Welcome to the website for the Special Advocate for Survivors of Institutional Abuse

This is your space to be heard, to connect, and to ensure your experiences inform Ireland’s path forward. We stand ready to amplify your voice and bring your perspectives directly to government.

Patricia Carey is the Special Advocate for Survivors of Institutional Abuse

Patricia was appointed to the role in March 2024 by the Irish Government.

In this role, Patricia’s focus is to ensure a strong and amplified voice for those affected by institutional abuse and forced family separation.

It's time for a complete overhaul

OPINION:

In releasing its latest annual report to Congress on intercountry adoptions, the State Department claimed last month on X that intercountry adoption remains “viable, ethical, and transparent.” A year earlier, it praised its team for working “tirelessly” on behalf of families. Yet the numbers and the outcomes for children tell a different story.

What the report doesn’t say outright is this: In fiscal year 2024, the U.S. processed the fewest intercountry adoptions in our recorded history. The report also fails to mention that, despite our government having far fewer adoptions to process, the length of time processing cases has dramatically increased, forcing children to stay in orphanages for months and often years longer than necessary.

The State Department’s 2024 Annual Report on Intercountry Adoption confirms what advocacy groups, adoptive families and child welfare experts already know: The intercountry adoption system is deeply broken, and minor tweaks won’t suffice. A sweeping redesign built on genuine bilateral partnerships and a child-centered strategy is urgently needed.

Kochi ∙ Pettamma, who was lost before she could remember, has been found by her daughter after 4 decades. Nisha, who was adopted by a Belgian couple 42 years ago from the then orphanage attached to St.Theresa's College in Ernakulam, came to Kochi to look for Pettamma....

Nisha finally found her mother, Saramma, following a report on Manorama News Channel the other day . It was her half-brother Binoy Chacko who identified her from the news. The encounter took place at a senior citizen center in Thrissur. 

Binoy remembers being with Nisha when her relatives brought her to the orphanage from Mulanthuruthy in 1983. When he got to know his mother closely after 42 years, he saw his daughter with tears in her eyes, erasing all the questions she had been pondering. 

Sarah was still searching for her daughter somewhere in her memories. Nisha introduced her to her husband Yos and daughter Raya. The baby was adopted by a Belgian couple, Martini and Eric, on December 31, 1983. 

Sister Therese and Sister Brigitte named the baby Nisha when she was 6 months old. It was from Martini and Eric, who raised her, that Nisha learned about Kochi and the orphanage there.




 

Vijayawada: A two-month-old baby girl was rescued from an alleged illegal adoption by a childless couple in Andhra Pradesh. 

The baby girl was accommodated at the special adoption agency in Bapatla after being rescued by officials from the women development and child welfare department.

According to reports, a woman from Bapatla district had delivered the baby girl around two months ago, and a childless couple from Avanigadda allegedly adopted her through middlemen for Rs 2 lakh. 

However, the illegal adoption came to light after the mother approached the Repalle police station, claiming that she was promised a higher amount for the adoption but received only Rs 60,000. Based on the information from the police, the officials led by Radha Madhavi and Rose Leena rescued the baby girl and accommodated her at the special adoption agency. 

The baby girl's health is stable, and her mother was shifted to Sakhi One Stop Centre for counseling.The officials suspect that the baby girl's mother had previously sold her two-month-old baby boy to a childless couple from Nellore in 2024, but the baby boy was rescued and handed over to the mother. 

The United States Consulate in Karachi tipped off Pakistani authorities about suspected illegal adoptions, which led to the arrest of the head of a Karachi-based non-governmental organization on charges of child smuggling.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested Mubina Qasim Agboatwala, who runs Hope Ngo after a court rejected her pre-arrest bail. She is accused of sending at least 23 children to the United States.

The FIA’s anti-human trafficking unit began investigating after the US Consulate raised concerns about suspicious adoptions involving Pakistani children. Officials say the children were sent overseas without following legal procedures, and in many cases, their parents were unaware or misled.

According to investigators, the NGO operated without a valid license from the Sindh Social Welfare Department and used forged documents to declare the children as abandoned or orphaned. These children were then placed with foreign families without proper legal approvals.

Child rights activists say the case highlights serious weaknesses in Pakistan’s child protection system. They are urging the government to improve oversight of organizations involved in child welfare and adoption.

Nine people, including an Irish missionary and a three-year-old child, were kidnapped from an orphanage near Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince on Sunday, an official has said.

Gena Heraty, the facility's director, was among those taken from the privately-run Sainte-Hélène orphanage in Kenscoff during the early hours of the morning, according to Mayor Massillon Jean.

Seven employees and a child were also taken from the orphanage, which cares for more than 240 children, some with disabilities.

Attackers broke into the orphanage at about 15:30 local time (07:30 GMT) "without opening fire," Jean said, describing it as a "planned act".

The attackers had broken through a wall to enter the property, Jean said, before heading to the building where Ms Heraty was staying.

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When Betty travels to her native Ethiopia and meets her family, she discovers the real reason she ended up with a Dutch adoptive family. "My sister and I were sold like merchandise."

We're sitting in the same spot as a year ago: the spacious L-shaped sofa in Betty's studio. And once again, the hostess is serving tea and chocolate. We talked about the book she'd written: Mom, I Can't Do It Anymore . A compelling account of her childhood, filled with humiliation and violence in a Dutch adoptive family.

Now I'm in Hellevoetsluis to hear about Betty's journey to Ethiopia. There, in East Africa, she finally met the family that wouldn't have had a place for her 28 years ago. Betty always wondered why.

The trip to Ethiopia was exciting, she says. "Because every adopted child who goes searching for their roots knows that a can of worms can open up."

Beaten and shaved bald

Economische gevolgen heffingen VS zichtbaar, maar Trump blijft dreigen

Trump blijft dreigen met nieuwe invoerheffingen, terwijl de gevolgen van dat beleid voor de Amerikaanse economie zichtbaar worden.

Illustration by Leah Abucayan/CNN/Courtesy of Marianne Ok Nielsen and Han Tae-soon

(Left) Marianne Ok Nielsen reunites with her mother. (Right) Han Tae-soon meets her daughter after 44 years apart.

SeoulCNN — 

Marianne Ok Nielsen never wanted children, or a family of her own. She used to tell friends she didn’t feel worthy of that kind of life.