DOS Adoption Notice: Colombia’s revised procedures for determining children’s eligibility for intercountry adoption

Colombia October 22, 2012  Notice: Colombia’s revised procedures for determining children’s eligibility for intercountry adoption   Colombia’s Institute for Family Welfare (ICBF) recently announced revised procedures for determining a child’s eligibility for intercountry adoption, which may affect some adoptions involving U.S. families. This process is known in Colombia as the “re-establishment of rights.” ICBF implemented these new procedures as a …

ISS Report: INVESTIGATING THE GREY ZONES OF INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION

The ISS (International Social Services) has released its report entitled: INVESTIGATING THE GREY ZONES OF INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION. Anyone involved in or considering intercountry adoption should read this detailed report and its suggestions for improving  intercountry adoption practices. PEAR Members and Newsletter Members can access the 142 page report on PEAR’s Yahoo Groups.  The full  ISS Report is also available for …

Media Report: Kyrgyzstan Anti-Corruption Agency Announces Findings on Foreign Adoption

The 24kg News Agency is reporting findings of the Anti-Corruption Service under the State Committee for National Security (GKNB)in Kygryzstan. These findings allege the following corrupt practices with respect to the payments of bribes to officials in the Ministry in association with intercountry adoption: 1. Payment by foreign adoption agency of $15,000 – $20,000 in bribes to secure accreditation.2. Payment …

UPDATE: Additional Official Arrested In Kyrgyzstan Corruption Scandal: Gulnara Derbisheva

It has been reported that the arrest of Gulnara Derbisheva, former Deputy Minister of Social Development, took place on August 31, 2012. Ms. Derbisheva has been charged for allegedly accepting bribes in her  arranging the adoptions of Kyrgyzstani children. Kyrgyz Adoptions Official Arrested For Bribery, Radio Free Europe September 3, 2012.http://www.rferl.org/content/kyrgyzstan-adoptions-official-bribery/24696219.html Clause of international adoption in Kyrgyzstan favours traffic in …

UPDATE: Kyrgyzstan – US Special Advisor for Children’s Issues Travels to Kyrgyzstan

The following press release was made yesterday by the Office of Children’s Issues. We are assuming this in response to the recent scandal in Kyrgyzstan involving misconduct by US adoption agencies and the subsequent suspension of their accreditation in Kyrgyzstan. We request the US DOS to disclose the identity of the agency alleged to have given bribes to the Kyrg …

Kyrgyzstan Investigating Allegations of Bribery in Agency Accreditation

According to news sources, Kyrgyzstan’s social development minister was arrested on Wednesday July 4, 2012 under suspicion of seeking at least $15,000 in bribes from a United States adoption agency. According to the media, the US agency had paid $10,000 in bribes to become accredited to participate in intercountry adoptions from Kyrgyzstan under the Hague, and the minister was seeking …

Where healthy babies are bought illegally, disabled are slighted (Kantipur)

Where healthy babies are bought illegally, disabled are slightedKathmandu PostRoshan SedhaiKATHMANDU, JUN 12 –Laxmi Maharjan (name changed) of Kalimati paid an undisclosed amount of cash for a male child three years back when she and her husband “bought” him from a capital-based hospital. The seemingly well-off couple in their mid thirties, who had been long wishing to adopt a baby, …

UPDATE on PEAR’s Ethics Alert for China

A blog post was recently made public by Brian Stuy of Research China which addresses some of the issues contained in our Ethics Alert on China’s Special Needs Adoptions http://pear-now.blogspot.com/2012/03/pear-ethics-alert-china-special-needs.html. We received similar stories and information from both adoptive families and adoption service providers before publishing our alert. PEAR believes that prospective adoptive families and adoptive families have the right …