Maura,

I totally agree with the letter and it's purpose.
I also understand the plight of those cases in transition (March 5-June 30th). However, I think the letter should be expanded to include ALL current and future Guatemalan adoptions and not be limited to just those currently "stuck" in the transitional period. My husband and I were paper ready for an assignment on March 17th yet your agency declined to make any assignments at that time. They were VERY conservative in their approach and wanted to "wait it out" to see what happened. Well, hindsight being 20/20 we should have had a viable assignment, which would have fallen within the March 5 - June 30th cutoff, but are now REALLY behind the 8 ball: we have NO formalized assignment. We have a 4 year old son whom we adopted from Guatemala in 1999 and desperately want to bring more children home. We're in our mid-forties and other countries have closed their doors to us.

I ask you to please consider all of us "out there" who for one reason or another missed the June 30th cutoff but still desperately want to adopt from Guatemala. I'd like to see the letter stress how the US Embassy's actions not only are legitimizing the existence of the CA but are acting against US citizens wanting to adopt from Guatemala. We should stress to our governmental agencies how we should not be held hostage by the Hague Treaty of which we are not party to yet.

I think by focusing on those transitional cases (March 5th- June 30th) we are forgetting about all the other families who's dreams have been cut short by all of this. Therefore, I request that we send an ammended letter reflecting ALL of our interests and concerns.

Thank you,
Denise Burne Fein
Moorestown, NJ

I have to agree with Denise. There are so many children and families waiting for adoption and many of them are past the June 30th date. ALL families should be included and be part of the advocating for what is right. I will be amending my letter to reflect this important point.
Thank You and good luck to all families!

Diana Huffman
Minneapolis, MN

Hi Denise,
I completely understand your points - and your concern. Please be assured that the ultimate goal of this campaign (the whole big picture - including DOS, BCIS, congress, UNICEF, etc) is to try to keep Guatemalan adoptions open and viable for U.S. families. We aren't trying just to get the transition cases through. Our goal is that, by getting people to keep the children of Guatemala in mind (rather than concentrating on adoptive families), we'll be able to affect a more open adoption procedure than that proposed by the Central Authority (which we believe is illegal). We are hoping, that by lobbying the DOS to assert third party status, it will provide an opportunity for more Guatemalan children to be matched with U.S. families - at least until the U.S. enters into the Hague (expected 2005).

My initial response to your comment, however, is that this particular letter is designed for one particular aim - to get the BCIS back to work on DNA authorizations and approvals. Since the DOS has indicated that they will fight for all cases where a formal match was made between a U.S. adoptive family and Guatemalan child before July 1, 2003, those are the cases that the BCIS should absolutely be working with. New referrals, however, throw a bit more of a curve into the request. Then we are asking the BCIS to continue to work on cases that the Central Authority has said are not legitimate (and will not be finalized in Guatemala) and that the DOS has indicated it will not, at least right now, fight for. Even though we are stating in other letters that the U.S. should not be dealing with the Central Authority for adoptions, my first reaction is that the US DOS has to assert third party status before we can reasonably ask the BCIS to continue to work on post-July 1 cases at this point. But, maybe I am wrong.

You are, of course, encouraged to send any letter that you feel best expresses your views. The main point is to be sending letters! I think that you will find that the other letters we have submitted to this site (addressed to the DOS) probably better address your points. This is because the DOS may be able to do something about maintaining a viable adoption program with Guatemala, while that is outside of the purview of the BCIS (target of this letter).

I will forward your concerns to my coauthors on this campaign to ask their opinions. I certainly would be willing to rewrite sections of the letter to ask that all cases presented by attorneys representing US citizens continue to be processed by the BCIS. We might have to broaden the disclaimer to fit these cases - because right now the post-July 1 have more at stake than simply paying for a repeat of the DNA tests.

Thanks for your thoughts. I'll get back to this probably tomorrow night.
Maura

Maura,

We haven't had access to the DOS statement stating that they are fighting for all "formal matches" made before June 30. When you say formal match are you referring to those of us who accepted a referral during the month of June, or those whose POA was registered before the end of June? We would greatly appreciate your response.

