You have the right to know the whole truth about your origins and the circumstances of your departure from Romania.

Leagănul De Copii Nr. 1, București

UNHCR's important relationship with CARE International was highlighted in Geneva on Tuesday when a top-level delegation presented High Commissioner António Guterres with a special declaration marking the non-governmental organisation's 60th anniversary.

GENEVA, October 17 (UNHCR) - UNHCR's important relationship with CARE International was highlighted in Geneva on Tuesday when a top-level delegation presented High Commissioner António Guterres with a special declaration marking the non-governmental organisation's 60th anniversary.

CARE is this year emphasising the key role of women in breaking the cycle of poverty and has adopted the anniversary declaration, "Women Care." CARE International Vice-Chairperson Marina de Brantes and Secretary General Denis Caillaux presented the declaration to Guterres during a meeting in the refugee agency's headquarters building.

The declaration, signed by more than 60 prominent women from around the globe, calls on political, religious and cultural leaders to fulfil their commitments towards the Millennium Development Goals and to place special focus on improving the condition of women worldwide.

"We wanted to present the declaration to the United Nations at large. But within the United Nations we wanted to select an entity, a specific part of the UN that would exemplify best the partnership that we have in mind and that we have had for a number of years, so in that sense UNHCR was a natural partner for us," Caillaux said after the meeting.

Greenlandic Woman Wins Her Baby Back in Denmark

A young Greenlandic woman living in Denmark will regain custody of the infant girl taken from her shortly after birth. The case has become the latest flashpoint between Denmark and Greenland.

Ivana Bronlund at her home with a sonogram of her child in Hedehusene, Denmark, in September.Credit...Hilary Swift for The New York Times

Rapid Assessment of Care Reform in India with focus on Jharkhand

Recognizing that Children with Disabilities are Children First 
 

A Study on the Situation of Care and Protection of Children with Disabilities in India

Latest investigations found that 15 babies had been sent to Singapore “under the guise of adoption”, with each sold for around S$20,000 (US$16,000).

JAKARTA: The Indonesian National Police (Polri) are working with their counterpart in Singapore to investigate an alleged cross-border baby-trafficking syndicate based in West Java, in which three Singaporeans are suspected to be involved.

The syndicate’s operations allegedly spanned the areas of Bandung, Jakarta, Pontianak in West Kalimantan as well as Singapore, according to Untung Widyatmoko, secretary of Interpol's National Central Bureau (NCB) in Indonesia. 

“We are tracing the trafficking of these babies all the way abroad,” Untung was quoted in a Polri statement that was updated on Monday (Sep 22). 

Oslo, September 23, 2025 – Korean adoptee Uma Feed delivered a formal notice of intent to sue the Norwegian state through a dramatic performance art piece at the Ministry of Children and Families today. Feed alleges her international adoption was illegal and demands both declaratory judgment and compensatory damages.

She alleges that the Norwegian state violated her rights under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which protects the right to private and family life. She also claims that Norwegian authorities contributed to her being subjected to human trafficking in violation of Article 4 of the ECHR.

The case references a September 28, 2022 joint statement on illegal intercountry adoptions from UN committees, including Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED), which established that illegal adoptions violates numerous international human rights laws, and can constitute human trafficking. Additional supporting arguments cite the Draft Articles on Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts.

The legal notice was delivered through a performance piece titled “ARV” (Norwegian for Heritage/Legacy), performed by Feed herself at the ministry’s reception. The performance referenced the tragic deaths of other international adoptees in Norway, including victims of drowning, shooting, and domestic violence by adoptive parents.

“These three fates are not mine, they belong to other international adoptees who had to pay with their lives,” Feed stated in her performance. “The dead cannot return, but from today we adoptees will no longer carry them! Norwegian State! The notice has been given – from today it is you who must carry them.”

A landmark ruling allows an adoptee to regain his or her biological surname without revoking the adoption.

Olmo, a man adopted in Bilbao in 1972, has successfully had a Spanish court recognize his right to change his adopted surnames to those of his biological parents. This favorable ruling, according to Olmo, "corrects forced adoptive identification without eliminating adoption." It is the first time a court has ruled on a claim by an adoptee seeking the restoration of his identity.

The recent ruling—still pending enforcement—issued in May 2025 by the Provincial Court of Navarre, sets a historic precedent by recognizing the right of an adopted person to be legally identified by their biological parentage, thus disassociating themselves from the adoptive identity attributed to them, without this or any other ruling in itself annulling the adoption. This decision represents a profound change in the interpretation of the rights of adopted persons. It establishes that the identity of origin, at the request of the interested party, prevails over the legal construction derived from the adoption.

But let's take it one step at a time.

The representation of the ideal adoption is sometimes purely aesthetic; but so is any family that boasts of a lack of imperfection within its core.

In an office memorandum issued last week, the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) pointed to Rule 23(3) of the Juvenile Justice Rules and point 4(1) of the Model Foster Care Guidelines, which states that only children aged six years and above are eligible for placement in foster care, under circumstances defined in Rule 44 of the Act

The government has clarified that children aged below six are not eligible for placement in foster care, following concerns over differing interpretations of the new regulations.

In an office memorandum issued last week, the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) pointed to Rule 23(3) of the Juvenile Justice Rules and point 4(1) of the Model Foster Care Guidelines, which states that only children aged six years and above are eligible for placement in foster care, under circumstances defined in Rule 44 of the Act.

The statutory body noted that some agencies had raised issues regarding the interpretation of the regulations, prompting the clarification.

The Delhi High Court also said the question of how a minor child came to the custody of the alleged adoptive parents was not inquired into.

The Delhi High Court, while upholding the conviction of adoptive parents accused of subjecting a six years old girl to physical abuse and sexual assault, observed that is the duty of the investigating agency to ensure that every aspect of a case, particularly one relating to trafficking or unlawful custody, was investigated and placed before the Court.

The Bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma observed, “While it is true that Courts cannot direct the manner of investigation, they nevertheless bear the responsibility to point out glaring lapses where essential aspects of a heinous crime are ignored. It is the duty of the investigating agency to ensure that every aspect of a case, particularly one relating to trafficking or unlawful custody, is investigated and placed before the Court. This responsibility assumes even greater significance in cases involving children, who are the most vulnerable members of society and deserve the highest degree of protection under law. The present case, therefore, should have been treated initially by the investigating agency, not only as one involving offences of rape/sexual assault and hurt/physical assault but also as one involving grave suspicions of human trafficking or illegal custody.”

Advocate Arjun Malik represented the Petitioner, while Advocate Naresh Kumar Chahar represented the Respondent.

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