One of our favorite submissions thus far: PEAR Board Member, Barbara McArtney guest blogs on REFORM Talk as part of The Unofficial "Why the adoption establishment annoys me" Blog Week:February 17, 2012 Reinstatement of U.S. Adoption Agency by IHNFA (Instituto Hondureño de la Niñez y la Familia)
The U.S. Embassy in Honduras informs citizens that the Instituto Hondureño de la Niñez y la Familia (IHNFA ) recently reinstated U.S. adoption agency Gladney Center for Adoption, per IHNFA’s resolution SG-009-2012. This message updates the prior Message for U.S. citizens published on January 30, 2012. Gladney Center for Adoption is now accredited by IHNFA and is approved to process adoptions for families in Honduras.
The Embassy continues to monitor the adoption situation in Honduras and will update U.S. citizens accordingly. Meanwhile, we recommended that families who have not finalized adoptions contact IHNFA directly at at 011-504-2235-3565 to be sure their applications are handled by an accredited adoption agency.
Special Advisor for International Children's Issues Travels to ColombiaSpecial Advisor for International Children’s Issues Ambassador Susan Jacobs is traveling to Bogota, Colombia, February 22-24, 2012 for meetings with The Instituto Colombiano de Bienestar Familiar (ICBF) to discuss intercountry adoption and international parental child abduction issues. They will also discuss areas of collaboration with other countries in the region.
For more information about children’s issues, visit ChildrensIssues.state.gov
For updates on Special Advisor Susan Jacobs’ trip, follow her on Twitter: @ChildrensIssues
RussiaOn January 1, 2012, the Russian Family Code was amended so that presiding judges will announce decisions in cases, including intercountry adoption cases, at the end of in-person court hearings. Courts will issue written rulings five days later. In cases where the ruling leads to an adoption decree, that decree goes into effect thirty days after issuance, at which point adopting parents can apply in person for the child's Russian passport. These changes will increase the amount of time and, possibly, travel required to complete an adoption.
MalawiDue to a nationwide judicial strike by certain judicial employees in Malawi, the court system halted all functions on January 9, 2012. Since this time, no new or pending cases have been processed. The strike has caused a backlog of pending civil and criminal cases. These cases will have to be processed before new cases, including adoption hearings, can be accepted. We advise prospective adoptive parents against travelling [sic] to Malawi for a hearing until the strike has ended and you have received a firm court date.
Prospective adoptive parents are encouraged to remain in contact with their adoption service provider to stay up-to-date on any information pertinent to their individual case. In addition, please continue to monitor www.adoption.state.gov for updates. We also suggest that any families with pending or potential adoption cases contact the U.S. Embassy in Lilongwe, Malawi, at consularlilong@state.gov to make the Embassy aware of your case.
Message for U.S. Citizens – Barring of Two U.S. Adoption Agencies by IHNFA (January 30, 2012) January 30, 2012
The U.S. Embassy in Honduras informs citizens that the Instituto Hondureño de la Niñez y la Familia (IHNFA ) has barred two U.S. adoption agencies from the local adoption process, effective immediately. The IHNFA will no longer approve adoption requests filed by families who utilized the agencies to facilitate the adoption of a local child, as the agencies are no longer registered in Honduras. Only adoptions approved by the IHNFA can be processed for Immigrant Visas, as the IHNFA is the Government of Honduras’ Central Adoption Authority.
The following U.S. adoption agencies are no longer accredited in Honduras:
1. Living Hope Adoption Agency, IHNFA’s resolution SG-016-2011
2. Gladney Center for Adoption, IHNFA’s resolution SG-017-2011
The Embassy continues to monitor the adoption situation in Honduras and will update U.S. citizens accordingly. Meanwhile, we recommended that families who have not finalized adoptions contact IHNFA directly at ihnfadopciones@yahoo.es or at 011-504-2235-3565 to be sure their applications are handled by an accredited adoption agency.
http://honduras.usembassy.gov/message_013012.html
The United States has determined that it will not resume intercountry adoptions in Vietnam on February 1, 2012, when the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption will enter into force there.
Despite Vietnam's initiatives to strengthen its child welfare system and ensure the integrity of its domestic and international adoption process, it does not yet have a fully Hague compliant process in place. We continue to caution adoption service providers and prospective adoptive parents that, to ensure that adoptions from Vietnam will be compliant with the Convention, important steps must still take place before intercountry adoptions between the United States and Vietnam resume. Adoption Service Providers should not initiate or claim to initiate, adoption programs in Vietnam until they receive notification from the Department of State that it has resumed adoptions in Vietnam.
The Department of State will provide updated information on www.adoption.state.gov as it becomes available. If you have any further questions about this notice, please contact the Office of Children's Issues at 1-888-407-4747 within the United States or 202-501-4444 from outside the United States.
http://adoption.state.gov/country_information/country_specific_alerts_notices.php?alert_notice_type=notices&alert_notice_file=vietnam_4
