Rough translation – Book Hoksbergen – Page 82 – 83
Beginning 1975 follows the adoption channel India. At that time already 30 children had come via private channels from Bombay (Mumbai), Pune and Madras (Chennai) to the Netherland. Already in the sixties children left India, especially to the US. This went all rather easy, as India only regulated adoptions somewhat in 1984. Negative publicity, in 1982, about the death of an adopted child on its way to its adoptive parents, was probably the reason for this (Apparao, 1997).
WK board member Rene Hoksbergen goes to Mumbai, end 1974, to convince a private mediator, Els Wunnink, that it is much better and safer to mediate through an adoption agency. And also to use the arrange the placements through the order of the central waiting list of the Dutch Ministry of Justice.
After the visiting of 15 children’s homes in five far apart cities in India and after long talks, Els decides to do all further mediations via WK. In 1976 already many more children are coming from India than before. . Els Wunnink lives in such a big apartment that she can take care of the adoptable children there before they go to the Netherlands. Many years she has 5, 6 children in her house, for whom she cares together with some Indian women. In 1976 Els hires social worker Sulu Kalro, who works up till now for WK. Through her children’s home Bal Anand in Mumbay some 1500 children came to our country. Els Wunnink moves in 1977 to Indonesia and will be active for WK until 1981. She opens in Jakarta the children’s home ‘Pondok Palangi’ hut regenboog, which develops into a small centre for medical help to children.
The other India channel is being managed by the family Van der Mark. This mediator has himself adopted end of the sixties a girl from India, possibly the first adopted child from India. After pressuring from WK, this couple ends begin 1975 their private contacts with some children’s homes in Pune, and Indian city of aprox 2 million inhabitants at that time, and hands them over to WK.