Romania's New Adoption Laws

No, I do not support Romania's ban on foreign adoptions. My son is from Romania so I have come to love the country and its people. And I would support all reasonable efforts to improve the system. However, I cannot support new legislation that will hurt the children of Romania. Anyone who believes that children are better off in an institution or foster care than being in a home with a forever family is an idiot. And the fact that one woman can blackmail a country into passing this type of legislation is incredible. I not only cry for the children in Romania but I am so afraid for the children in other countries who will be trying to join the EU -- Sandy Axley

No, I do not support this ban. Of course Emma Nicholson is delighted - the media "bought" her lies as she told of adoptive parents using their adopted children as organ donors, that we are sexually trafficking our children, and that we buy them off the internet for $50,000. Sadly no one has published the truth - that a few impoverished adults sell their kidneys for money, that sexual trafficking of children does exist but is not done by adoptive parents, and that yes, adoption agencies do have websites on their agencies but you cannot "buy" a child on the internet - you must go through social worker interviews, immigration approval, submission of your tax records and proof of employment, and in the United States - fingerprint checks by the FBI and state and local police. This woman will have to answer to God for the damage she has done to the voiceless children of Romania -- Linda Robak

The law in its present form creates discrimination against Romanians living abroad, and hence is un-constitutional. There is a double standard which the Law promotes (Art.39), giving rights to Romanian citizens living in Romania to adopt through an internal adoption process, but prohibiting Romanians that live abroad to adopt. We have written a letter to the Romanian President Ion Iliescu not to sign such a Law -- Florin Rapan, President of Alliance of Romanian Canadians, Canada

I absolutely do not agree with this ban. As an adoptive mother of a Romanian child with extreme delays in all areas because of her time spent in institutions, I have seen first hand what a difference a loving, permanent family can make in the lives of such children. Romania needs to stop the corruption but not legitimate adoptions. My heart weeps for those children who sit and wait with their hopes of ever overcoming post-institutional problems tragically diminishing with each passing day -- J. Cooper

My wife and I have been trying to adopt two children from Bucharest for nearly four years, and we had submitted all our paperwork before the moratorium began. When we were finally assigned our two children at the beginning of 2003, we eagerly prepared ourselves and the children by traveling to Bucharest four times within a year to get to know them and be a part of their early lives. Unfortunately, the moratorium continued with few exceptions, and we were not able to adopt these children despite our best efforts. Now, it seems nearly all hope is lost. We're well aware of the plight of so many of these children, having become well-informed on the situation of the abandoned children of Romania. In their zeal for Romania to join the European Union, officials in Romania and the EU have sacrificed the best interests of these poor children. Politics and misinformation have won over the weak and helpless. A prime source of falsehoods and slander comes straight from the Baroness Nicholson, who has repeatedly described us hopeful adoptive parents as less than human and unfit for even domestic adoptions in our own countries; and this in spite of the rigorous backgrounds checks and counseling we must undergo before we can even be considered eligible and able for adoption. This ban on international adoptions is a sin and a travesty of human rights. Romania is in for a rude awakening in the coming years as the number of abandoned children mushrooms, and society crumbles as a result of another lost generation -- Thomas H. Haar