A selection of articles written by staff of ACT
ROMANIA FOR EXPORT ONLY (book)
the untold story of the Romanian ‚orphans‘
Roelie Post, 2007
DE PERVERSE EFFECTEN VAN HET HAAGS ADOPTIE VERDRAG
R. Post, 2008
THE PERVERSE EFFECTS OF THE HAGUE ADOPTION CONVENTION
R. Post, 2008
This article describes the effects that the Hague Adoption Convention1 had on adoptions from Romania. The aim of the Hague Convention was to guarantee that intercountry adoption would take place in the interest of the child, with respect for his/her fundamental rights, and to prevent the abduction, sale of or trafficking in children. Romania was one of the first countries that ratified this Convention (1994), and adopted in 1997 a Hague compliant adoption law. However, from 1997 to 2001 this convention did not so much protect the rights of the children, but foremost those of the parties in the receiving countries: central authorities,adoption agencies and adoptive parents. It further shows how intercountry adoption developed into a full-grown market, which functions according to the economical laws of Supply and Demand.
The result of the Romanian ban on intercountry adoptions will be discussed, including the consequences with regards to other countries. The article ends with the crucial question: can intercountry adoption be legislated without it leading to a demand-driven child market? This article argues why such is not possible under the current provisions of the 1993 Hague Convention.
INSIDE STORY OF AN ADOPTION SCANDAL
Arun Dohle, 2009
In historical terms, intercountry adoptions from India have had a short run. Within thirty years of its inception, murky scandals of child kidnapping, falsifying paperwork, outright trading,and other tragic stories have ridden these intercountry adoptions. Worldwide, adoption experts widely believed that ratifying the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-Operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (1993) would help reduce malpractice in such adoptions. The Convention aims to minimize malpractice in adoption and “prevent the abduction, the sale of, or trafficking in children.”
But does regulating help in weeding outcases of malpractice? Or does the regulation of intercountry adoptions,because of the strong demand for children, lead to a legalizedmarket for children without effective control?
ILLEGAL ADOPTION AS CHILD TRAFFICKING
The potential of the EU Anti Trafficking Directive
in protecting children and their original family
from abusive intercountry adoption
Thesis of ACT’s intern Iara de Witte, May 2012
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