Siblings given for adoption without informing family

TNN | Feb 29, 2020, 04.12 AM IST

Siblings given for adoption without informing family

BHOPAL: Three siblings, aged 8, 11 and 15, living in SOS Balgram here, were given for adoption to a US-based couple in late January — even when their father and grandmother are alive.

The kids’ grandmother went to meet them on February 22 only to find that they are already adopted. The Bal Aayog of Madhya Pradesh has taken cognizance of the matter.

(Found on website on 28/2/2020)

Een aantal jaren geleden was kwam Meiling in het nieuws vanwege een mogelijk adoptieschandaal. Hoe zit dat?

In 1999 is een medewerker van Malaysian Social Services (MSS) gearresteerd op verdenking van overtreding van de regels van binnenlandse adoptie. Deze medewerker is onschuldig bevonden en vrijgesproken.

Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) verlengde in dat jaar de vergunning van MSS. CARA is de organisatie die in India alles rond de adoptie controleert.

In 2005 waren er opnieuw verdenkingen van onethische adoptiepraktijken van MSS. Op 12 februari 2019 heeft dit tot een uitspraak geleid. MSS heeft een boete van 10.000 rupees (= 127 euro) gekregen en een voormalig medewerker is veroordeeld. MSS is in hoger beroep gegaan tegen deze uitspraak en verwacht dat de straffen worden terug gedraaid. Nadat het hoger beroep heeft gediend, krijgen we van MSS de stukken toegestuurd.

"Dumping babies is forbidden," the sign created by Eric Mejicano reads. The Venezuelan artist posted the signs on walls across Venezuela after a newborn was found in the rubbish near his apartment block in the capital, Caracas.

Mejicano says that he launched the campaign to alert people to the fact that in Venezuela "something is becoming common which should never be considered normal".

The country's economy is in freefall and one in three Venezuelans is struggling to put enough food on the table to meet minimum nutrition requirements, according to a study by the UN World Food Programme.

With contraceptives hard to come by and beyond the financial means of many, unwanted pregnancies are common. Strict abortion laws which only allow for terminations in cases when the mother's life is in danger further limit women's choices.

Venezuela crisis in 300 words

The fate of the children sold from Sri Lanka

In the 1980s, hundreds of Sri Lankan babies were adopted by Swiss parents - many illegally. There is little hope for those affected.

Anja Konings would like to simply disappear into the crowd, make herself invisible. Something the 38-year-old has never succeeded in doing. She stood out as a child. At school they called the other children "Schoggistängeli", the teacher showed her in a mirror that they were right to say that Anja was different.

Her parents told her that she was not from her mother's womb. She was born to another woman in another country called Sri Lanka. Pictures from July 1982 near Colombo show how her adoptive mother held her in her arms for the first time. She only wore a Lümpli. Anja Konings did not learn more about the how and why of her adoption. "But I always felt that something didn't go together."

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"The transition of CCIs to FBC helps promote the NGO sector. There are some great ideas coming from the workshop which will strengthen family services access"

Vikas Sawant, UNICEF

On Thursday 27 February 2020, a unique event took place in Pune: an immersive simulation lab that allowed child protection allies in Maharashtra a hands-on look at transitioning from a system relying on child care institutions (CCIs; orphanages) to a system based on a range of family-based care (FBC) and family strengthening services. This was the first pilot of this conference model in South Asia and our report below shows it to have been a huge success!

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Snehalaya's credibility allowed us to approach the Maharashtra Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MSCPCR) and secure Chair, Pravin Ghuge’s support. Another important party in this venture was Children’s Emergency Relief International (CERI)’s Global Director of Advocacy, Ian Forber-Pratt, who is one of the people involved in drafting the guidelines for FBC at the national and state level. Mr Forber-Pratt has been providing Snehalaya with guidance on the move towards family-based care over the preceding 18 months.

In this radio broadcast of 'The public gallery', presenter Coen Verbraak talks to and about distant mothers and children who have been donated for adoption.

It still marks the lives of mothers and their children: forced renunciation. Until well into the 20th century, it was a disgrace in the Netherlands when unmarried women became pregnant. They had to give up their baby under pressure from the 1950s when adoption became legal. Because, the thought was, that is better for both mother and child.

Babies were often taken from their mothers immediately after birth, and some women were blindfolded during labor so that mother and child would not bond.

An estimated 13,000 mothers gave up about 15,000 children. This happened from the moment the adoption law (1956) was introduced until the legalization of abortion (1984). For many of them, it felt like they had no choice. Children feel unwanted, while traumatized mothers sometimes look for their child for a lifetime. It caused lasting embarrassment and sorrow to mother and child.

To this day, this black page in Dutch history is relatively unknown to people. The Ministry of Justice and Security recently launched an investigation to find out exactly what happened and whether there is anything to blame for the organizations involved. Children who have been relinquished are currently investigating whether they can sue the state. And reinforced by the stories of other distance mothers, more and more women are gradually telling their stories. Yet guilt and shame remain by far the majority of this group in the way.

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

From: Arun Dohle

Date: Mon, 24 Feb 2020 at 15:14

Subject: Re: Phone call

To:

Amajor discrepancy between Nepal government and foreign records of the number of Nepali children adopted in North America and Europe has exposed a trafficking ring that involves various child welfare agencies in Kathmandu.

The Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens has records of only 64 children from Nepal sent for adoption to ten western countries from 2010 to 2019. However, a list submitted to the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) by the US Department of State and the nine other countries reveals that 242 Nepali children were taken for adoption in those nine years.

The ten countries are the United States, Denmark, France, Norway, Switzerland, Canada, Germany, Belgium, Italy and Sweden. There are 178 more Nepali children adopted internationally than the government has records for. Why the discrepancy?

“The data we have is authentic,” maintains Ministry spokesperson Gyanendra Paudel. “We have no idea how the details in other countries showed more numbers.”

Read also: Baby bajar, Anagha Neelakantan

Alabama officials failed to protect multiple children who were abused and neglected for years while in foster care, a series of lawsuits filed today allege.

Foster children who lived with Daniel and Jenise Spurgeon were sexually, physically, verbally, mentally and emotionally abused, according to the four lawsuits. While the children were starved, isolated, tortured and assaulted, the lawsuits allege, the Alabama Department of Human Resources ignored signs of abuse and neglect.

The lawsuits, each of which seeks $25 million and changes at DHR, were filed in Lauderdale County Circuit Court on behalf of four victims, including three who are still minors. To protect their identities, the victims are identified only by ages and initials: J.J., A.R., I.S. and H.S.

The defendants include DHR, Commissioner Nancy Buckner, eight other unnamed DHR employees and the Spurgeons. (Daniel Spurgeon is serving a 25-year prison sentence for criminal charges brought in connection with the abuse. Jenise Spurgeon is awaiting trial.)

Daniel and Jenise Spurgeon

Amajor discrepancy between Nepal government and foreign records of the number of Nepali children adopted in North America and Europe has exposed a trafficking ring that involves various child welfare agencies in Kathmandu.

The Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizens has records of only 64 children from Nepal sent for adoption to ten western countries from 2010 to 2019. However, a list submitted to the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) by the US Department of State and the nine other countries reveals that 242 Nepali children were taken for adoption in those nine years.

The ten countries are the United States, Denmark, France, Norway, Switzerland, Canada, Germany, Belgium, Italy and Sweden. There are 178 more Nepali children adopted internationally than the government has records for. Why the discrepancy?

“The data we have is authentic,” maintains Ministry spokesperson Gyanendra Paudel. “We have no idea how the details in other countries showed more numbers.”

Read also: Baby bajar, Anagha Neelakantan