'Adoption pause is necessary to really change'
There should be an independent reporting point for abuses in intercountry adoptions, says Miranda Ntirandekura Aerts , former member of the expert panel on intercountry adoption.
After hearings in the Flemish Parliament, just before the previous elections, it was decided to put together an expert panel that would examine intercountry adoption. Therapist Miranda Ntirandekura Aerts (39), adopted from Rwanda, was part of it. She hoped to help initiate a real paradigm shift.
'For years the government has been saying that it will do things differently and better. Scandals appear in the press, hearings follow in the Flemish Parliament, the minister proposes a new decree, and after a while the whole cycle starts again. That's why we suggested pressing the pause button.'
Politics did not choose that. Minister Hilde Crevits (CD&V) has ready a new adoption decree.
'Who remembers that hearings on intercountry adoption also took place in parliament in 2015 and 2016? The previous decree only dates from 2018. Time and again, the policy promises change and improvement. If we don't hit the pause button, I'm sure this cycle will repeat itself again.'
Why do you think that pause, or standstill, is necessary to bring about real change?
'It was already said in 2018 that the three adoption services had to merge. In all this time they have not come to an agreement. Even now the decision has not been finally made, as you know, two adoption services appealed against the recognition of The Little Miracle. There is competition and this tension prevents people from looking critically at what they do themselves. The fact is that none of the three ran a flawless course. There are complaints about each of these services. Can you, as a government, do business with one of them and continue to claim that you will do everything differently and better? Why isn't it different and better now?'
Research in Ethiopia shows that things still went wrong this century. The Crevits cabinet announced this last week. Were you surprised?
'After 4.5 years – quite a long time – “some” of the twelve adoption files to be investigated have been completed, and irregularities have been identified. Why is this being brought out now, and not only when all twelve have been completed? This probably concerns files from Ray of Hope and Fiac, since they mediated for adoptions from that country. I cannot help but get the impression that the main focus is on the operating budget of 1.17 million euros, with complaints from adoptive families as currency. Sometimes complaints come out about one service, then about another...'
A quick search in the archive shows that there were already complaints about adoptions from Ethiopia in 2009. The collaboration only ended in 2017.
'Yes, and people often “forget” to mention that it is Ethiopia that stopped the cooperation, and not Flanders. The country itself had strong suspicions about child trafficking. Our own Flemish Center for Adoption (VCA) and the Flemish adoption official may also take a closer look: they are an important player in the adoption chain. They must ensure that every adoption proceeds correctly. Now the minister says that anyone who has doubts about their adoption file can report to the VCA, regardless of the country of origin...'
Don't you have confidence in that?
'Not enough. I would prefer to see an independent hotline. Compare it with the reporting points for abuse within the church: you cannot report difficult issues or problems to the link that is responsible for them.'
You just said it: there is a lot of money involved in this sector.
'An annual operating budget of 1.17 million euros, for between 20 and 30 children who come to our country. I was shocked when I read that. Adoptive parents themselves also pay thousands of euros per child. I even hear that adoptive parents have to pay for aftercare. Put all that money together and you can use it to develop youth care systems in the countries of origin. Then you help on a much larger scale.'
But then you are not meeting the parents' wishes to have children.
'That is not the intention. Intercountry adoption is not charity either. It is a child protection measure, such as youth care. Foster parents are just receiving financial support from the government and they are being supervised much better.'
Foster care is completely different, many people think. A foster child comes with a backpack and is never completely yours.
'And adopted children don't come with a backpack and memories of the past? In recent years, most adopted children have a 'special needs' profile – they often need more support. Many international adoptees have a difficult time in their adoptive family. And unfortunately there are still testimonies of mistreatment, abuse and neglect.”
How would you ideally see the future?
'It sounds harsh, but personally I think we should stop doing it. Especially now that the adoption official has confirmed that intercountry adoption is susceptible to fraud. Although I doubt whether the government will dare to make that choice. In that case, I continue to support the advice of the adoption pause, for thorough reform. In addition, I expect concrete recognition and remedial measures for adoptees who are victims of this fraud-sensitive system!'