China Babies Adoption Research

China Babies Adoption Research
China Babies Adoption Research

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Hundreds of Beijing couples clamouring to adopt orphans

SICHUAN EARTHQUAKE
Peter Simpson
May 21, 2008
South China Morning Post

Adoption hotlines in Beijing were in meltdown from calls made by
couples offering to care for Sichuan's quake orphans, officials said
yesterday.

Ever since adoption hotlines were opened last week, "hundreds of
thousands" of Beijing couples had offered homes to children who lost
relatives, said Wu Shixiong, director of the Beijing Civil Affairs
Bureau.

"Hundreds of calls are being taken daily from families wanting to
help by adopting children from Sichuan. It underscores the sense of
unity over the tragedy," Mr Wu said.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs said yesterday that 70 children had so
far been classed as orphans.

Within hours of the quake, Mr Wu's department began working with the
Sichuan Provincial Civil Affairs Bureau, the Ministry of Civil
Affairs and the China Adoption Centre to ensure there was an
efficient adoption process. Three hotlines were set up - one
specifically for people in the capital who want to adopt.

Mr Wu said applicants would receive forms rapidly and the process of
matching orphans with adopted parents would start soon.

There are fears that the adoption process will prove too slow to cope
with the influx of orphans.

Mr Wu would not confirm whether the adoption laws would be changed,
such as the one-child policy, which strictly governs the size of
families in certain regions.

Under adoption rules passed in 1990 by the National People's
Congress, applicants should not have children. If the law remains,
thousands of couples in the capital could be left disappointed in
seeking to expand their single-child families and provide a home for
one of the bereaved young.

Kate Redman of Save the Children - who arrived in Chengdu last night
to assist with the orphan crisis - urged the authorities and
potential adopters to be patient. "Adopting is not to be taken
lightly and plenty of time is needed to consider all the options and
complications," she said.

The priority was to find children's relatives as many would have
extended families, she said.

The deputy chief for the Ministry of Civil Affairs' welfare
department, Li Bo, said the adoption procedure would be activated
only after "basic order" is restored. He said the work to identify
the children and find their families was ongoing. "We will activate
the procedure as soon as the identification is completed."

Although orphans and other child survivors of the quake are at high
risk of psychological trauma and need special care, they have been
treated in relief camps or wards for adults.

In Mianyang , children without parents were simply left at Jiuzhou
Stadium to live with the 40,000 other victims in soiled tents.

In Chengdu's West China Hospital, the understaffed paediatric
department did not have the resources to counsel children who had
probably been orphaned.

Additional reporting by Chris Zhang, Ng Tze-wei and Fiona Tam in
Beijing



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