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France will have the EU Presidency for the second half of 2008. In their desperate desire for adoptive children, the French are likely move this issue up to the European agenda.

One of their motives is the stoppage of Romanian adoptions.

Stay tuned - in the next days the French agenda will be unveiled right here.

Part of this agenda is 'European Adoptions' as announced at the last page of 'Romania - For Export Only'.

Subsidising intercountry adoption

Intercountry adoption has become a full-fledged market, so much is acknowledged by most parties. And a competive market

My book outlined the market of Romanian children. And at the time, around 2001, almost everyone agreed that a market, in Romania's case based on points gained in return for money or project aid, was not desirable. For details see Romania-For Export Only.

That has changed. Accepting the market system, importing countries now struggle on how to get their share of children in this competitive market.

Israel recently agreed to increase the amount of money allowed to pay for adoptable children. They now regret that decision. Not because baby-buying should not exist, but because the the price of 22.000 to 24.000 euros means that not every Israeli family can affort it. One of the ways to solve it could be to have the State subsidise poor family's adoption.
Read the full article here

A Dutch expert Committee's proposal even went further: subsidising adoptive families AND subsidising adoption agencies - motivated by the ever increasing costs of adoption - and following the example of Sweden and Denmark where adoption subsidies of aproximately 5.000 euros exist already.

And where does the money go? On salaries of those who facilitate this business, on payments to 'orphanages', on foreign trips to have poor countries' official come over, on (small) bribes - because, yes, the Dutch expert committee felt that paying bribes, if part of the local culture, should be acceptable in cases of intercountry adoption.

And last but not least, development aid needs to accompany intercountry adoptions. The US, Italy and Sweden do it, France wants it, and it is what the Dutch expert committee prosed (although the latter motivated this as a way to ethically justify adoptions - mindboggling if you ask me).

And then we are back at a 'point system', although after the Romanian fiasco, that word will not be officially used by other countries, I guess.

Dutch Anouk hails modern world of adoption

Well these days adoption is a hot thing,
you can get a child for nearly nothing.
You take them home to a nanny,
buy off ur guilt with toys and candy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dK26ojnNtW4

Towards a supermarket for adoption?

End March Jean-Pierre Colombani, former Director of the French newspaper 'Le Monde' and adoptive father, handed his report on adoption to President Sarkozy. The latter had asked him to explore how more children could be found for the French families waiting to adopt. After all, the French target set by the former French government was to double adoptions from 4.000 to 8.000. I reported on this before
French Adoption Agency has difficulty in satisfying waiting families.

The 380 pages report holds over 30 recommendations, mainly on how to get more children from abroad, but also on how to make more French children 'adoptable'.

French adoption expert Pierre Verdier comments on the Colombani report in an article titled 'Vers un supermarché de l’adoption ?'

For the full article in French: Abandon & Adoption:

Quote (informal translation):

Pierre Verdier questions the arguments advanced in the Colombani report like the fact of announcing the number of " 2 100 small children who could be the subject of a project of adoption". This number, he says, comes from nowhere. Would it be the pernicious idea to make believe that many adoptable children suffer in their children homes because of administrative blockings and the practices of social workers who would give priority to the bonds with the family?
This assumption is not eccentric when one takes this sentence from the report literally: "One should not give up evolving the practices in order to increase the number of children likely to be adopted." Pierre Verdier sees this advertisement as an effect of the politics of quotas.

Another avenue proposed by M. Colombani: EUROPEAN ADOPTIONS
To be continued...

Dutch couple re-arrested for illegal Sri Lanka baby trafficking

The Dutch couple who got themselves involved in a case of child trafficking of a two-week old baby in August 2007 got arrested again. This time by the Dutch authorities.

The two had been in prison in Sri Lanka until October 2008, when they were released on bail. February this year they arrived back in The Netherlands. Their role as witness in the courtcase against the Sri Lankans accused of the trafficking had released them of the charges against them.

According to today's news alleges that the Dutch couple, in October 2008 - so when just out of prison - AGAIN falsified paperwork in an attempt to still adopt the baby.

Vietnamese 'Orphans' - For Export Only

The US have investigated the Vietnamese adoption system. The outcome is devastating, but to me no surprise. I recognised much of the Romanian 'orphans', created 'For Export Only'.

Since Vietnam and the US sigened a Memorandum of Understanding in 2005 to re-open adoptions (suspended since 2002 because of corruption), the number of adoptable 'oprhans had exploded. Now why was that?

- obligatory donations (= MONEY) of adoption agencies to orphanges
- in return for these donations children needed to be given

Hence the demand created the offer. Just like the Romanian 'point system'.

As a result:

the children's background often got faked

parents were paid to place their children in orphanages

parents were told their child would return home at a certain age, or will send them money from the US

children were picked up from the streets by 'child finders; and, against money, handed to orphanages

The advertisements placed to locate the parents, were done in such a way that it was rather unlikely for the parents to see

maternity homes had links with orphanages and paid for children

when mothers could not pay a hospital bill, their child would go for adoption

The same story all over again. Similar stories, or some of the elements, could be found in Romania, and can be found in Guatemala, China, Ethiopia and other countries were children can be found for adoption.

Children are not 'waiting' to be adopted, they are not abandoned and in need to be rescued. No, they are 'found' and declared abandoned, because of the demand for adoption.

The countries that adopt from Vietnam: Canada, France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, and last but not least: the US.

AP Exclusive: US report alleges baby-selling, corruption in adoptions from Vietnam

A summary of the US report can be read on the US Embassy's website

Adoption Agencies in a competitive market

The Center for Adoption Policy reports that

for the last ten years, Intercountry Adoption has appealed to many U.S families because of its relative reliability, ease and lower costs. However the closing or constriction of almost every international adoption program, including Guatemala, China, Ukraine and Russia, has left American families disillusioned with if not disbarred from participating in ICA. As a result domestic adoption has begun to seem a more reliable and predictable as well as equally affordable alternative.

With the number of intercountry adoptions going down, adoption agencies are having a hard time. Their organisation, their income, depends fully of adoptions. At least in the US adoption agencies can attempt to increase their national adoptions, as the US has 'adoptable children'. That is not the case in most countries in Europe, or in Israel, where children are rarely 'freed for adoption'.

In Israel The Knesset has acknowlegded the difficulties of the adoption agencies in this highly competitive market. They approved an increase of the cost of foreign adoptions by 75 percent; the maximum payment Israeli agencies can spend on adoptions abroad will be raised from NIS 70,000 ($20,000) to NIS 125,000 ($35.000).
A second decision was to change from dollar payment to euros.

Read the full article Knesset increases costs of foreign adoptions by 75 percent