How do you know for sure your adopted child wasn't kidnapped?

Question

I saw this story today and it really freaked me out:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/11/AR2006031100942.html

I saw a documentary about El Salvador about a week ago about kids being kidnapped there for adoption, too.

Are kids really getting kidnapped to be adopted? How can anyone be sure that the child they adopt from a foreign country wasn't kidnapped?

Answer 1

Why did raw get 99999999 thumbs down??? She basically said  what the person you all gave 7 d**n thumbs up said only she also added another important aspect here. Why did Dateline specifically pick that Country?? It DOES go on in ALOT of countries. IF i was her that would tick me off too! So thumbs down to you for her being honest and you judging her like that!

And she was also quite frank by saying what i totally agree on. It is LAZY just like a "normal" person who pops out a child without thinking when you don't take the time to really do the RESEARCH as the PERSON WHO GOT A BILLION THUMBS UP EVEN SAID, on the kid you are adopting from another country. I mean look at Madonna! She just rushed right in there thinking her money was going to buy that kid as far as i am concerned and my God does she even have him yet? NO. She had no clue what she was getting into. She just figured she was going to Waltz right into that country cause she saw this boy, spent time with him and fell in love with him and so that meant she could buy him.

IT is relatively the same thing with people who can have natural child birth.

LET'S HAVE A BABY!! But gee we don't even have the money nor do we know about the time it involves or the care attention etc.. etc.. etc..!! And you know i speak the Truth!! Don't believe me? Why don't you see how many kids in OUR OWN d**n country are in poverty and homeless for a start orr google about the child s*x trade going on right here folks!

IN other words you don't think OUR OWN kids are disappearing and being kidnapped??

TAke a look around and WAKE UP! And quit thumbing down the people who are telling you the truth!

I bet i get my question removed in one minute!

To answer your question? You never know anything that is the RISK you take when you sign the dotted line and why adoption is sooo scary but so is having a kid! Wait until they are teenagers.. oh!!

Answer 2

that is one of many reasons we choose not to adopt internationally.  we adopted domestically.  and i'm positive my child wasn't kidnapped.  I'm sure her other mother might have mentioned it in the 5 times we've talked  this week.

Answer 3

Yes, children are being kidnapped to be adopted. Sometimes the children are stolen, sometimes the mothers are lied to, sometimes the family sells a child. Of course, there are lots of children truly in need of homes as well.  People who do international adoption have a responsibility to really research the country, their agency, and how the children come into care.

How I know my children were not kidnapped?

With our first adoption, from Asia, we worked with someone who felt strongly about ethical adoption. She knew we'd only take a referral where the birth mother was identified.  We had dna testing done to verify that this woman really was our son's mom (in case the agency was lying to us). We then had someone not affiliated with adoption, native to that country, visit with our son's mom & check that the story we were told was true.  We have remained in touch with her for years now.

For our second adoption, we chose Ethiopia because our agency arranged for us to meet our children's first family. We also had requested older children, because they could tell us their story and confirm that what we were told was true.

Answer 4

Yes, and here is another - recent - story about children being unlawfully taken from Kenya.

http://www.pr-inside.com/africa-adoption...

I've seen some pretty horrendous stories from Asia also; women so desperate for a bag of rice to feed their family giving their children over to orphanage "care" in exchange, and not realizing that their children would be gone forever. But would a PAP think of sending 10 bucks to the family if it would keep them together? Anyone can claim "ignorance" all they want, but when it comes to adoption only one side can seem to claim ignorance and get away with it. Ever hear of an AP say, "our birthmother" was ignorant of what she was doing? No. All of the "birthmothers" are always so well informed, (besides being courageous and brave). Right.

I don't understand how people can involve themselves with adoptions when they have no way of even communicating with officials/orphanage reps, but it takes the same kind of mindset as what we have here in the US with domestic infant adoptions. People don't know/don't want to know - they just know what they want. Sad.

Answer 5

Because his biological mother placed him in my arms.  I know she was his biological mother because I watched him being born.

Answer 6

because she is my neice:)

Answer 7

When you have an open adoption, you know for sure your child isn't kidnapped.

Answer 8

Because I am adopting through our Children's Aid Society, and the parental rights have been terminanted.

Answer 9

heyyy dont bash el salvador.

hella foreign countries do that.

im sure kids are being kidnapped to get put into "slaves" in other countries.

especially blonde american kids.

cause those are rare in other countries so theyre seen as "better slave" fitting.

the person can check the papers to see where the kid came from.

people who have kids who have been kidnapped were just lazy or not picky enough when chosing a child.

you need to be so picky and on everyones *** about where the kid came from.

wow thanks everyone for giving me thumbs down. haha, too bad its totally true every little thing i said.

Answer 10

why dont u adopt from here? alot of people are quick to adopt from a foreign country cause they're less privileged but what about from here???

