Crisis in Adoption

PEAR has been closely following the story of Justin Hansen, also known as Artyom Savelyev, and the reactions of groups both supportive and opposed to international adoption. Our hearts go out to Justin/Artyom and to all traumatized children. And, while PEAR does not condone the choice made by his mother and grandmother, many of us, as parents of traumatized children ourselves, understand why that option might have seemed to be the only one available.

We do not yet know if services and supports were known or accessed by this family. However, as a result of our Post Adoption Survey we do know that post adoption services and supports are woefully inadequate to meet the needs of adoptive families. And access to quality services can be limited by geographic location, language barriers, financial considerations, legal consequences, job security, and insurance coverage.

PEAR hopes that the adoption community takes this chance to reach out to those in crisis and offer support. We hope that the current attention and funding being funneled into increasing adoption programs and options includes research studies and emphasis on post adoption services, supports and treatment. Children should not be placed with adults who are unprepared and unable to parent them. Communities need to be better prepared to meet the needs of children. No one should feel alone…no one should feel that sending a unaccompanied child back to his/her birth country is the solution to difficulties in caring for a traumatized child.

PEAR’s mission is to ensure that all adoptive families are provided:

1. the opportunity to make a wholly informed and educated decision to adopt;
2. a system that is transparent, ethical, economical, and respects the rights of families of origin, the laws of governments involved, the adoptive and prospective adoptive parents, and most importantly the children;
3. a choice of agencies that operate legally, ethically, responsibly and in the interest of the adults and children they serve;
4. access to support services and resources post adoption;
5. official representation before the bodies that govern and oversee adoption providers.

This child’s situation highlights the fact that adoptive parents are not wholly informed by adoption service providers, orphanages, and/or governmental authorities about the underlying facts of their adoption decisions; that transparency, ethics and economics are not adequate enough; that agency responsibility is not adequate; that access to support services and resources post adoption have large barriers still; and, that adoptive parents are not yet afforded official representation before governing bodies and those that oversee adoption providers. You don’t have to look further than how the media has responded to this to see the proof. The media chose to go to adoption service providers and the trade organizations that represent them for the first wave of comments on this story, and in most cases has vilified adoptive parents for over a week.

PEAR will launch a three-part series called Crises in Adoptions soon. Part 1 will be a list of crises resources for adoptive families. Part 2 will debunk myths about the availability and quality of post adoption services and options including dissolution of adoptions. Part 3 will discuss solutions to the current international adoption process.


Ethics, Transparency, Support
~ What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/

DOS Adoption Notice for Russia

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Office of Children’s Issues

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April 16, 2010

The Department of State has received no information to confirm a suspension of adoptions from Russia to the United States. Our Embassy in Moscow and other Department of State officials are talking with Russian officials to clarify this issue.

The Department of State is sending a high-level inter-agency team to Russia this weekend to meet with senior Russian officials, including officials from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Justice. The U.S. delegation will emphasize the importance of this issue to the United States, and will discuss our mutual concerns about how to better protect the welfare and rights of children and all parties involved in intercountry adoptions.

Many thousands of Russian children have found loving, safe and permanent homes in the United States through intercountry adoption. Families in the United States have adopted more than 50,000 children from Russia.

If you have completed an adoption in Russia and have an immigrant visa appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow:

The U.S. Embassy in Moscow is continuing to schedule and issue immigrant visas for adopted children using normal processing procedures. Contact the Embassy at MoscowConsularR@state.gov to schedule an appointment. Please also stay in close touch with your adoption service provider.

If you have a court appointment to finalize your child’s adoption in Russia:

Many adoption cases are continuing to move forward in the courts. We have heard of cases in which a court appointment has been postponed. If your court appointment is postponed by the court, please provide this information to us by email at RussiaAdoption@state.gov and MoscowConsularR@state.gov. We will work with the Russian authorities to try to resolve any problems.

If you do not have a court date yet to finalize an adoption in Russia, but are in the process of adopting from Russia:

Please stay in close contact with your adoption service provider, and check the adoption.state.gov website regularly for current information about intercountry adoption from Russia.

The Department of State’s Office of Children’s Issues has established a special e-mail box for inquiries or comments about adoptions from Russia. Prospective adoptive parents with concerns about adoptions from Russia may send their questions to RussiaAdoption@state.gov.

http://www.adoption.state.gov/news/russia.html

Ethics, Transparency, Support
~ What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/

DOS Adoption Notice - Uganda

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Office of Children’s Issues

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Status of Adoptions from Uganda
April 15, 2010

United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) regulations in 8 CFR 204.3(d) require that, in order for Petition to Classify an Orphan as an Immediate Relative (Form I-600) filed by prospective adoptive parent(s) to be approved, the prospective adoptive parent(s) must provide proof of a full and final adoption or custody of the child for emigration and adoption abroad in accordance with the laws of the foreign-sending country.

The Government of Uganda advised the U.S. Embassy in Kampala on March 16, 2010 that legal orders for guardianship issued by Ugandan courts that do not contain specific language authorizing emigration and overseas adoption should not be construed as sufficient to allow Ugandan children to depart Uganda to be adopted abroad. In the past, the U.S. Government has treated Ugandan guardianship orders that did not contain such language as sufficient to underpin the approval of the I-600 petition and immigrant visa, but based upon this clarification from the Government of Uganda, explicit language authorizing emigration and adoption abroad must now be included. Effective immediately, if an I-600 is filed with a guardianship order that does not include authorization for emigration and adoption abroad, the petition will not be approvable unless or until the petitioners are able to provide a corrected guardianship document.

http://adoption.state.gov/news/uganda.html

Ethics, Transparency, Support
~ What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/

DOS Adoption Alert - Mexico

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Bureau of Consular Affairs
Office of Children’s Issues

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April 15, 2010

The Department of State has issued a new Travel Warning to inform U.S. citizens traveling to and living in Mexico of concerns about the security situation in Mexican border regions as well as other areas in Mexico. Adoptive parents, and all travelers to Mexico, should read the warning in its entirety.

At this time Ciudad Juarez is the only Immigrant Visa processing post in Mexico. We take seriously concerns regarding the safety and security of Americans and Mexicans who visit the Consulate and constantly review and scrutinize the security situation. Travelers to and in Mexico should monitor Mexico travel warning on travel.state.gov for updates.

http://adoption.state.gov/news/mexico.html

Ethics, Transparency, Support
~ What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/

MEDIA: CARA Asks Preet Mandir to Close

Put up for adoption, but future uncertain

Nisha Nambiar Posted: Friday , Apr 09, 2010 at 0313 hrs, Pune


CARA asks Preet Mandir to discontinue inter-country adoption; agency puts forth petitions of 25 children

As many as 25 children put up for inter-country adoption in the past two months by city-based adoption centre Preet Mandir are facing an uncertain future. The Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) had, in a letter dated March 11, told the adoption centre to discontinue its inter-country adoption proceedings from February 15.

However, Preet Mandir claims it received the letter only by April and the papers of the 25 children had been moved by then. The CARA, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Women and Child Development, had also asked Preet Mandir not to seek any foreign placement for its children till it gets a clean chit from the CBI or the Bombay High Court.

Preet Mandir had filed 16 petitions of in-country adoptions and 25 inter-country adoptions during these months. “These 25 kids have been cleared for foreign adoption but they may not finally get to be adopted as per this notification. All these children will face problems,” said Suhas Deshpande, liaisoning officer, Preet Mandir.


http://www.indianexpress.com/news/putupforadoption-butfutureuncertain/602272/

Ethics, Transparency, Support
~ What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/