FTIA WEEKs' UPDATE
Greetings FTIA-Vietnam families. I hope this week’s update finds you well. At a time when the news concerning Vietnam adoptions seems so alarming and unsettling, my hope is that this week’s update will provide some clarity regarding our agency’s program in Vietnam and provide a counter-point to sensational stories about the state of Vietnam adoptions.
AP Article
Many families have contacted me after reading a recent Associated Press article, “US alleges baby-selling in Vietnam.” Although alarming and sensational, this article is really nothing new. It is our belief that this article was written mostly based on information provided by US officials and that the AP likely did not do any investigation of its own into the allegations.
We fear that some US officials are making a false assumption that because of a few cases of corruption or unethical practice, Vietnam adoptions by US adoptive families must be halted entirely. FTIA believes that any incident of corruption is wrong, and we fully support US efforts to discover cases of abuse or wrongful practices. We do not, however, believe that adoptions should stop.
The AP article also quoted a US-based agency employee as thinking the Memorandum of Agreement will not be renewed and, in fact, a temporary suspension or ending of Vietnam adoptions is a forgone conclusion. This is not the position of FTIA. We hope and expect that higher-level officials in the US government responsible for bi-lateral agreements will remain open to a renewed or amended Memorandum of Agreement allowing Vietnam adoptions to continue. We also expect to take part in a major initiative advocating for Vietnam adoptions by U.S. citizens to continue. This initiative will likely be released in 1-2 weeks, at which time we will immediately contact you and ask for your support. There will be concrete, relatively easy ways you can help the effort to keep adoption as a viable option for orphaned children in Vietnam.
New US Embassy Warnings
The US Embassy in Hanoi also added two posts to their website today. The new Warning Concerning Vietnam Adoption (April 2008) says that the Vietnamese Government announced they would cease accepting dossiers July 1, 2008 and that only those families with official referrals as of September 1, 2008 would be allowed to continue their adoptions. The post indicated that families without official referrals as of September 1, 2008 would not be allowed to continue and would have their dossiers returned.
Although I can certainly understand the level of panic this must cause for families in the process of preparing dossiers or awaiting a match or referral, we believe that this announcement by Vietnamese officials may not be the final word or official position of what will really happen should September 1st arrive without a new or renewed MOA. The next logical question is, “Why would Vietnamese officials announce such a deadline if it is not set in stone?” It is often the case that when countries who are in the midst of negotiating a contentious agreement as has been the case with Vietnamese adoptions, all involved parties may say or do things that demonstrate good faith and willingness to negotiate. There appears to be nothing in Vietnamese law that would prevent parents who have submitted dossiers to continue their adoption, even without a referral, after September 1st if a new agreement is not in place.
The second US Embassy post today is an outline of Irregularities in Adoptions from Vietnam—the same content as in the AP news article (mentioned above). Again, we believe that this summary of irregularities is not truly representative of wide-spread practice in Vietnam, and it is certainly not representative of FTIA’s work in Vietnam. It is appropriate that US and Vietnamese officials work to find a solution to a situation in which abuse, fraud and corruption may happen, even if such violations occur on an isolated basis.
Although very alarming, the AP article and US Embassy Warnings ignore a pivotal aspect of adoption in Vietnam. The vast majority of adoptions in Vietnam are ethical and appropriate. There remain children throughout Vietnam in need of permanent, loving homes and families. Our goal at FTIA is to find homes & families for children in such need. We will continue to serve this mission through ethical and transparent practices which respect all people involved in the process, including birth parents, adopting parents and, most importantly, the children who we serve. We are continuing things as usual—submitting dossiers, matching families, referring children and making travel arrangements for families.
From a logistical point of view, I ask for your patience as I respond to family inquiries. Although I try to return families voicemails and emails within 1 business day, please understand if I am unable to do so over the next few days. Admittedly, many families are anxious about what these announcements, articles and rumors mean to their particular case. This information also comes at a time when FTIA-Vietnam has more families with official referrals than at any other time, in addition to over 15 families working to complete dossiers. Please know that we are working diligently to ensure that all cases are processed expediently and also continuing our commitment to provide accurate, timely information during this time of great anxiety.