Priority on adoption reform

Priority on adoption reform
By Jacqueline Theodoulou
A GOVERNMENT bill reviewing laws on child adoption issues will be ready before the end of the year.

The House Labour Committee yesterday wrapped up discussions on the matter and now awaits the government’s suggestions on how to improve the law.

Speaking after the meeting, Child Commissioner Leda Koursoumba congratulated the Committee on bringing to the forefront such an important issue, which she personally included in her top priorities as soon as she was appointed to the post.

The Commissioner said the entire framework surrounding adoption needed to be regulated, and added that the Labour Minister had agreed to prepare new legislation.

“In the framework of this new legislation, I would like to lift all the doubts, loopholes and incorrect regulations of the current law,” said Koursoumba.

A state, she added, regulates adoption issues with the main aim of securing the best interests of the child. “It is the children who have the right, empowered by the International Treaty, to live in a good environment and as close to their natural environment as possible.”

Koursoumba underlined the importance of avoiding the trade in children for adoption. “A child is not an object for sale, and the dangers hiding behind these so-called private child adoptions turn them into just that: objects.”

A good law, she concluded, would ensure the rights of both the child and adoptive parents are protected.

Committee Chairman Pambis Kyritsis of AKEL said the main issues that occupied the Committee involved the support – including financial – of couples who choose to adopt, before, during and after.

“The Labour Ministry has committed to presenting us with a bill regulating these issues very soon,” he said.
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