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From: CAB-REYNDERS-CONTACT@ec.europa.eu

Date: Mon 10. Oct 2022 at 20:08

Subject: RE: UNCRC Acquis

To: ACT

30.10.14

Ground-breaking Agreement Will Strengthen Moldova’s Future

WASHINGTON DC, October 30 – Moldova’s children in adversity have received a major boost with the signing of an agreement between the Moldovan Government and the Global Alliance for Children, the first international public-private partnership specifically designed to ensure that all children reach their full human potential.

The agreement is the first step of a results-based investment strategy to reduce the number of Moldova’s children that are not meeting their developmental milestones, are living outside of family care or are experiencing violence, exploitation, neglect and abuse. Moldova, one of Europe’s smallest and poorest nations, has enthusiastically embraced the three goals of the agreement and with the help of organizations like Lumos, J.K. Rowling’s international children’s charity and founding member of the Alliance, has made significant strides toward ‘deinstitutionalisation’. Since 2009, it has helped take more than 7,000 children out of institutions to be reunited with families and supported in their communities.

The Prime Minister of Moldova, Iurie Leanc?, signed the agreement, saying: “I am happy that we will work together to overcome the problems that our children face, especially those from socially vulnerable families. I look with optimism at our cooperation which will benefit children from Moldova; I hope we make progress and build good examples in solving the problems we face.

The Global Alliance for Children Announces New Executive Director

The Global Alliance for Children recently appointed a new executive director, Kathleen Strottman. Kathleen brings 15 years' experience as an advocate for vulnerable children, having previously served as the executive director of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption, the non-profit partner to the largest bicameral caucus in Congress and as the legislative director for Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA). Throughout her career, Kathleen has worked to increase the opportunity for positive dialogue and the exchange of best practices in child protection between leaders in the United States and developing countries.

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---------- Forwarded message ----------

From: "Philip Goldman"

Date: 17 Nov 2017 18:26

Subject: Global Alliance for Children: closure of operations

To: "Philip Goldman"

From:  @europarl. europa.eu ] Sent: Thursday, 10 October 2013 13:50 To: Arun Dohle Subject: RE: info about Conference 'A European Adoption Policy?

Dear Mr. Dohle,

Even if the parliamentary processes have not given me any real breathing space since the summer break, I have now gathered enough information to finally write to you - and at the same time ask your indulgence for the delay.

Like all events organized and financed by the ALDE group, the basis for the adoption event is an official decision of the 'ALDE Bureau'. Attached you will find the minutes of the relevant meeting on April 4, 2006. In terms of content, the criteria for supporting an event make it possible for policy areas to be discussed in which the parliamentary group has not (yet) defined a common position. In this respect, dealing with the topic of adoption was not taboo. The (obvious) basis for not putting any obstacles in the way of the event was that it should give supporters and opponents of adoption the opportunity to present their points of view. In this respect, the topic was broader than that in the database of the European Parliament, so " to reflect on the best solution for the best interests of the child between international and national adoption and placement/retention in children's homes at a time when, especially in Romania, thousands of children in children's homes were not admitted to their potential adoptive parents. The event was attended by representatives of the EU, UNICEF, the Hague Conference, MEPs from the liberal and other parliamentary groups, representatives of the Italian and Romanian governments, as well as national administrations and universities, child psychiatrists and last but not least a large number of adopted children who bear witness to their own fate. to reflect on the best solution for the best interests of the child between international and national adoption and placement/retention in children's homes at a time when, especially in Romania, thousands of children in children's homes were not admitted to their potential adoptive parents. The event was attended by representatives of the EU, UNICEF, the Hague Conference, MEPs from the liberal and other parliamentary groups, representatives of the Italian and Romanian governments, as well as national administrations and universities, child psychiatrists and last but not least a large number of adopted children who bear witness to their own fate. thousands of children in children's homes were not allowed to see their potential adoptive parents. The event was attended by representatives of the EU, UNICEF, the Hague Conference, MEPs from the liberal and other parliamentary groups, representatives of the Italian and Romanian governments, as well as national administrations and universities, child psychiatrists and last but not least a large number of adopted children who bear witness to their own fate. thousands of children in children's homes were not allowed to see their potential adoptive parents. The event was attended by representatives of the EU, UNICEF, the Hague Conference, MEPs from the liberal and other parliamentary groups, representatives of the Italian and Romanian governments, as well as national administrations and universities, child psychiatrists and last but not least a large number of adopted children who bear witness to their own fate.

It was a one-day seminar, initiated - as you know - by the two MPs at the time, Jean-Marie Cavada and Claire Gibault, who no longer belong to the ALDE. Another British MP at the time, Baroness Emma Nicholson, was very critical of intercountry adoption and, since she was unable to be present herself, advocated that several British experts should be invited, specifically Helen Jones, Inspector General of Social Affairs Services at the UK Department of Health and Kevin Browne, Professor of Family Psychology. Both indeed took part in the panel discussions.

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Professor takes note of the Prime Minister's words about possible compensation in the spiral case. This may have implications for other human rights cases between Greenland and Denmark.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen gave an official apology on behalf of Denmark for the third time in six years.

It was given to the Greenlandic girls and women who had IUDs inserted without consent as part of the so-called IUD case.

Compared to the Prime Minister's previous apologies, there is one thing that stands out.

[Interview] Swedish Adoptee Hanna Johansson's 15-Year Quest to Find Her Roots and the Reality of International Adoption

"There's not much time left."

Dr. Hanna Sofia Johansson (49), a Korean-Swedish adoptee and human rights activist, first visited Korea in 2007 and has since returned annually to her homeland 11 times over the past 15 years, searching for her roots. Found abandoned in Wangsimni, Seoul, she has spent decades searching for her birth mother and father. However, she has faced countless setbacks, including the concealment of adoption agency records, the disappearance of her old neighborhood due to rapid urban redevelopment, and the stalled administrative procedures.

Dr. Johansson's story goes beyond simply exploring her personal roots. It vividly exposes the structural problems and national responsibility that over 200,000 Korean adoptees have faced over the past 70 years. In 2022, the Sweden Korean Adoptees Network (SKAN), to which she belongs, filed a request with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to investigate 21 cases of international adoption, confirming the widespread nature of systemic, illegal adoption practices, including manipulation of adoption records, forged signatures, and falsely recorded parental information.

Dr. Johansson firmly states, "Korea must no longer be a 'child exporter' in the world." He emphasizes the urgent need for post-adoption support commensurate with economic power, expanded support for single parents, and a shift toward a more non-discriminatory social perception. The following is a summary of the key points from our month-long interview with Dr. Hanna Sofia Johansson.

The Secretary-General has the honour to transmit to the General Assembly the report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences, Reem Alsalem, in accordance with Assembly resolution 79/152.

Sofia - Bulgaria, the world's worst country for newborn abandonment just two years ago, is finally making progress in curbing this scourge, of which disabled children are the primary victims, according to an independent report presented Friday.

The number of children entering state care has fallen in the EU's poorest country, thanks to family support, adoptions and foster care, the Helsinki Committee, a human rights organization, has said.

According to a report published at the end of 2012 by UNICEF, Bulgaria is the worst country in the world for the abandonment of children aged 0 to 3 years (780 abandonments per 100,000 births), a situation inherited from the communist era.

Bulgaria was then classified by the UN organization as one of four states - along with Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Russia - with " an extremely high rate of abandonment in homes of children under three years old ." Half of them live in Russia.