updated with footnote (see end of post)Over the past two years, PEAR has received numerous comments and complaints concerning adoptions from Ethiopia. Investigations by governments and the media increased substantially towards the end of 2009. As PEAR began to see a pattern similar to that of Vietnam and Guatemala before their closures to US adoptions, we decided to conduct a survey of Ethiopia adoptive parents and prospective adoptive parents from March 16, 2010 to April 16, 2010. The purpose of the survey was to identify possible areas of unethical practice and procedure in Ethiopian adoptions, and report them to adoption stakeholders and appropriate authorities so they can be corrected.
This survey was based upon PEAR’s Mission and Prospective Adoptive Parent Bill of Rights, which can be found on our homepage at www.pear-now.org . The results will be discussed in the same order as the survey. Survey-taker’s suggestions that were given in comment areas will be listed at the end.
Summary
There were 31 different respondents (27.7 percent) who completed their adoptions and who experienced multiple, serious issues that are completely unacceptable.
PEAR believes that this data showing the inexcusable, including
* unethical practices of adoption service providers,
* coercion of birthfamilies, and
* lies to the adoptive triad
will, if not corrected, lead to the shutdown of the Ethiopia.
If the PEAR Prospective Adoptive Parent Bill of Rights were adhered to by adoption service providers, we feel that none of those serious issues would have occurred.
In light of the recent estimation from http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_16319030?nclick_check=1 that 23% of all intercountry adoptions to the US in fiscal 2010 will be from Ethiopia, we hope that the adoptive community reads this report thoroughly and realizes what is currently taking place in the adoption process in Ethiopia. The 19-page pdf report is accessible on our website at http://www.pear-reform.org/uploads/6/6/6/2/6662787/pear-ethiopia-survey-results.pdf.
We encourage all parties to become involved and join PEAR to reform these corrupt activities.
Footnote added to registered agency listing as follows:
The list of registered agencies was published in 2008. It is the only publicly accessible list of registered agencies provided by the Ethiopian government to adopting families and the general public http://www.ethiopianembassy.org/OtherResources/OtherResource.php?Page=AdoptionEthiopianChild.htm PEAR requested current information from the Ethiopian Embassy in Washington and MOWA on two occasions each (in 2009 and again in 2010) and we received no reply. We understand that Holt and WACAP report they are registered with the Ethiopian authorities and have documents supporting this status, but we have no way of independently verifying their current status without the cooperation of the Ethiopian government.
Ethics, Transparency, Support
~ What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/
www.pear-now.org
Are your registered and unregistered agencies taken from the Feb. 2008 list found at http://www.ethiopianembassy.org/PDF/ListofAdoptionAgenciesRegisteredinEthiopia.pdf or are you working from a more current source?
Yes they are. PEAR requested updated lists from the Ethiopian Embassy in Wsahington DC, MOWA and the US Embassy in Ethiopia. The US Embassy told PEAR the list was current and we should double check with MOWA, MOWA never replied to our request and the Embassy in DC failed to reply as well. We therefore had to go with the only list published at the time we wrote up our analysis.
We asked Holt about their license, and this is what they said.
They are registered as a licensed adoption agency in Ethiopia. Holt International received its license with Ethiopia in January of 2008 and it was renewed in 2010.
The Ethiopian Embassy in Washington, DC list of registered agencies is an outdated list and has not been updated since Holt’s license was granted. I feel maybe this needs to explained/updated in your report.