Adoption from abroad will be allowed again soon, but much is still unclear

The adoption ban for children from abroad is going to disappear, it became clear today . However, it remains to be seen what exactly this will mean for waiting candidate parents in the Netherlands.

There is no sign of relief with Dirk Jan and Christiaan. They have wanted to adopt a child from the United States for three years, but that was not possible due to the corona virus and an adoption stop of more than a year. "We do not yet know very well what effect this decision will have," says Dirk Jan.

Separate government organization

What is already clear is that there will be a separate government organization that will take the place of the current employment agencies. The four bureaus that now have a permit will be merged into that organization and there will be stricter supervision. The Hague sources confirmed a report about this in the AD .

This should prevent abuses from the past. In a report on this by the Joustra Committee, it was recommended to stop adopting from abroad completely, but the cabinet is not going along with that.

Why was the adoption freeze introduced?

The adoption ban from abroad was introduced in February last year by the then Minister of Legal Protection Dekker after a damning report by the Joustra Committee. The report examined adoption cases between the 1960s and the late twentieth century.

This showed that there had been serious abuses in adoptions and that although supervision had improved, the problem had still not been completely resolved. "The system is and remains vulnerable," said Dekker.

Minister Weerwind (Legal Protection) will explain the plan in a letter to parliament on Monday, but Sander Vlek of the National Association of Adoptive Parents is already "cautiously positive", he tells the NOS Radio 1 Journaal .

He held talks with the ministry, but is also awaiting details. "We are still missing quite a lot of information, but what we think is most important is that the adoption ban will end. The stop threatens to keep children trapped in children's homes. That is very harmful to them."

List of countries

According to the AD, under the new plan, children may only come to the Netherlands if they cannot be cared for in their country of origin. Whether that means that there will be a list of countries from which it is no longer allowed to adopt is unclear, however.

Emeritus professor René Hoksbergen is positive about the plan. "I personally think that excluding abuses is not possible for 100 percent, but it is possible for 99 percent." He does want more clarity about possible countries from which adoption should not be possible.

"There are certain countries, such as the US, the European countries, Taiwan, China and the like that really shouldn't have adopted children. Those countries can completely take care of their children themselves."

Skepticism

Skepticism prevails in some organizations. "According to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, adoption may only take place after suitable other options have been sought in the country of origin," Sarah De Vos told the NOS Radio 1 Journaal . She was adopted herself and works at the ICDI knowledge centre, which is critical of adoption from abroad. "The Dutch government cannot check at all what that country has done about it, because the Netherlands does not have that authority."

Dirk Jan and his partner Christiaan have no choice but to wait and see what the minister comes up with. "We both want a child who may not have a future in our own country. We want to offer that a future here. I think we can give a lot of love."

The surnames of Dirk Jan and Christiaan are known to the editors, but have been omitted at their request.

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