A Congolese family that fled to Kenya to escape their country's war wants to adopt a baby boy that they found abandoned by the side of the road. The case is the first of its kind in Kenya, addressing whether or not refugees can legally adopt children.

"Teacher and small businessman Jean-Pierre Tombo Milenge fled the Democratic Republic of Congo... with wife... and children in 2005 when, he says, rebels sought to recruit him. In August 2007, [his wife] came a across a baby boy... sitting alone by the side of a Nairobi road, covered in filth."

The family tried to take the boy to an orphanage, but none would take him. He had been living with the family for nearly a year when authorities came and took him away. A spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Nairobi said if the couple wants to adopt, they have to go through the same legal proceedings as everyone else. Their case is set to be heard March 13, 2009 Source: Reuters

Labels: abandonment, refugees, abuse

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

In Kentucky, the Safe Infant Act has resulted in the adoption of nine babies over the last several years that may have otherwise been abandoned by their birth mothers. The Safe Infant Act allows parents to safely surrender babies who are up to 72 hours old. They can be taken to any hospital, EMS personnel, firefighter or police officer.

"The primary goal of the law is to keep babies from being abandoned with no one even knowing about it... Women who have hidden a pregnancy may be frightened, but they can ensure their baby will be safe and they can protect themselves with this law."

A parent who willingly surrenders a baby is given medical disclosure forms that will help determine the future needs of the child. After 30 days, parental rights are terminated, and the babies can then be adopted.

Read more at EMaxHealth.com.

Labels: abandonment, parental_rights, unwanted_pregancy

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

An adoption agency in D.C. is asking a Tennessee court to investigate the adoptive mother who sent her son back to Russia unattended. Specifically, the adoption agency wants to know if the boy was abused.

“The World Association for Children and Parents filed the petition Tuesday in the Circuit Court of Bedford Country saying it was concerned no one was investigating claims the boy had been abandoned last month when he was put on the plane.” (Source: Associated Press)

World Association is the agency that placed the boy with Torry Hansen of Tennessee, who is refusing to talk to police. The agency’s petition was filed against Hansen and her mother – the adopted child’s grandmother.

 

Labels: international, Russia, abandonment

Posted By: Stefanie Hamilton 0 Comments

In Bulgaria, an abandoned child’s likelihood of being adopted has historically been determined by his origins. Children who belonged to the Roma minority had little chance, because parents often refused to give up their parental rights – even for children they’d placed in orphanages.

“But a new law that came into force in October means children who have spent more than six months in institutions and have not been taken back by their parents can now be put up for adoption, without the parents’ approval.” [Source: Agence France Presse (AFP)]

Bulgaria has one of the highest rates of child abandonment in the European Union. An estimated 6,700 children are currently being cared for in state-run institutions, many of them placed there by parents who can’t afford to care for them. Of those, less than 700 were adopted in 2009, mostly due to un-relinquished parental rights.

 

Labels: international, abandonment

Posted By: Adoption Issues 0 Comments

Nearly a year ago, a baby boy was found along the side of a road in Richmond, Virginia. The infant was taken to a hospital and later placed in foster care. This week, he officially joined his “forever family.”

Eleven-month-old Nehemiah Christopher Allen appeared in court along with his adoptive parents Bridget and Terrence Allen and dozens of supporters… "It has been a journey for him, but it’s been one that we can celebrate because now he’ll have a permanent family for his future," said Shawn Rozier. [Source: WWBT (VA)]

Nehemiah is said to be very healthy and happy.

 

Labels: celebration, abandonment

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 1 Comment

In May, Malaysia installed what it calls a “baby hatch” in a facility in Kuala Lumpur. The hatch allows parents to drop off infants they can’t care for.

“The first baby received by the centre, on June 27, has been adopted by a couple selected from 80 eligible parents, OrphanCARE which runs the centre was quoted as saying in the New Straits Times newspaper.” [Source: Arab Times]

Malaysia isn’t the only country with these types of infant drop-offs. Germany, Japan and Pakistan have them as well. Many were instituted in an effort to protect both abandoned babies and their parents.

 

Labels: international, orphans, orphanages, abandonment

Posted By: Adoption Issues 1 Comment

Paula and Bryan Blatchford were excited to adopt. Paula had a teenage daughter from her first marriage, and Bryan didn’t have any kids of his own. They were willing to adopt older children, and were soon paired with a brother and sister. But 16 months after the children arrived, a series of problems resulted in them leaving the family.

Each year, roughly 5 per cent of the 600 adoptions from children’s aids societies in Ontario are not completed. With children over the age of 6, that number can be as high as 25 percent.…

Experienced adoption workers say all children put up for adoption, whether given up by their parents or seized from the home, have special needs. Abuse, multiple moves, drug or alcohol addictions and abandonment have left their mark on fragile psyches. [Source: The Toronto Star]

Adopted children, especially older ones, sometimes have trouble bonding with their adoptive parents; often the result of trauma suffered at an early age. Some families can get past issues like this, using counseling or some other form of family therapy.

Labels: abandonment, connections

Posted By: Stefanie Hamilton 3 Comments

Malaysian charity Orphancare recently created a place where parents can anonymously drop off newborn or infant children they’re unable to care for. Commonly referred to as a “baby hatch,” it’s Malaysia’s first.

“The charity hopes it will rescue more unwanted newborns, as the authorities seek to stem the rising number of abandoned babies. Close to 500 babies have been found abandoned since 2005. Some were left in Muslim prayer halls, on doorsteps and even in rubbish bins. Many are found dead.” [Source: BBC]

The baby hatch locks once a baby is placed inside. An air conditioner turns on, and an alarm is sounded, alertring Orphancare staff. While some fear that this will encourage promiscuity among young people, most are supportive of Orphancare’s efforts to protect unwanted babies.

 

Labels: abandonment, unwanted_pregancy

Posted By: Stefanie Hamilton 1 Comment