" approach that led to her deportation. "The MEA without ascertaining the status of the petitioner (Haynes), has without mind, much less its application, acted mechanically by issuing travel documents to US Authorities allowing the petitioner to enter into India, which would not have been done, had the MEA acted diligently and not through telephonic conversations," Haynes's affidavit states. The court will hear Haynes's case further on July 29.

Mayura Janwalkar

Mumbai: The Bombay high court questioned the central government over the investigations made in Jennifer Haynes's case and asked the government counsel why they should not be responsible to provide shelter for Haynes.

A year after she was deported to Mumbai from USA owing to incomplete adoption formalities 20 years back, Haynes, 28, told the court that having lived away from her two young children, her marriage too is in troubled waters.

Speaking to justice Ranjana Desai and justice Mridula Bhatkar on Wednesday, Haynes broke down at the mention of her children, Kadafi, 5, and Kanassa, 4.

Haynes's lawyer Pradeep Havnur told the court that Haynes was convicted in a case of illegal possession of drugs in July 2004 and was under probation in prison. When her case reached the Board of Immigration, it was found that her citizenship formalities were incomplete at the time of her adoption in 1989. The board then decided to deport her.
Taking a serious note of the matter, justice Desai said, "The charges she is facing are in America," adding that things like these happen due to poverty and unemployment. "You cannot separate a mother from her children in this manner," she said.

Haynes has been living at a shelter home in Chembur since July last year. When the court enquired about her accommodation, Haynes said that the home that she lives in is temporary. The court called for additional solicitor general DJ Khambata to clarify the government's position in the case and adjourned the case till November 30.

Jennifer Haynes, the 28-year-old who was adopted by a US couple in 1989 and was deported back in 2008, continues to be an Indian citizen.

Additional solicitor general Darius Khambata informed the Bombay High Court on Tuesday that although Haynes was adopted by a US couple in 1989 she is still an Indian by virtue of birth.

Born in Mumbai on July 29, 1981, Haynes was adopted as an eight-year-old by US nationals Edward and Melissa Hancox, and flown to the US in November 1989. In 2008, the US government deported her and her minor child alleging that she was not a US citizen and was staying there illegally.
It was later learnt that her adoption procedure had not been completed in the US.

Haynes' advocate Pradeep Havnur said something needs to be done urgently as the woman is stateless and could face action from the Indian government since she ceased to be Indian citizen after her adoption.

"She is not stateless. By virtue of birth in India, she continues to be an Indian citizen," said Khambata.

Advocate for the Americans for International Aid and Adoption and Clarice D'Souza, trustee of Kuan Yin Charity Trust, the American and Indian agency that facilitated the adoption sought time to file their reply.

A letter was sent by the Ministry of Home Affairs stating that they had not issued any travel emergency documents for her deportation to India.

After the deportation, she approached the HC.

HC has kept the matter for hearing after three weeks.

Mumbai - An allegedly fraudulent adoption process carried out by an American agency has landed 27-year-old Jennifer Haynes in trouble after she was deported back to India in July last year.

Haynes, who was adopted by an American twenty years ago, has now moved the Bombay High Court seeking action against the Americans for International Aid and Adoption (AIAA) that had processed her adoption papers.

In her petition she has blamed the AIAA for jeopardising her stay in America as her adoption process was carried out in violation with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989 and the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Inter-Country Adoption. Now, she has asked the court to direct the Central Adoption Resources Authority (CARA) to de-register AIAA and other foreign agencies based in United States and registered with the Indian Government and stop inter-country adoption.

Her petition states that she is also a victim of sexual abuse from her foster father and the abuse continued even after changing several foster homes.

After her adoption in 1989 at the age of eight, she was flown to US where she was ill-treated by her foster father. After going through the abuse and rejection from foster homes she married Justin Haynes, who worked in a construction company, in 2002, and lived with him and her two children Kadafi, 5, and Kanassa, 4, in Michigan.

She was also convicted in 2001 and 2004 for illegal possession of cocaine by the US Department of Justice, but was later deported to India as she was of Indian origin after the Indian government accepted her repatriation through the Board of Immigrant Appeals in the US.

She is now keen to go back to US as she has not seen her children due to imprisonment and subsequent deportation. Haynes, who is currently staying in a Chembur Hostel, is also finding it difficult to get a job as she does not have proper documents and is surviving on the money sent by her mother-in-law.

She is seeking direction from court so as to direct the authorities to place all records and quantify exemplary damages against the parties responsible for their acts of denying her right to life.

She also wants to be deported back to the United States and restore her ties with her two American minor children and her American husband.

Until then she should be accorded the status of being the state guest in India by providing shelter, food and money to bear the expenses, said the court.

“The case will come up for hearing on January 30,” her advocate Pradip Havnur said.

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Friday took a serious note of the irregularities alleged by Jennifer Haynes, 27, who was deported to Mumbai last year. The central government willhave to give the court an explanation for her deportation.
The Central Adoption and Resource Agency (Cara) had stated in an affidavit that it was not involved with Haynes's adoption as it came into existence in 1990, a year after Haynes was adopted by US nationals Edward and Melissa Hancox. Justice DY Chandrachud and justice RG Ketkar were, however, of the view that the agency could not absolve itself from its responsibility.

