guilt and conflicting feelings

So I know I'm not alone out there - but sometimes us mom's or mom's to be feel guilty. right now - I feel guilty because I'm taking a vacation day tomorrow.  The guilt is that I should be saving every single hour of vacation for our adoption.  However, I don't want to neglect the child I have at home.  I feel guilty that I feel guilty.  Then I worry an am conflicted because I don't know when we'll even get a referral let alone be able to travel.  It sounds like things will take longer - but for good reasons - but  I keep having my dreams of our "boy" - its amazing.

Regardless I chose to spend some quality time with Nate on his field trip tomorrow - and took a vacation day.  so I'm skipping a training at work and always worry because of the way things are it can be used against me when they start any new rounds of layoff's - which many anticipate before the end of summer.  but I will have an enjoyable day - gong to my first robotics competition.  I guess some former students of his school and his teacher are now in high school and in the competition!  I wish they had this when I was growing up - I would have loved it - they may have but not much for the girls.  Or maybe I didn't want many people to know what a geek I truly am.  Heck - I never did get that science kit from Santa after asking year after year.  Heck - I went into chemistry for my undergrad!

anyhow - i will enjoy my day.  And to top if off - we used Groupon a few months ago to get tickets to see the Detroit Pistons - yes my favorite bball team!  Best yet - they are retiring my FAVORITE PLAYERS # tomorrow - Dennis Rodman!  Yeah - I never denied I'm crazy - he's crazy - goofy - a jerk (my coworker had other choice words - I won't type them here) - but NO ONE can deny he was one of the best players - specifically his rebounding and defense!  so many of the former "bad boys" will be there tomorrow night!  I can't wait.  It will be fun and nice - I hope we can maybe do some pictures or autographs!  yeah.

so - my guilt is fading - and my conflicting feels as well - but we love our kids - and I'll have fun with the one I do have!  He even told the teacher i was driving before we told her - and it may work out as one family I think was driving - their van died on the way to school this morning!  so it probably all worked out -hopefully I can post pictures.

have a blessed night.
Gail

No news - guess that means its good?

No news - not much on the referral scene - have heard two families received referrals for little girls - but that's it.  I know they were waiting for 12 kids to be ready to refer out - so maybe others received referrals and didn't post - which is totally fine.  I'm not sure I could contain myself, but then again I think its a lot to take in and maybe will want to share only with select people for a day or so.

Not much news on the Ethiopian government stuff either.  USCIS has some meeting or call on 4/6 - so that's next week.  I think individuals could possibly call in - but its a LONG 3-4 hour meeting.  I'm sure the agency will be involved in that call so we'll just have to wait for notes or an update on all that.

Just waiting and trying to stay focused and keeping the prayers going.

We did get an interesting email from a friend Friday for an urgent prayer request - guess her friend was contemplating an abortion.  Her husband left her when he found out she was expecting.  How sad - I"m truly blessed to have Craig and my husband.  Anyhow - we've been praying she has the baby and at least gives it up for adoption.  We already said we'd adopt the child.  But I know so many others that would be willing to do the same - so my friend knows that.  I know there are a few others at our church alone in the adoption process. So this woman has options.  So please keep her in your prayers, she still has time to make the "choice" - and still considering her options.

I am just enjoying life with my little guy - he's a hoot - he's a blessing as well. And continuing to dream about our future child and all that we will do to change our lives!  I can't wait.  I should be reading more books, but I haven't  - I need to.

Ok - enough - a pretty boring update - but wanted to just share.
Gail

ET Christians home's burnt

Ok - if the link above doesn't work - here it is again:
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/03/24/thousands-christians-displaced-ethiopia-muslim-extremists-torch-churches-homes-2057387870/

anyhow - Christians in ET are being threatened and homes burnt just because they believe in God!  How sad - please say prayers the extremists are brought to justice and realize they just can't do this. Hopefully the government will continue be able to stop all this madness.

I can't imagine  -if you read the story - waking up to a note on my front door saying my family must move, die r convert to Islam! Just crazy-

I believe that everyone has a choice to believe in their own beliefs and chose the religion that they want - its nice to be American.  I guess I'll pray that our next child is from a Christian family - b ut even if not - they will know the Lord and our lives will be blessed.

Gail

REFERRALS COMING OUT

Great news - I heard that two families from our agency were introduced via email/video - you name it their beautiful little girls on Friday.   I know the agency had about 12 kids ready for referrals and suddenly they are coming out!  So that leaves another 10 kids out of the 12 - yeah!

granted we were #20 on the list - so now we're up to #18 - yeah!  I'll take it.  I'm just thankful that the kids are gettng their forever families - no the families as well are becoming COMPLETE!  Its not just the kids - but also the families get their forever child as well.

Yeah for them.  and to just know - they were both little girls - its wonderful.

Please keep Gabe and many others in your prayers this week.

