Report

The chairman

And now we are starting the 'Vaneeckhout Commission'.

Mr. Vaneeckhout has the floor.

Jeremie Vaneeckhout (Green)

For decades, thousands of Paraguayan children were adopted by families abroad. Often described as Paraguay’s “lost children” or “Stroessner babies”, many adult adoptees are now searching for their origins. At the same time, questions remain about the systems, vulnerabilities, and unanswered stories behind their departures. In the final years of Alfredo Stroessner’s dictatorship and during Paraguay’s transition to democracy, thousands of children left the country through international adoption. Many grew up abroad, often knowing little about their birth families or the circumstances that led to their adoption.

Decades later, a growing number of Paraguayan adoptees are searching for answers. Some have reunited with biological relatives, while others continue looking for information. The latter because of incomplete records, missing documents, or uncertainty surrounding their origins. This series explores the history of international adoption in Paraguay and the stories of those affected by it.

Adoption during the Stroessner era

Alfredo Stroessner ruled Paraguay from 1954 until 1989, leading one of Latin America’s longest authoritarian governments. His regime was marked by political repression, censorship, and the concentration of power among a small group of elites. While Paraguay experienced economic growth during parts of his government, many communities, particularly in rural areas and among low-income families, continued facing poverty and limited access to social services.

"Samoa continues negotiations to ensure processes align with reforms while safeguarding the welfare and best interests of Samoan children.."

Friday 10 July 2026 Apia Samoa. Samoa and New Zealand are holding high-level talks aimed at improved processes to ensure the safety and well-being of children placed with adoptive families. Samoa’s Ministry of Justice CEO and Chief Court Registrar, Papalii John Taimalelagi gave an update of the discussions to local media at Taumeasina Island Resort on Thursday.

“E lē vaai le tulafono i matua, (biological parents) e lē vaai le tulafono i adoptive parent’s – ae vaai le tulafono i le tamaititi, the best interest of the chil

Talks are looking at lifting the temporary suspension preventing Samoan children adopted by New Zealand families from automatically receiving New Zealand citizenship.

The discussions follow New Zealand’s September 2025 decision to suspend recognition of Samoan intercountry adoptions for citizenship purposes after concerns were raised about the welfare of some adopted children.

Guatemala will resume international adoptions starting in January 2027 with the U.S., El Salvador, and the Dominican Republic.

The National Adoption Council (CNA) asserts that after a two-decade suspension, the country has eliminated the notarial adoption system, which was plagued by corruption and child trafficking. Germany, Spain, France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Canada have prohibited their citizens from adopting Guatemalan children until Guatemala implements the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption.

The adoption law has been in effect since 2007, following decades in which adoptions were a business: they could cost up to US$40,000. The United Nations even requested an investigation into former Attorney General Consuelo Porras, on suspicion of involvement in irregular adoptions.

Estuardo Mexicano, director of the CNA, points out the progress: a specific law for the Attorney General's Office; the certification of foster families; the supervision of homes to rule out a history of irregular processes; in addition, post-adoption follow-up:

"There are already enough filters to establish the legality of children in a state of adoptability, that their origin is well determined through an investigation by the Attorney General's Office."  

It is incomprehensible that adoptions are still taking place today, according to journalist and documentary filmmaker Qian van Binsbergen. While making her documentary, she stumbled upon abuses surrounding adoptions that touch upon her own life story.

Was she two days old? Seven months? A year and a half? Qian van Binsbergen has a suitcase full of papers, but is not sure how old she was when she was brought to the orphanage in China.

And yet it is so telling. "It says something about the essence of why you were given up," she explains on *Dit is de dag * (EO). "With Chinese adoption, the one-child policy plays a role. In that case, agreements were made in advance to give up a child if it was a girl. If I was indeed only two days old, that would be an explanation."

But what is the truth? "If I follow the entire trail of my papers, I probably lived with my original family for two months. That means that my original mother not only carried me in her womb for nine months in circumstances I do not know, but also fought for another two months to keep me in her family."

Police said that they have developed “strong leads” and are examining one or two couples who may be the biological parents of two of the rescued babies.

The investigation into a child trafficking racket busted last month, in which seven newborns were rescued, has hit a roadblock. On one hand, investigators have been unable to locate the biological parents of rescued newborns; and on the other, while they have found some couples whose babies are missing, they haven’t been able establish if these couple are linked with the trafficking network.

Delhi child trafficking probe hits roadblock as parents of rescued babies remains untraced, representational image (Hindustan Times)

The Secretariat's staffing quota has been expanded from 137 to 165, and
Investigation Bureau 3 has been formally established, reflecting the third amendment to the Enforcement Decree.

[Seoul=Newsis] Reporter Hwang Jun-seon = Song Sang-kyo, the newly appointed Chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, is delivering his inaugural address at the inauguration ceremony held at the Commission in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of March 4. 2026.07.07. hwang@newsis.com

[Seoul = Newsis] Reporter Cho Seong-ha = The 3rd Truth and Reconciliation Commission (Truth and Reconciliation Commission) has prepared an amendment to the enforcement decree to increase the number of secretariat personnel by 28 to carry out expanded truth-finding duties.

The investigation into the historical abuses in international adoption in Flanders appears to be bogging down due to conflicts of interest and a lack of transparency. Three participating academics have already withdrawn. Among adoptees, incomprehension is growing.

When Sophie Withaeckx saw the contract in December 2025, she found an unexpected clause that immediately made her decide not to sign: she and her fellow researchers were expected to maintain absolute secrecy.

The Flemish Centre for Adoption (VCA) had asked her to oversee the screening process of a new investigation into illegal adoptions as an independent expert.

A valid question, Withaeckx initially thought. As a lecturer at Maastricht University, she had already served on the Flemish expert panel that investigated abuses in intercountry adoption. She knew better than anyone how often the grievances of adoptees were ignored.

Expert Sophie Withaeckx: “If you are not allowed to speak publicly about your advice, you run the risk of being automatically expected to stand behind every decision.”

One of the 241 whistleblowers reporting irregularities in their adoption discovered that the woman who illegally smuggled her biological mother across the border later became director of the Flemish Adoption House. She is not the only whistleblower hitting a wall at the Flemish Centre for Adoption today. “The people responsible have since been given even more important positions in Flemish adoption organizations.”

Charlotte* (29) was smuggled across the border from France as a baby. Her adoptive parents made no secret of this.

Her Belgian biological mother had unexpectedly become pregnant as a student in 1996. Because she did not want her parents to find out, she turned to the adoption agency vzw Gewenst Kind - Amok .

For she could prevent her name from appearing on the birth certificate, which she absolutely did not want. Nor could she prevent the court from investigating whether a solution was possible within the family – for example, through the child's grandparents.

The non-profit helped the unwanted pregnant woman, more specifically by first smuggling her abroad – to France – to allow her to give birth there anonymously. A trick that had been devised and perfected by cloistered nuns in the 70s and 80s.

On receiving the child, the CWC named the baby Kiyan, which means king or royal in Persian.

KOCHI: Nine-day-old Kiyan, the newborn found abandoned near a roadside food stall in Maradu last week, has been discharged from the Ernakulam General Hospital after having recovered from an infection and has been shifted to a special adoption agency for further care. The Ernakulam Child Welfare Committee (CWC) formally took charge of the infant on Monday.

On receiving the child, the CWC named the baby Kiyan, which means king or royal in Persian.

“The boy was found abandoned near a roadside food stall close to Forum Mall. On receiving the information, a team from the Maradu police station safely transported the infant to the casualty department of the Ernakulam General Hospital,” said CWC chairperson Ullas Madhu.