When you decide to adopt from another country, you understand that there are risks involved. Maybe the scariest is our absolute lack of control over another nation's government. At a moment's notice, they can act (or not act) as they see fit.
Yesterday, I found this tidbit online:
Adoption Alert
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Office of Children’s Issues
May 13, 2009
Adoptions of Abandoned Children Halted by Ethiopian Court
The Ethiopian First Instance Court has temporarily stopped accepting cases involving abandoned children from orphanages in Addis Ababa , citing concern over a recent increase in the number of abandoned children being brought for adoption. The number of abandoned children from orphanages in Addis Ababa has grown dramatically in recent months and Ethiopian authorities have become aware of possible cases of unethical practices associated with some of them.Currently neither MOWA nor the First Instance Court are accepting any abandonment case from any orphanages in Addis Ababa pending an inquiry. Please continue to monitor adoption.state.gov for updated information on Ethiopia .
My heart dropped to its knees when I read this... a hundred thoughts flooded my mind. I prayed that those children were not unethically obtained by the orphanages. One of the reasons we chose Ethiopia was the sincere need for adoptive parents and the lack of corruption in the system.
Then I worried about our own adoption. "Inquiries" and "investigations" sounded like they could take months... or years. What would happen if everything was put on hold for years? We don't want to switch countries - we still believe our baby is in Ethiopia. Would we just wait and update our paperwork when the time was ready?
I emailed our case manager, who responded very quickly with possibly the most reassuring email I had ever read. The orphanages CWA works with are not affected by this court closure. She also shed some light on the situation - allegedly, one police officer submitted paperwork for 16 abandonment cases in one day. Until they can figure out if he was just catching up on his paperwork (or if this points to illegal practices) the orphanages in question were put on hold.
We are relieved, but are praying this gets resolved quickly. There are parents around the world who already have accepted referrals and now will be waiting indefinitely for the process to continue. And in the event that there IS something unethical happening, I worry that the entire system would be shut down for investigation. Guatemala has been shut down for nearly a year.
God remains in control of our adoption, and we believe he has been there every step of the way, guiding each and every move we've made. There is comfort in believing that if our worst fears are realized, God is still at the helm, weaving our family together through his divine timing and wisdom. He still knows better.
2 comments:
My heart sank when I read the first part...but your words of reassurance and explanation cleared it right up! WHEW!!!!!
Hi! We have a mutual friend (Carrie B.) who told me about your blog. My husband and I are also adopting from Ethiopia. We're currently waiting for our CIS approval letter to come in the mail.
I met a family in South Carolina a couple weeks ago, when I was there on vacation, who adopted 2 beautiful children from Ethiopia through Christian World Adoption. Fun to see that you are using that agency, as well!
I hope and pray that you'll soon have your little one in your arms!
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