Teri & Curtis

OK, so I've talked about the issue of including the post-July 1 referral cases in this letter with the other authors. At this point, we all agree that, although there is certainly a fight that we intend to engage for the children who were not fortunate enough to have a pre-July 1 referral, this letter is not the venue. The letter to the DOS certainly is. You will also see (hopefully this week, but at least soon) a campaign starting to provide UNICEF supporters with information on the UNICEF position against intercountry adoption. Since the adoption bill that is currently facing the Guatemalan Congress is UNICEF-supported (and does not rely on the Hague being in place) we think this is one of the stronger places to lobby to keep all adoptions from Guatemala as open as possible. If the DOS asserts third party status in relation to the Hague Convention and the new "Valladares" adoption laws are not passed by the Guatemalan Congress, then the BCIS will have to continue processing all adoption cases that are recognized as legal. However, that lobbying has to start at other places. It's first essential that the adoptions are recognized as legal before we can ask the BCIS to process them. And, unfortunately, for the moment post-July 1 referrals by private attorneys or agencies are simply not considered legal. So, it's essential to lobby about the legality issue first in order for this to work with the BCIS.
I hope this explains the position without upsetting those waiting for a referral. I truly believe that adoptions of Guatemalan children by U.S. families can continue - we've just got to apply pressure at the right places.
Sincerely, Maura

Hi Maura,

I have sent the DNA letter to those listed and my 2 senators and 2 representatives...I wasn't sure if you are keeping track of these as you were in the past, so I thought I would let you know. If you want the details of who I sent it to, please let me know by either posting here in comments or to me personally. I don't have your personal e-mail address any longer so I could not send privately!

Thank you to you and the whole group who has worked so hard on this issue!

Susan Penn
pennsb@nycap.rr.com

Hi!
I've Faxed BCIs and the mass senators - Kennedy and Kerry

We just got a letter back from BCIS today, saying that they received our fax and they "assure" us of their "concern". The news was not good - they do not intend to resume DNA testing and certification, as they presume it will be "duplicative" and "very costly to adoptive parents". They argue their decisions are in our best interest. I am not sure if and how I should keep pushing in the argument of what is "our best interest". Our baby was referred to us April 1 and DNA testing has been completed by LabCorp but probably is not "certified".

Renee Reilly
Chicago, IL

We got our referral in March (unfortunately we
didn't get the POA in until after the 5th), and
got DNA test results (from Orchid Genescreen in
the U.S.) in May. I was under the impression
that this was done under U.S. procedures, and
thus is unaffected by this latest change. Am I
wrong? Do we now have to petition the BCIS on
our own behalf? (In addition to any letters we
write expressing our dismay at the change as it
affects others.)

Jay Banks

Renee and Jay,
I've tried to get a better understanding of the terminology that Joseph Cuddihy used in the response letter from the BCIS. In that letter he states "Because of the uncertainty surrounding the Central Authorities' processing of these cases, the BCIS office located in the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala has temporarily discontinued certain adoption requrements for which we may no longer be responsible in the future. This includes DNA testing and certification of results. These activities may become the sole responsibility of the Guatemalan Central Authority...Any DNA testing requirement overseen by BCIS at this time would then become duplicative and very costly to adoptive parents. Until the Central Authority issues clear adoption procedures, we determined it would be in the best interest of adoptive parents to temporarily discontinue the DNA testing and certification."

I knew what the DNA testing was (obviously), but wasn't sure about what was meant by "certification." I have contacted several adoption professionals and have been given the same answer - they aren't exactly sure what it means, but they are almost certain this doesn't mean visa pre-approval.

Therefore, if you have already had a DNA test that has been authorized by the U.S. Embassy, the current information is that your case will progress through visa pre-approval as usual. It is those who are stuck without the DNA authorization that are personally involved in this situation. However, we hope that everyone will join in writing letters to get this resolved - because the BCIS is further legitimizing the Central Authority by its actions.
Hope this helps, Maura

Hello folks,
My husband and I successfully adopted privately from Guatemala in 2000 and were hoping to do the same this year. It appears the laws have changed once again, I am trying to understand the reasoning behind the delays in adoptions presently. Can someone tell me,is Guatemala allowing new adoptions to take place? Most of my paperwork is completed, but I do not have a baby yet.

In relation to DNA testing, just wanted to let everyone know that it appears the Embassy is taking some action. Our daughter's test results went to the Embassy a little over a month ago, through a US lab, and the Embassy "released" or "certified" her results on or around last Friday, which I understand means we can now proceed to the great PGN/CA abyss. Trying to give other folks hope that the process seems to be proceeding, albeit at a snail's pace.

Hi Lisa,
What you are referring to is visa pre-approval. That has been going on "as normal" with perhaps a little delay. The problem is that the US Embassy is not authorizing new DNA tests to be conducted. Yours must have been authorized prior to the shut-down on July 1. There are still families that can't make it to the abyss of PGN because they don't have any DNA results - and the case cannot be submitted to PGN without them.
Maura