| At a special conference on the issue the representative of the Council on International Adoptions made it clear that after the adoption of the Hague Convention and the changes in Bulgaria’s Family Code on the respective sphere, there is a drop in the number of children adopted abroad. The highest number was registered in 2002, when foreign families adopted 1200 Bulgarian children. Out of the earlier-mentioned 3000 kids, according to the Hague Convention, only 698 can expect international adoption, for having been rejected at home. Some 1400 families have filed application forms. They are French, American, Italian and Spanish. Sometimes there exists a shadow of corruption falling on international adoptions. It happens that directors of social homes have directly negotiated with foreign candidate parents the adoption of a child, selecting for them some children and neglecting other in exchange of a good remuneration. The same have issued confidential information about the children – something that is counter to the protection of those children’s rights. This fact imposed the need for a new accreditation of mediator organizations, cutting in this way the established corrupt practices, the Council on International Adoptions maintains.
“Nervousness appeared also in connection with the fact that the new regulation categorically rules out the preliminary contact of candidate-parents with the children whom they would like to adopt – Margarit Ganev, Deputy Minister of Justice and Chairman of the Council on International Adoptions explains. “This was an occasion to find out that certain heads of specialized institutions continue to have contacts with foreign nationals the way they have done in the days of the previous legislation. Especially with people who have already adopted a Bulgarian child. There are sometimes also cases of non-regulated contacts with orphan children from social homes. The aim is to avoid the existing order in Bulgaria and the requirements of the law. According to the current Family Code acting in Bulgaria, full adoption, which is the type of all international adoptions, should break the links between the adopted child and its original relatives, brothers and sisters included. The only exception can be made for twins.”
The issue of international adoptions in Bulgaria is a very delicate one, especially when concerning kids with some kind of disease. They are often in need of special medical treatment and in some cases these adoptions turn out to be life-saving operations for them. That is why the Ministry of Justice hopes for easier procedures for the adoption of those children especially within the framework of the EU, whose member Bulgaria already is. Talks on the matter in the European Parliament are yet to be conducted.
Written by: Diana Hristakieva
English version: Iva Letnikova |