God Bless
Gail

Baby Gabe's Latest Update from Rebekah

This note was posted today to Baby Gabe's Journal:

I've been waiting for that quiet moment where I can write an update but so far that hasn't happened.  Gabe is in the hospital right now with a nasty virus and high fever.  We are scheduled to leave for Chicago tomorrow and are hoping at this point he will be released in time to go there and meet with a neurosurgeon and a hematologist.  His brain surgery has been rescheduled for April 18th.  So, as I'm sure you can see we have had some obstacles in our way.  Some of you may remember the very similiar situation the last trip to Chicago.   Just pray...

Happy, Sunny Saturday with Nate

Ok - trying to have more positives out here and just random - NON government or agency posts.  Granted I do have a tidbit - but figured save that for the end.

So just a random day - hanging with my beautiful son Nate!  AKA my miracle child by birth.  No idea if I ever posted about that - but he was!  took LOTS and LOTS and even more fertility drugs and shots to have him.  The month it finally worked was the month the specialists called to "talk about IVF or adoption" - well I was pg! So that day was November 2003 - my little man turns 7 this summer.  You can look at the archives and find the positives way back when.  The blog started under a sad note when my mom died. But today I FEEL her around me.  Maybe because I had dreams she was hanging with Nate and I last night!  Oh - if only - but she is here in spirit.  She held Nate in heaven to keep him safe for 17 days before he arrived!

So yeah - where's the happy - yeah just spending time with my little man!  And looking forward to adding another.  Woke up WAY to early - around 6 am and took Nate to see Dr. Kaz to have his 6 year molars sealed!  What joy.  HE was a trooper.  Then off to Kohl's to spend my bday $ - bought me some new shoes!  Yeah.  Then signed up for soccer, off to JC Penny to find Nate some new jeans and lunch!  took a little snooze and now time to write this - yeah I know still boring.

But its Saturday in the Detroit area, its sunny!  And sorta warm - spring is coming.  I saw a red robin the other day  and its a huge sign for spring.  I'm starting to hear the birds chirping in the early morning - just love it!  Tomorrow I'm seeing a dear friend and then spending time with my brother and Stacey - should be fun.

Just a day to rejoice and be happy to be alive and know that God's taking care of us - he brought us Nate and he'll bring us child #2.  I saw this family in the mall today,  a white mom and a little black boy.  I don't know the proper way to say it - but its beautiful.  It makes me think that will be us someday soon.  And the one tidbit - I saw it on a yahoo group that another agency posted so I do not know if its true - but MOWA did 25 cases yesterday!  Way up from 5!  I'll take it.

If you can go out side and enjoy the sunshine and look for the giant moon today!  I sure can't wait!
Happy random Saturday

More updates on changes - found from yahoo groups

Post copied from a yahoo group I'm in- I do not know what agency this family is working with. Anyhow - this is the much needed good news we need to start to look at.  Or continue to focus on.  I know I keep telling people what Craig tells me - continue to focus on the positive and always do the right thing  And that's all we can do - keep moving forward.  God has his plan - as rough and hard as it is for me - I have to keep that in mind.  but maybe this delay is because we have a LOT of stuff in our own lives to just get ready to prepare for our beautiful child.  so we should just keep that in mind  I know I'm not good at waiting and not good at focusing on the positive all the time - but I'm trying.

so enjoy the post.
Gail & Craig

Wanted to pass along some information we received from our agency today:

"Today we want to update you on the feedback we received yesterday from our foreign staff in Ethiopia, which was confirmed in a discussion with our adoption colleagues in a Joint Council caucus call later in the day.

At this time, all Foreign Staff on the ground in Ethiopia are reporting that MOWA has completed their staffing changes and are now currently working at full capacity to complete those adoption cases currently re-scheduled or assigned a court appointment through the courts of Addis Ababa. Our staff believe this to be around 800 cases they are working at full force to complete with no restrictions on the number of cases processed each day. This is great news! We are thrilled to hear these drastic changes do not seem to be going into full effect.

We are also pleased to report that for new cases moving forward; it appears the original changes proposed by MOWA will not be implemented to the degree of 5 cases a day. At this time it is unknown whether or not MOWA will issue a formal statement regarding how they will process cases in the future, but from all discussions it will not be a drastic decrease from before. Through the continued work, meetings, and advocacy of many Foreign Staff members in Ethiopia, it appears any future changes within the case processing for MOWA will avoid sweeping and disproportionate alterations to the number of cases processed each day. Rather, the hope is that MOWA, Joint Council, Adoption Service Providers, the US Department of State and other NGO organizations can come together to support the government of Ethiopia in strengthening the process for ethical adoptions to continue while also improving the general social structures to assist with family preservation in Ethiopia. This plan was acknowledged in the recent posting by the US State Department this morning at http://adoption.state.gov/news/ethiopia.html. We understand the US Department of State cannot issue a formal statement without MOWA issuing a retraction. Based on the information we are receiving, MOWA is concentrating on processing the current adoptions and the new staff is not focused on numbers, but doing their jobs."

