Yesterday, the president of the Guatemalan Congress attempted to push Hague legislation through. Guatemala has been under extreme pressure from US (Department of State), UNICEF and Hague Officials. It was avoided for now, thankfully. The stipulations of the Hague, I believe, are impossible to meet in Guatemala without first being unconstitutional but most critically without the financial resources to support the very children it is "supposed" to protect.
It has taken years for DOS to come up with any sort of implementation plan for the US (and that is about as clear as mud!) Yet somehow Guatemala is supposed to discard their constitution in order to THROW something together to please the Hague Convention and the US before adoptions are effectively shut down to the US.
DOS and the Guatemalan Government need to understand that "INTENT" of a treaty does not protect children....its the IMPLEMENTATION that matters. Countries who have struggled to meet the Hague quickly without adequate resources have FAILED THEIR CHILDREN! I haven't exactly heard DOS speak out against BAD implementations of the Hague such as El Salvador, Costa Rica or Hondoras! That in itself is proof, in my opinion, that they are ONLY interested in establishing a "FEEL GOOD" policy which would severely reduce the number of adoptions and LOWER the State Department's expenses.
Yes, we are strategizing ways to get our voices heard and we will share our ideas shortly. For now, I would like to ask all our parents who are NOT in process and who would like to be involved, to create a mini biography (a couple of paragraphs) of what your child(ren) has/have accomplished and the relationship with your family. We will NOT be using family names or your name. Include pictures that are large enough to see but small enough to fit in the document. Why? Because faces tell a thousand stories and we need to emphasize the importance of the individual child (and the love we reserve just for him/her). We can accept WORD documents or mht (an HTML archive that stores the photo with the document), RTF, or editable PDF. These stories will be bound and presented to officials in Guatemala, the US and wherever we see a need to be heard (or seen;-).
Posted by Kelly at April 28, 2006 02:45 PMKelly-
Thanks for the info. This is the first I have heard of this. Makes me nervous. I would be glad to complete the form for our daughter we previously adopted but I'm hesitant because I'm in process again.
Sarah
Posted by: Sarah at April 28, 2006 04:40 PMSarah - You are welcome to submit a mini-biography of your child who is home AND certainly welcome to comment about your current adoption. No family names will be used in our packages (just to retain a bit of privacy). I did include names on the form just because *I* like to know our readers...but it will not be distributed or revealed to anyone outside of the Guatadopt folks.
I'll try to make that clearer on the form....hopefully, that eases some concerns!
Posted by: Kelly (Guatadopt.com) at April 28, 2006 05:08 PMDumb question...was this Hague Legislation that they attempted to "push through" going to be effective now or in 2007?
Posted by: Jennifer at April 30, 2006 08:56 PMKelly,
Hi there. I just submitted the mini biography on the form. I wanted to be able to add another picture. I added one of our two sons, but wanted to add one of our daugher as well. Is there a way to do this ?? Thank you for any help .
YOu can submit more than one photo by submitting a word document with the photos embedded. Documents are actually easier for us to compile into a "collection" than if you use the form and submit a photo. But we will use all submissions.
We have received some wonderful stories so far and are very grateful to our parents for contributing their time and effort.
We'll also work on some sample letters and such. I really think we need to put the fire under DOS and our own government. If they are going to force an implementation that shuts down hope for thousands of children, they need to answer to the thousands of parents who want to keep adoptions open.
Posted by: Kelly (Guatadopt.com) at May 2, 2006 02:49 AMHave there been any cases out of PGN recently? We have been waiting since February with no news on our case. Thank you.
Posted by: J at May 2, 2006 12:07 PMI'd like to second the question from Jennifer (April 30)... does anyone know when the legislation (if passed) would take effect? We have a referral, but it will be another couple of weeks before our papers are submitted to the court (translation, power of attorney, etc.) and I am worried we will get knocked out before we get in the door...
What's the worst case scenario here?
We are about to begin the process...should we reconsider Guatemala? What is worst case scenario?
Posted by: km at May 2, 2006 08:42 PMThere have been attempts to pass Hague related legislation or UNICEF sponsored legislation in Guatemala since 2003 when implementation of the Hague brought adoptions to a standstill. One of the biggest failures was that there was no real organization on how to implement "the Hague" LONG after the Guatemalan Central Authority (PGN, at the time) was charged to do so!
So the answer is "who knows"? It was very poorly executed in 2003. Those who have historically pushed such restrictive laws have not given the same attention to the wellbeing of the children.
As for our own government (US), DOS has stated rather firmly that they are implementing the Hague. Initially, the implementation plan was the first part of 2007. But they have come back and announced that they want to have certain things in place before mandating compliance.
IMO, the threat is taking it for granted.
As for starting the process, I think those just starting still have a good chance in completing their adoptions. But our disclaimer EVERY DAY of the year is "we do NOT have a crystal ball" and certainly can't estimate effects of a law that has not even passed.
Posted by: Kelly (Guatadopt.com) at May 2, 2006 09:20 PMI would very much appreciate the sample letter you mentioned. I struggle to put my feelings into words sometimes. A sample will give me a place to start.
I am in the process of contacting Sam Brownback, Kansas US Senator. He has an adopted son from Guatemala and this son is on my nephew's t-ball team. I want to see what he knows and what his take is on this issue. I'll let you know if I hear anything.
Posted by: Teri Belin at May 2, 2006 09:29 PMcould we get a posting about PGN lately? I would love to know how things are going?
Posted by: amy at May 3, 2006 12:20 AMI would like to second the question from J. We have had our case in PGN since February with no further word too. We're seriously beginning to wonder if we will be able to bring our son home. Has anything moved out of PGN within the last few months?
Thanks.
p.s. "J", I'm sorry you're going through the same thing we are, but take heart in knowing you're not the only one.
Posted by: kim at May 3, 2006 05:11 PMThank you, kelly for taking time to post and share an update on the current situation with the Hague and guatemala and the U.S.
You know what's really sad? The Guatemalans seem to be able to keep the ratification of the Hague at "bay" and yet the U.S. is moving towards fully implementing the Hague next year?
That makes no sense.
I am with you 100% - if the DOS decides it is going to stop Guatemalan adoptions - there are going to be many parents who are going to be reckoned with. I for one, will do our part and make sure our voices are heard.
I will be happy to compile a word document and photos of our 5 Guatemalan children.
I also will be anxious to hear what is else is coming down the pipe as far as organized strategies. The guat adopt community is waiting and willing to do what it needs to do to help out with this cause.
Again, thanks so much for your time and efforts in keeping us alerted!
Blessings,
Gloria Pickering
mom to 5 Guatemalan blessings
I would like more information on how ratifying the Hague Convention is slowing down adoptions in Guatemala. Would anyone have time to discuss this with me. I am working with Mozambique and they are ready to ratify the Hague so I would like to understand what you see the problems are with this.
Sharon Slater
480 507-2664
Thanks for all your hard work in keeping us informed! I have passed this information on to my local agency's message board. I hope we can help make a difference.
Erin
Posted by: Erin Wolters at May 8, 2006 01:32 PMMy file has been at the PGN since early March. I was "promised" by the local attornee that it would be out by mid May. The other files I know about are also stuck.
Does anyone know anything useful?
Posted by: Naomi at May 24, 2006 12:32 PMNaomi,
Please read some of the comment I posted today on the PGN-Still Not Moving comments section concerning the PGN cases exiting last week.
Prayers be with you, as you await final PGN approval,
Cheri
Posted by: Cheri at June 6, 2006 11:37 AM