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

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As a refugee from Myanmar, Kate recalls what it was like when soldiers forced their way into her grandmother's home. Though she was able to flee to a friend's house, her grandmother didn't make it. Now, at age 16, Kate has found a safe, permanent home with a couple from San Jose, California.

"Kate is one of a trickle of refugee orphans finding homes with Bay Area families through a special program of Catholic Charities, one of two agencies that contracts with the U.N. High Commissioner on Refugees to place the children... If an adoption always includes risk and reward, these adoptions offer a double dose of both."

Orphaned refugee children face unique challenges when adopted out of their horrific circumstances. Not only is language an issue, but many of these children dropped out of school at an early age or never attended school at all. But many adoptive parents are willing to face those challenges and give these kids a future they could never have hoped for in their native countries. Read more at ContraCostaTimes.com.

Labels: refugees, challenges, trauma

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