Thousands of children were illegally given up for adoption under the dictatorship. Those affected are demanding justice and international investigation. German authorities show little awareness of the problem.
Santiago. A new law came into effect in Chile at the end of July, permitting adoptions by single individuals and same-sex couples. It also limits the period for final court decisions to 18 months and allows adopted children contact with their biological parents. Furthermore, it sets limits to prevent illegal adoptions.
Back in March, the government established an interministerial task force to investigate 20,000 suspected illegal adoptions during the Chilean military dictatorship ( as reported by Amerika 21 ). To seemingly legitimize the adoptions, those involved left traces that are now being sought in medical records, forensic documents, registry offices, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
President Gabriel Boric has promised to establish a genetic database by the end of his term, which can facilitate and expedite the tracing of family members. The identification and potential prosecution of those involved is only just beginning.
The mothers involved came without exception from poor, socially disadvantaged backgrounds, from whom any resistance or subsequent inquiries were not to be expected. Social workers and clergy took on the task of persuasion, while hospital staff, midwives, and doctors manipulated medical records and registered the births with the civil registry under false names. Either the mother was coerced into signing an adoption agreement under threat, or she was denied the handover of an allegedly stillborn child under false pretenses. Lawyers then used these documents to file for adoption in court, in order to feign the legality of the process to potential adoptive parents abroad. Since placement immediately after birth was impossible, the children were temporarily placed in selected institutions.
