Seeking Real Solutions for Real Problems
Seeking Real Solutions for Real Problems
Ethica has received many comments and questions about our Viet Nam campaign. Some believe that Ethica shouldn't be asking questions or discussing reform at all until the U.S. government releases the names and identities of all involved to "prove" that wrongdoing has occurred--many thus support an unhindered continuation of Vietnamese adoptions. Some believe that the Embassy report proves that adoptions should be halted immediately, and that Ethica is advocating a continuation of current practices in Viet Nam despite the need for reform. It is Ethica's position that neither of these views accurately depicts the current situation, or the solution, for Viet Nam.
To be clear, Ethica firmly condemns the illegal and unethical practices in Vietnam and we support the U.S. government's investigation into these practices. Ethica is aware of abuses against Vietnamese parents, children, and adoptive families -- both through Embassy reports
andthrough first hand reports to our organization. It is our firm belief that abuses
areoccurring in Vietnam and that these practices must stop.
Unfortunately, history has shown us that when a country halts international adoption, some children suffer and the abuses do not stop. Instead, they shift and proliferate in other countries. Whether in Vietnam or other countries, we cannot support a continuation of a system which perpetuates abuses. Instead, in accordance with Ethica's mission, we are advocating for reform--not for a continuation of the current system
orfor a sudden closure that will simply cause the situation to shift to other countries.
While Ethica readily acknowledges the bureaucratic bungling and delays in Vietnam, we firmly believe that the independent U.S. investigation process is the only thing currently protecting children and families, both Vietnamese and American. We also believe the Vietnamese government has shown itself to be unresponsive to ethical concerns--beginning with the licensing of agencies openly using facilitators who had previously been deported or de-licensed by the Vietnamese government, and continuing with the failure to set fee policies or to police unethical activity. The inclination, therefore, to blindly support Vietnam's government while chastising the U.S. government is misguided and unhelpful. We also strongly believe that the Department of State and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services do not have the authority or the tools to adequately address all these issues--and that this is a legislative failure of the U.S. Congress. All of these concerns are addressed in our campaign.
At the same time, demanding the closure of a country, rather than the stepped-up enforcement of protections, will merely polarize the debate into the pro-adoption vs. anti-adoption rhetoric that tends to accompany unethical adoption practices. Agencies and their supporters will quickly rise to defend the practice of international adoption, and in doing so will minimize the profoundly disturbing actions of those who do not care about ethics. On the opposite side, others will declare that the only real reform is a complete shutdown. Ethica finds this polarization destructive and unhelpful. The end result of polarization, as seen in country after country, is no result at all. Rather, there is a prolonged tug of war between the status quo and shutdown until the system finally closes. No reform is achieved, and the same practices continue in other countries. As the U.S. Embassy report also noted, even within the current situation in Vietnam some agencies are managing to do ethical work. This shows that agencies should be able to conform their practices to higher standards or be removed from the situation. To make that happen, Ethica believes that we must begin addressing the middle ground--how to keep adoptions open while making them ethical and legal. Neither "side" of a polarized debate will fix the abuses or protect vulnerable children and families.
Ethica would like adoptions to stay open from all countries, including Vietnam,
if it is possible to do them ethically and legally in a way that protects children and families.Some will say that it is easy to pay lip service to saying that adoptions should be done legally and ethically. So, what does Ethica mean when it uses these terms? In our view, factors present in a legal and ethical adoption system include, at a minimum: (1) informed consent free from solicitation, inducement or coercion; (2) absence of donations or bribes paid in exchange for a child or child referral; (3) adoption fees for direct services that are commensurate with the local standard of living, and (4) absence of disincentives for family preservation or domestic placement. Sadly, these problems are present in Vietnam today--and in other countries around the world, including our own.
To be certain, developing such a system will take time and effort. Those efforts will require communication and dialogue that is not well-served by polarization. Ethica believes that the collective adoption community has the knowledge and the ability to perform ethical and legal adoptions and that significant progress can be made in these areas--both in Vietnam and around the world. Those who would engage in the minimization of abuses, and those who who would advocate for a cessation of adoptions, do not help us get there. The choices are not simply "keep it open as is" or "shut it all down." The answers, we believe, lie in the middle.
Please support Ethica's campaign to support truly
ethicalVietnamese adoption, and our work in other countries. With your help, we can use this campaign to achieve lasting reform in Vietnam and around the world.
http://www.ethicanet.org/item.php?recordid=VNcampaignnote&pagestyle=default