Two follow up articles from our angel reporter Laurie Rich of Eurasianet
http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insightb/articles/eav092309b.shtml
Thursday, October 8, 2009
EURASIA INSIGHT
KYRGYZSTAN: US AND KYRGYZ LEGISLATORS SEEK WAY TO END ADOPTION DELAY
Laurie Rich 9/23/09
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The 65 American families whose adoptions of Kyrgyz orphans have been stalled for more than a year are picking up political support in both the United States and Kyrgyzstan, as they hope to bring their ordeal to a quick conclusion.
US legislators became active on September 18 in trying to broker a solution. Eleven members of the US Congress sent a letter that day to the Kyrgyz Embassy in Washington, DC, requesting a meeting with Prime Minister Igor Chudinov during his stay in the United States in connection with the UN General Assembly. An embassy spokesperson said on September 22 that the congressional request was under consideration.
The catalyst for congressional involvement was US Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN). Other signatories of the letter included; Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS); Mark Kirk (R-IL); Maurice Hinchey (D-NY); Gerald Connolly (D-VA); Roy Blunt (R-MO); Tom Price (R-GA), K. Michael Conaway (R-TX); John Salazar (D-CO); John Linder (R-GA); and Jason Chaffetz (R-UT).
"As a former foster mother to 23 children, I experienced first-hand the importance of every child being placed in a stable and loving family," Bachmann said in an email interview with EurasiaNet. She is familiar with the issue both because she has a constituent who is affected by the moratorium, and is a member of a Congressional group on adoption. "In this case, 65 children have been blessed with families who want to provide this wonderful experience, and it is imperative that they are united as soon as possible."
Chudinov placed an official moratorium on international adoptions last February to restructure the nation’s system and investigate alleged corruption, though the processing of adoptions had effectively been frozen six months before that date. Since then, the 65 American families have been caught in a state of limbo. They had already been matched with - and, in many instances, had already met - adoptees during in the summer of 2008. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].
In early September the US State Department said that there is no known timeframe for when the new Kyrgyz adoption regulatory framework will be submitted for parliamentary consideration. US diplomats noted, however, that a special court ruling would be sufficient to enable pending adoptions to be completed. These days, adoptive parents’ anxieties are compounded by the special needs of many of the children, who, according to the families, could benefit from early medical intervention.
On September 17, Kyrgyz MP Damira Niazalieva raised the issue during a session of parliament, citing the waiting orphans’ special needs. She called for the rapid completion of pending adoptions by Americans, according to the Kyrgyz News outlet 24.kg.
"They suffer from very serious diseases: hydrocephalus, cleft palate, cerebral palsy. Operating on these children requires a lot of money, which is lacking in Kyrgyzstan. That is why these children should be joined as soon as possible with new parents who can pay for their operations," 24.kg quoted Niazalieva as saying.
Editor's Note: Laurie Rich is a EurasiaNet staff writer.
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http://www.eurasianet.org/departments/insightb/articles/eav100709a.shtml
Thursday, October 8, 2009
EURASIA INSIGHT
KYRGYZSTAN: PRIME MINISTER CHUDINOV PLEDGES ACTION ON STALLED ADOPTIONS
Laurie Rich 10/07/09
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Kyrgyz Prime Minister Igor Chudinov has promised US legislators that he will urge his country’s parliament to expedite the adoptions of 65 Kyrgyz orphans by American families.
The 65 cases have been held up for more than a year amid a Kyrgyz government effort to overhall the legislative framework covering foreign adoptions. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. Chudinov met with US Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Bob Casey (D-PA) in late September in Washington to discuss the pending adoptions. The Kyrgyz prime minister was receptive to the legislators’ requests that the cases be processed, according to the offices of both senators.
"It is my hope and belief the Prime Minister will work to grandfather in these adoption cases and the families in the United States will be able to proceed with their adoptions," Brownback said in an e-mailed statement to EurasiaNet. "I thank the PM for his willingness to work with us, and I stand ready to help as the process continues."
Chudinov told the senators that upon returning to Kyrgyzstan, he would meet with the members of the Kyrgyz parliamentary committee that is in charge of overhauling adoption procedures. Chudinov pledged that he would tell committee members that there is no need to keep holding up these 65 cases, senator Brownback’s office reported.
The Kyrgyz prime minister also agreed to put this pledge in writing, although Senator Brownback’s office had not received any documents regarding this as of October 5. The senators said they would follow up on the status in the next few weeks.
Chudinov introduced a moratorium on international adoption in Kyrgyzstan last February, amid allegations of corruption in the system. The Kyrgyz parliament has been working since then to draft new regulations, providing no timeframe for the completion of the process. In-country UNICEF officers who are working with the government on the issue said on October 6 that the legislation and amendments are finished and are under review by different ministries. As soon as the ministries sign off on the amendments, officials promise to allow for public debate on the proposed changes. Only after ample time for public discussion will the legislation be submitted to parliament. That process could take another six months, according to UNICEF.
Caught in between the old laws and the new are the 65 US families whose adoptions were nearly complete when the system entered into its holding pattern. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. Senators Brownback and Casey both have constituents whose pending adoptions remain stalled. Brownback has four families waiting in Kansas, while Casey has five in Pennsylvania. Brownback has taken a particular interest in the case. The senator is the father of two children adopted internationally. "I know how difficult it is to wait to bring home your child," he said.
Before meeting with Brownback and Casey, Chudinov briefly spoke with two of the families enduring stalled adoptions. They told the prime minister about the little girl they were each waiting to bring back with them to the United States and showed him photos. The two families said Chudinov was courteous and offered assurances that he expected a swift resolution to the pending cases. "I was touched ... by his sincerity," one prospective parent said. "It gave me renewed hope that the wait will not be much longer."
Shannon Fenske, a Wisconsin woman who was matched with a little girl with a severe cleft palate in July of 2008, heard about the meetings and feels that real progress is finally being made.
"The fact that the prime minister was so generous with his time and talked with the senators and agreed to go back and address the issue, I have great faith that he will keep his word and do that," Fenske said.
A quick resolution is especially important for the child Fenske and her husband are in the process of adopting because of her cleft palate. As she ages, surgeries become more difficult and offer a diminished chance of success. The family originally thought they would be able to bring the girl to the United States at about four to five months in age and met with surgeons to plan the child’s operations. At that point, according to Fenske, the child would have needed three to four surgeries right away, and five to eight in her teen years. At 14 months the child is now looking at five to seven surgeries to start off, and many later on, Fenske said.
"She has a brightness about her, she still smiles," Fenske said in an early September interview about the pictures she’d recently seen of the girl. "But she’s 14 months old now and we have a very, very long road ahead if we’re allowed to adopt her."
Editor's Note: Laurie Rich is a EurasiaNet staff writer.
He's so cute. But I guess I am biased. Today was my first full day with him. He is going to be fun. He visited me twice for a few moments while I was in the hospital, then today he had his first outing. He attended a football game.
He had some of the kids wrapped around his little paws! My nephew plays football for the Junior High team of my old alma mater. So very cool. The Mifflin beat Muhlenberg this afternoon. Go Stangs!
