More convicted for human trafficking

08:23, September 01, 2010      

Single mothers to get apology
Published: Sept. 1, 2010 at 1:27 PM 

PERTH, Australia, Sept. 1 (UPI) -- Single mothers who had their children taken from them by the state of Western Australia will get an apology in October, a government official said Wednesday.

In what is believed to be a worldwide first, single mothers will receive an official apology from the government of Western Australia for the forced adoption of their children by the state between 1940 and the mid-1980s. Children were taken from their mothers at birth and were given up for adoption without the mothers' consent.

While there is debate about the legality of the practice, it was "reflective of the times," Peta Rule, senior media adviser to the Minister for Health, told United Press International.

"But what was done was terrible and these women were so badly treated," Rule said.

Oct. 19 has been named as a potential date for the apology to unmarried mothers adversely affected by past adoption practices, Rule said.

'I was stolen from my mother': The heartbreaking story that raises disturbing questions about forced adoption

By Julia Lawrence
Last updated at 11:24 PM on 1st September 2010

On a sunny station ­platform in a pretty Cornish town this summer, holidaymakers may have witnessed a touching, but at first glance unremarkable, scene.

A mother and teenage son were ­nervously watching a train pull onto the platform, scanning the emerging crowd for the face of a loved one. Had she missed her train? Had they got the right time?

And finally, there she was: a pretty, petite 16-year-old, peering furtively through her fringe. Suddenly the boy broke away with a whoop. ‘It’s her!’

Cele 85.000 de semn?turi adunate în sprijinul peti?iei ini?iate de Asocia?ia „Catharsis“ prin care se solicit? reluarea adop?iilor interna?ionale, va ajunge ast?zi pe masa de lucru a parlamentarilor din Comisia pentru Ap?rarea Drepturilor Omului din Camera Deputa?ilor. Din delega?ia care va merge la Parlament va face parte ?i Maria Miraballa Arisi (foto medalion), o tîn?r? de 24 de ani, care a crescut în orfelinatele din România pîn? la vîrsta de 14 ani, cînd a fost adoptat? de o familie de medici din Italia. Mirabella a decis s? vin? în România s? sprijine eforturile Asocia?iei „Catharsis“ ?i s?-?i prezinte punctul de vedere în fa?a parlamentarilor din Comisia pentru Ap?rarea Drepturilor Omului. Pre?edintele Asocia?iei „Catharsis“, Azota Popescu, spune c? sper? s? reu?easc? s? conving? deputa?ii s? sprijine un proiect de lege care s? modifice legea adop?iilor, astfel încît s? fie reluate adop?iile interna?ionale ?i c? se bazeaz?, în acest sens, pe pre?edintele Comisiei pentru Ap?rarea Drepturilor Omului, deputatul Nicolae P?un. „Deputatul Nicolae P?un s-a ?inut de promisiune ?i ne-a invitat s? ne sus?inem proiectul în fa?a membrilor comisiei pe care o conduce. Vom prezenta peti?ia noastr?, înso?it? de toate argumentele de care dispunem, astfel încît s?-i convingem pe parlamentari s? adopte modificarea legii adop?iilor. Sper?m s? reu?im s?-i convingem pe deputa?i de utilitatea demersului nostru, care pune pe primul plan interesul major al copiilor de a avea o familie unde s? se poat? dezvolta normal ?i s? beneficieze de dragostea p?rinteasc?. La aceast? or? exist? în centrele de plasament din România peste 70.000 de copii abandona?i, pentru fiecare dintre ei statul cheltuind lunar 500 de euro“, a declarat ieri Azota Popescu.

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Support to Children in Mogilino - FINAL REPORT

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I. The issue

The British documentary Bulgaria's Abandoned Children was broadcast by the BBC and revealed the deplorable situation of mentally disabled children and young people residing in the social care home in the village of Mogilino. The Government of the Republic of Bulgaria drafted an Action Plan with the final goal of closing down the care institution in Mogilino and placing the children and youths in alternative care. The Action Plan aims to ensure a decent life for the disabled children from the social care home and to design a working model for their successful and effective deinstitutionalisation.

Human Traffickers Receive Severe Sentences in China     2010-08-31 20:58:09     Xinhua      Web Editor: Liu Donghui

Chinese courts are sentencing those convicted of trafficking women and children severe sentences, official figures show. Death and jail sentences that range from five years to life imprisonment are considered "severe". Between January and July, 1,238 "severe" sentences were handed down to those found guilty of trafficking women and children, up about 75 percent year on year, Sun Jungong, spokesman with the Supreme People's Court (SPC), told a news conference Tuesday. "Severe" sentences accounted for 57.9 percent of all women and children trafficking cases, compared with the average severe sentence rate for criminal cases of 15.96 percent, Sun said. However, he didn't say how many were sentenced to death or life imprisonment. In one major case, He Cong was executed "recently" for kidnapping 12 children, including seven infants, in south China's Guizhou Province between March 2006 and July 2007 to sell to villagers in central China's Henan Province. In March, the SPC, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Public Security issued a circular calling for heavier penalties for the trafficking of women and children. The circular urged a focus on the bosses of major trafficking groups, repeat offenders and those kidnapping children. According to Sun, courts across the country handled 1,233 women and children trafficking cases between January and July, up 45 percent year on year. Sun said the increased number was due to a special crackdown launched in April 2009 by the Ministry of Public Security. Furthermore, the SPC warned those buying trafficked women and children by publicizing a case in which a woman was sentenced to two years in jail with a three-year reprieve. In that case, Li Zhongmei, after bearing two daughters, paid a local child trafficker 36,000 yuan (5,300 U.S. dollars) for a baby boy from Xinzhou City in north China's Shanxi Province in 2008. Later, Li introduced another person to the trafficker, which led to another deal for a male infant. Many Chinese, especially the elderly and those in rural areas, believe a boy is better than a girl because a boy can carry on the family name.

http://english.cri.cn/6909/2010/08/31/1781s592140.htm

Support to Children in Mogilino

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On 31.08.2010. was held the official opening of the last of the Small Houses for the children from Mogilino. This ended up UNICEF's project for closing down the Mogilino institution, which was supported by the bTV fundraising show "The Magnificent Six".

The Project "Children First" was implemented in partnership by UNICEF and an Alliance of NGOs, including For Our Children Foundation, Social Activities and Practices Institute, Bulgarian Association for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities (BAPID), International Social Service, Caritas-Bulgaria, ECIP Foundation, etc.

The project aimed at facilitating the implementation of the Agency for Social Assistance Plan for the closure of the institution "St. Petka" in Mogilino village and directing the children and young people to alternative services. The first of the three main fields of activity was the provision of emergency assistance for care improvement, direct work with the children in the social home until its closure and their preparation for leaving. The second aim was the preparation of individual assessments of all children and young people which will help for the adequate planning of future care. The third sphere of action was providing support to local communities in developing alternative services as well as launching a program and action plan targeted at working with the parents for the reestablishment of the child-parent relationship and the potential reintegration in the family.