Adoption report Joustra Committee: besides pain, finally recognition

Adoption is often not a rosy story, even if you were raised in a happy Dutch family. The committee investigated the role and responsibility of the Dutch government in intercountry adoptions. She presented the results of the study on 8 February. There is often a dark reality behind adoption stories full of wrongs. With this report, there is finally recognition for the pain that many adoptees experience. Joëlle Raus Prudence, herself adopted from Mauritius, explains why this is so important.

February 8 was an emotional day. The conclusions of the Joustra Committee report are clear. It confirms what I and many other adult adoptees have known for a long time: the adoption system is inciting child trafficking worldwide. The process is linked to serious abuses of which the Dutch government has been aware since the 1960s. In response to the report's conclusions, intercountry adoption has been completely halted for the time being. It gives me a strange feeling of relief that the minister is adopting the report's advice.

Although I also immediately think of the grief of prospective parents - my parents once were -, it is time to see what is wrong. To recognize that adoption is in many cases about love, but is also a form of human trafficking that hides untold suffering. Especially in the case of closed adoptions. The report states that the origin of the children is often difficult to trace and that the system is maintained by many perverse financial incentives, which makes the adoption business a lucrative sector. In the past fifteen years that I have studied my own adoptive past, I have heard the most horrible experiences from other adoptees and those involved. I have heard stories of young women and girls in parts of Southeast Asia who traded to give birth in so-called baby farms. Stories about parents whose children are stolen on their way to the store. There are children who have been "lost" after natural disasters. And stories about women in Haiti who become pregnant without being married and are manipulated by the (Catholic) church to give up their child for a small fee. The list is endless.

However, this does not happen in a vacuum. It starts with the unfair distribution of wealth and the arrogant attitude of the West. Many people feel that parenthood is a right and sometimes go to such extreme lengths to have a child that they ignore the rights of the child. This has created a system of supply and demand. Many stakeholders in the adoption process are convinced that a child is better off in the rich West. The Catholic Church played a decisive role in my adoption. This didn't stop when she gave me up. To this day, they continue to convince her that she made the right choice at the time. It's about the perception of the outside world: the shame, the opportunities for mother and child. And of course to generate income.

Being born in less prosperous circumstances is often seen as the guarantee of an unhappy life. That is exactly that arrogant view from the West. People do not think about what it is like to be a child who does not know exactly where she comes from and that - when she starts her search - finds out that the information in her adoption file is incorrect. Without leads it is impossible to find your biological family. For some, that pain is all-consuming and can result in a life full of sadness and psychological problems. I myself had a happy childhood with my white, Dutch parents. But still the search for myself, where I come from and the conflict of loyalty that goes with it, is the common thread in my life. But imagine ending up in a dysfunctional family, enduring abuse, and all of that on top of the adoption issue. How do you find your way in life? It's something we don't like to hear, but in the Netherlands there are plenty of adoptions that are not successful. Not least because the adoptive family does not meet the requirements.

The report has had a major impact in all camps. Until a few days later, I have contact with several adoptees that I have met over the years. They too go a long way to find themselves. We talk about our own experiences. We are relieved and let our tears run. Our position is finally recognized! But we also consider the fact that this does not solve anything yet. Many still don't know where they come from and where to start looking.

I already hear people say, "but only a few feel that way". However, every child who has to experience this is one too many. Not all adoptions are illegal and not all adopted children are unhappy. In addition, adoptees also think differently about it. Not everyone will agree with my position. However, this does not mean that we should not stop this system. Because the solution is simple: if the demand for children stagnates, the trade will stop. Desire parents have of course been screaming murder and fire the last week. I can imagine the frustration: their wish seems further away than ever. But what is a more important right: the right to parenthood or the right to a humane existence for the child?

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