Justice Chandrachud remarked, "This may be just the tip of the iceberg." He called for all documents pertaining to Haynes's adoption. The court asked Cara to find out if any supervision was conducted after the high court permitted Haynes's inter-country adoption in November 1989. The court also asked Cara to inquire whether there were any breaches on part of the Americans for International Aid and Adoption and Kuan Yin Charity Trust in Mumbai that processed her adoption.

Haynes's advocate Pradeep Havnur told the court that his client's life in Mumbai "was worse than animal existence."

DNA was the first to report Haynes's case. She was deported to Mumbai in July last year owing to unfinished documentation at the time of her adoption. "I have got some hope after the court has sought an explanation from the government. I see it as a positive step in my case," Haynes said.

The court has asked the Centre to file an affidavit stating on what basis they accepted Haynes's repatriation and adjourned the case till June 10.

Mayura Janwalkar

Mumbai: Not much has changed for Jennifer Haynes, 27, in the nine months that she has lived in Mumbai. But the one thing she really wants is her children. In July last year, Haynes was deported to India because the Americans for International Aid and Adoption (AIAA) had left her citizenship formalities incomplete at the time of her adoption in 1989, she alleged.

Jennifer, who is put up in a home for women in Chembur, said that she didn't do much all day. "I'm trying to get a job in a call centre because I can speak very good English, but I have no documents to prove who I am," Haynes told DNA.

She said that she wanted to work and earn money to be able to rent a place of her own so that she could bring her children -- Kadafi, 5, and Kanassa, 4-- to India until her way to go back to the USA is cleared.

"My family sends me money from the USA but it's not much," Haynes said. She said that the only job that she had been offered was of a house maid. "I don't want to do that because I am educated enough to get a better job."

Born in Mumbai, Haynes was adopted by US nationals, Edward and Melissa Hancox, and flown to USA in November 1989. However, she claimed that she was sexually abused as a child in her first foster home in Georgia and then changed 50 different homes, in many of which, she continued to be abused.

Haynes was convicted in 2001 and 2004 for illegal possession of cocaine by the US department of justice. However, the Board of Immigration Appeals deported her to India in 2008 claiming that her citizenship formalities were left incomplete at the time of her adoption. "There are so many times that I just want to break-down, but I'm just taking one day at a time hoping that I will get to see my children soon," Haynes said.

The Central Adoption Resources Authority (CARA) has filed a report in the case of an allegedly fraudulent adoption process carried out by an American agency. The adoption process had landed 27-year-oldhttp://www.indianexpress.com/news/adoption-scam-central-authority-awaits-report-from-state-us-agency/474704/ Jennifer Haynes in trouble after she was deported back to India in July last year.

Jagannath Patil, deputy director of CARA in his report, has said that CARA has communicated with the central agency in the US and also asked the Maharashtra Government to conduct an enquiry in this regard.

Patil stated that “CARA will be able to form any opinion in the matter only after getting reports from these quarters.”

Haynes, who was adopted by an American 20 years ago, had moved the Bombay High Court seeking action against the Americans for International Aid and Adoption (AIAA) which had processed her adoption papers.

In her petition, she has blamed the AIAA for jeopardising her stay in America as her adoption process was carried out in violation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989, and the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Inter-Country Adoption.

Mayura Janwalkar

Mumbai: On September 29, Jennifer Haynes celebrated her 28th birthday by herself at a shelter in Chembur. Ideally, she said, she would have been on a holiday in the US with her husband Justin and children Kadafi, 5, and Kanassa, 4.

Haynes had moved Bombay High Court earlier this year against Americans for International Aid and Adoption (AIAA), the agency that processed her adoption papers 20 years ago. She was abruptly deported to India last year as even after her adoption in 1989, there was no documentation pertaining to her American citizenship.

Haynes, an Indian, was adopted by American nationals Edward and Melissa Hancox in 1989. "I didn't talk to my kids on my birthday. They didn't even know it was my birthday. I've been away so long that they are not into me anymore," Haynes said.

With absolutely no proof of identity, Haynes is struggling to make ends meet in Mumbai, her place of birth. "I applied for a job in a call centre in Belapur. I am fit for the job since I don't need any language or accent training. I even cleared their tests but with no documents I cannot get any job," said a frustrated Haynes. She said that she is currently teaching English to five children aged between three and 11. "I earn some money by doing that but it's very little," she said.

Although the high court is hearing Haynes' case, the Centre as well as other agencies involved are taking their time to file their replies to Haynes' allegations. She had sought a stay on foreign adoptions and de-registration of the AIAA until she is sent back to her family. Haynes, however, fears that she may have to stay put in Mumbai for another three-four years. Her advocate Pradeep Havnur said that the court will hear her case after two weeks.

Meanwhile, in a letter written to the Central Adoption Resources Authority (CARA) by Vishvas Sapkal, the consul general of India in Chicago on September 17 said that AIAA, that Haynes has alleged is responsible for her deportation, is a 35-year-old organisation that has placed 5,089 children from Asia, Latin and South America and eastern Europe with adoptive families.

"Since 1980, AIAA placed 617 children from India. Last five years, the average placement from India is 10," stated Sapkal's letter addressed to CARA's deputy director Jagannath Pati. He said, after the year 2000, citizenship is automatically granted to the adopted child but for children adopted prior to that, the adoptive parents had to apply for citizenship. This was not done in Haynes' case. Moreover, the letter says she, as an adult, did not apply for citizenship and was deported as she was found guilty of felonies