Mr Cantwell pointed to countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, where adoptions went from almost zero to 500 in just four years, and post-earthquake Haiti, where minimal safeguards were “swept aside” in response to such pressure. “As far as I know, no country is on record as ever having…

heir whole life was in the album they left that day in October: pictures of the room they'd fixed up for Timofey at their home in suburban Maryland; grinning images of their two American sons, ages 6 and 13, who would be his brothers. The book sat beside Timofey's bed in Baby Home No. 13, and…

“Every time a children’s bill is brought to this Senate, I am called by ladies of various religions, who said to me ‘Senator Drayton, just keep that matter alive and in the forefront of the public mind’. She said she was hopeful that a bill would come which would repeal all laws which give sanction…

It was April 2007 and I was at a stage in my life when I could choose – and afford – to do almost anything I wanted. I had just been trekking in India, Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet with friends. I was turning 44. I owned a house in Battersea in south London, had a good social life and a job as investment…

A coalition of advocacy groups, including Saddleback Church, sent a letter to Sec. of State John Kerry asking him to put a stop to U.S. Department of State actions that are preventing orphans from being united with adoptive families in the United States. The State Department, through the Office of…

Central Adoption Authority She said among measures adopted to review the adoption process in the country is the establishment of a Central Adoption Authority “in accordance with the Hague Convention”. The Convention of 1993 demands the protection of children and cooperation in the respect of…

Attached to the side of a building, the box resembles a book drop at a public library, only larger, and when nights are cold, the interior is heated. The Korean lettering on its front represents a phoneticized rendering of the English words "baby box." It was installed by Pastor Lee Jon-rak to…

The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 (JJ Act) has been amended twice: in 2006 and in 2011. More demands to amend the Act have been in the reckoning. There was, for instance, a public outcry demanding more stringent punishment for the prime accused, a juvenile, in the…

My wife Amy was taking me to the airport the other day so I could fly out to an adoption conference. I was scheduled to present with two women who had both experienced extreme difficulties with children "stuck" in adoptions that wouldn't move forward. Amy knew Kim's story, about being stuck in…

Some realities depicted in the film are prettier than others. Many involve heartbreakingly-long waits and endless frustrating obstacles that come between children in need of a loving family and loving families desperate to adopt them. The film documents the lives of three families and four…

At the initiative of Quebec and France, an international conference was held in Port-au-Prince from June 22 to 24, 2011 bringing together the Group of Montreal, represented by nine central authorities (Germany, Belgium, Flemish Community of Belgium, Federal Authority of Canada, the United States,…

New Zealanders desperate to create a baby are heading overseas and paying up to $100,000 to hire a womb, unaware that their children could end up stateless. It is illegal to pay for a surrogate mother in New Zealand, but in many countries the practice is not regulated. As long as the hopeful parent…

In the year 2002, thousands of babies were adopted by American parents from foreign countries including China, Russia, Guatemala, South Korea and the Ukraine. Foreign adoption is a growing trend in the adoption community, and it's particularly popular among singles who want children. The Early…

Last year, an adoption agency in Florida was denied permission to find children for American families in 77 foreign countries that have agreed to operate under the rules of an international treaty aimed at cleaning up abuses in international adoption. But the agency, Celebrate Children International…

Why are so many celebrities adopting black babies?" On her Rage Against the Minivan blog, she says: "This conversation has become a predictable subject every time a celebrity adopts a child of color, from the comments section of every blog from People to Huffington Post. It usually takes a…

The newest trend among celebrity couples: adopting kids from abroad. Actress Scarlett Johansson and her actor husband Ryan Reynolds are the latest Hollywood stars who hope to become parents by bringing home a child from another country. The couple wants to adopt from Ethiopia or Liberia, according…

Maggie Millar has a problem with Deborra-Lee Furness' work. Supported by her movie star husband, Hugh Jackman, Furness has cranked up a campaign to open up overseas adoption for Australian couples. Part of this campaign has been creating National Adoption Awareness Week, which will be running this…

When Vancouver’s Heather Alicia Knox travelled to India with her teenage daughter in 2001, she saw first hand how it takes a village to raise a child. Now, she and her family are working to help other orphaned and vulnerable children with their own children’s village in Guatemala, created through…

Malawi's highest court on Friday granted American pop icon Madonna the right to adopt a second child from the impoverished southern African nation. "In our view, Chifundo James is better taken care of by being adopted by foreign parents who will give her love and affection," said Supreme court Chief…

The teen girl who Rebecca Williams was set to adopt already had the dress she planned to wear on what she calls her "voyage" home to the United States. But the trip from Haiti to Tampa, Fla., might never happen for 15-year-old Darline. On the day she was to get the passport that would allow her to…

So when she heard of a Tennessee mother who had done just that -- sent an adopted 7-year-old boy back to Russia because of what she described as violent behavior and severe psychological problems -- Bean understood, even if she would not have made the same decision. "It is so beyond a rational…

During their adoption journey, the Bentleys became involved with starting a nonprofit organization called Gold Coast Orphan Alliance after realizing the lack of support and information for families going through the adoption process. To allow the area’s adoptive parents to connect, the Bentleys…

PROFESSIONAL and life experience are important for a judge to be able to tackle complicated cases. That is why in the UK you can hardly become a judge before your 50th birthday, said Lord Justice Matthew Thorpe, a now retired noted English judge specialising in family law. One year ago he decided on…

GUATEMALA CITY — American parents cradle their new babies in cotton blankets and feed them bottles of formula. They clog the lobby of the Marriott Hotel in Guatemala City with strollers. Penny Conner, from Medfield, Mass., says she cannot wait to bring her 9-month-old boy home. It's a joyous scene:…

One of new Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd's first actions since taking on the role has been to call for rich nations to live up to their responsibilities to the "poorest of the poor across the world". Australia, Rudd, recently told the UN, "wants to do just that". He boasted that Australia's aid budget…

Every 100th baby born in Guatemala grows up as an adopted American, making the Central American country the richest source of adoptees in the Western Hemisphere. But U.S. ratification of an international adoption treaty is likely to choke off the supply next summer. Critics say Guatemala has become…

A friend recommended a nearby adoption agency but the three- to five-year waiting period seemed much too long to wait. That's when Allen decided to turn to the phone book. "I wound up stumbling upon a wonderful agency," said Allen who admits that she "got lucky" with her find. Nearly two years and…