Answer 11

We did a lot of research before choosing our adoption agency.  In Ethiopia, before you take your child home, you must travel to meet the first family.  My husband traveled 5 hrs with a translator to their village and he was able to spend the day with them.  He was able to meet the First Father, sisters, Grandfather, Uncles, Aunts and cousins, it was a life changing experience for my husband.  They were all so kind and gracious as they welcomed us into their family.

Babies being stolen or kidnapped to be placed for adoption is horrible.  In regions where this is happening, all adoptions should be stopped.

Answer 12

it's constant in some countries.  it was on dateline recently, too.

sick, isn't it?  but hey, so is buying a child.

call is what it is:  HUMAN TRAFFICKING.

Answer 13

Mine are from the US and I have court records and birth certificate that prove their where abouts for their lifetime.

Answer 14

i just keep checking the milk cartons for their pics

I watched Taboo last night on the National Geogrpahic Channell; if twins are born, one is thrown into the river or left in the bush to die and the same rings true for children born out of wedlock or with some kind of unwanted physical characteristic.

Answer 15

I can only speak about Guatemalan adoptions because that's where I adopted my son from.  I've heard stories about baby stealing going on there as well as the other places you've mentioned.  

My son had a DNA test done with his birthmother who personally appeared with him.  The DNA test matched.  His birthmother had to show up 4 times, and sign documents that she wanted to proceed with her adoption plan for her son.  (Initial meeting with adoption personnel,meeting with Guatemalan social worker, signing court paperwork as well- in addition to agreeing to the DNA test to allow the adoption to proceed.)  At any point she could have said no.  She could have also gone to the police.  The police could obtain records to see what foster family he was in...  and that would be that.  

In Guatemala there is a way to adopt a child when you don't know who the parents are, that is called relinquishment.  I'm not sure of that process because it doesn't relate to my son's situation...  but I think there are gaps in that process where it  a kidnapped child could be placed for adoption.  Informed adoptive parents know this and scrutinize every aspect of their process.  Why in the world would adoptive parents want a stolen child when there are so many legally adoptable children in the world???  The answer is that they DON'T want a stolen child.    

The good news is that Guatemala is revamping their adoption system and hopefully, it will change for the better.  The family-less children- AND relinquished children- do deserve a fair chance at life though.  The streets of Guatemala can be deadly for those children:

http://www.tulane.edu/~rouxbee/kids04/gu...

http://studentweb.tulane.edu/%7Emmcclosk...

http://www.denfert.com/rapetou/article.p...

http://pangaea.org/street_children/latin...

http://www.toyboxcharity.org.uk/street_c...

Where are the street children's parents and why aren't they helping them?

Answer 16

In our overseas adoption we met our children's birthmother and our children were old enough to identify that yes, she was their birthmother.  We were able to ensure that she understood this adoption was permanent, that she agreed to it as it was the best thing for her children and she did not feel she could care for them.  We also had notorized court documentation that govt appointed social workers did a thorough investigation showing the same thing that our children's birthmother told us in person: that she understood the adoption was permanent and she chose to relinquish her children to be adopted by Americans.  Yes, I do realize documents can be forged, but everything was very complete and thorough, far more detailed than what I would have expected.  

Since then, the US consulate in the country we adopted from is requiring DNA tests.  That country has also had orphanages refusing to return children that were found/relinquished in the 14 year civil war, back to their birthfamilies after the hostilities ended.  By keeping the numbers high in the orphanage, it increased the amount of aid/funding that was received, which foodstuffs is then sold on the black market.  

I won't say that child trafficking in international countries doesn't happen, but there is a process in place that is designed to stop it.  Some countries have very old laws for international adoptions that just aren't meant to deal with today's day and age.  Documentation is often hard to come by, if not impossible.  Many countries don't have birth certificates or death certificates.  In countries with long histories of war, children are often found wandering the streets, parents and other family members may have never been identified among the many dead.  So, you aren't going to find the paper trail that exists in other countries.

It bothers me most when foreigners figure out a way to get around adoption laws in another country.  Madonna comes to mind here, as the country she adopted from required a considerable in-country waiting period, which was circumvented.  Now that simply sets a precedent for the next people who want to adopt (hopefully not for nefarious purposes) and doesn't want to wait in-country for the specified length of time.  If you are going to adopt from another country, that country's laws need to be respected and followed.  The Chad/French situation also comes to mind.  Even though I'm sure these were well meaning people, they broke Chad law and deserved to face the consequences for that.  What they did was arrogance and ignorance in more than half-meaures.

So, my advice to people considering adopting overseas is to research that country's process and research your agency very thoroughly.  If a country typically has only older children available for adoption, but an agency requires a nine month waiting period for a newborn, you should be suspicious.  If a country has rules about travel, waiting periods, adoptive parent requirement, but an agency says they don't have to go through that, be suspicious.  Check with the better business bureau in the state where the agency is located and ask if there has been any complaints.  Earnings reports are available as a matter of public record and if your agency does not want to show them, be suspicious.  As for references, more than one, then check them.  

Use your common sense.  If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Answer 17

I don't know about the adoptions from other countries. But when I adopted my son, I was actually in the delivery room and helped deliver him.  He was with me from the second he was born.