US Dept of STate posting - 3/16/11

Adoption Notice

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Office of Children’s Issues

---

Summary of March 11 Ethiopia Conference Call

March 16, 2011

U.S. Department of State, Office of Children’s Issues, Adoption Division hosted a conference call for Adoption Service Providers on March 11, 2011 at 10:45 am to discuss recent announcements made by the Ethiopian Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs (MOWCYA). Below is a summary of information presented on the call.

As was stated in the March 9, 2011 Adoption Alert, the Department of State received information on the announcement made by the MOWCYA regarding the planned reduction in workload processing.

·         MOWCYA planned to implement a reduction of case processing from approximately 50 cases reviewed per day to no more than 5 cases reviewed per day.

·         MOWCYA has stated that this reduction is to improve screening of adoption cases while also devoting existing resources to other priorities on vulnerable children.

·         MOWCYA reviews each adoption case at two points in the process: after the match with prospective adoptive parents and after the final court decree to approve issuance of new birth certificate and passport for child.

·         MOWCYA has not announced any implementation guidelines on how reduction in processing will affect each stage of the process.

·         If only 5 cases are reviewed per day, delays could be significant. Calculations based on rough estimates of cases in process (around 1000) indicate delays of one year or more.

·         Department of State defines ‘cases in process’ as those whose dossier has been accepted up to those cases that have received the final letter approving issuance of passport and birth certificate.

·         We are working on getting more details on implementation guidelines.

Since announcement, the Department of State has heard many rumors, but none have been substantiated.  The U.S. Embassy can confirm that the Ministry of Women, Children and Youth Affairs has shuffled the portfolios of key adoption personnel.  The Embassy has not been able to confirm how this reorganization may affect the processing of cases through the ministry.

Additionally, the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa is discussing the possibility of developing a consolidated assistance proposal to MOWCYA to find out what the resource 

Update as we know it - 3/16/11 & PRAYER requests

Below is the update as we know it - so lets continue to keep the faith.  There will need to be changes and we have all known there were some unethical agencies over there.  I'm still thankful AAI is not one of them but they will still probably need to help do the right things.

On another note - please pray for the following:
 - little Gabriel as he prepares for brain surgery on Monday!  His family is hoping to get to Chicago to see an expert this week and possibly avoid the surgery or postpone it.
 - a co-worker - I just know their spouse was recently diagnosed with cancer and praying for peace, comfort and some good news
 - for friends that are struggling in their personal lives and afraid to let others in.  On a good note -sometimes someone loves you enough to LET US IN and we know it will be alright.
Thanks
Gail


Families~
We know you have been waiting, as we were, to hear about what took place at the meeting today. Unfortunately, there are still many unknowns, but this it what we have been told:
-The chairman of the agency network committee had a phone call with the minister of the adoption unit at MOWA prior to the meeting. We do not know when this phone call took place. The meeting was with all the agency reps, not with MOWA. Apparently, the minister had too big of a workload to meet; this is why the phone call took place.
-The minister (of MOWA adoption unit) told the chairman (of agencies) that there is evidence of wrong doing by agencies. If agencies work hard at correcting this a reversal may be considered.
-The agency reps came up with a "code of conduct" and have a specific committee put in place to hold agencies accountable. 
-The agency reps decided to have the network committee write up an appeal asking the minister to reverse the decision urgently.
-the minister ordered the MOWA adoption workers to clear the back log of court cases within 10 days. This applies to anyone who has a court case scheduled and might even apply to any case that has been submitted to court, waiting for court date. 
-the time line is not known for any of this

Although we were really hoping for a concrete positive decision to be made or announced today, we do feel that it is a positive sign that the minister seems to know the importance of clearing up the current backlog of court cases. We also feel it is a positive sign that the minister appears to be open to changing this new process of 5 letters, provided agencies follow through on what they have been told to do. 

We have a conference call with all agencies later today and are hoping to get an idea about what other agencies are feeling right now. If we have any new information after that call, we will be sure to post it. 

Stay tuned,

Joint Council POST - good news

below is another email today from AAI- man they are just on top of it all - very blessed. I know there are a ton of awesome agencies - AAI is one of them - so just know if you trust your agency - you have a good one. Some get more information out - its probably staff size and such -

gail

_ethiopia_adoption@yahoogroups.com

Dear Families~

Joint Council posted the following annoucement today. This is something that we have heard rumors about as well, but have not yet been able to confirm:

"Ethiopia – Update 3/14/11

Various blogs and listservs are reporting that the Ethiopian Ministry of Women, Children and Youth Affairs has announced a revised plan which includes the processing of 20 adoption cases per day. While Joint Council has also been provided with this information, it is our understanding that no decision has been made or announcement published by the Government of Ethiopia.

We believe that it is premature to speculate on the intentions of the Ministry but rather seek to continue to partner with the Government of Ethiopia and use this opportunity to increase child and family protections while continuing intercountry adoption. Joint Council fully supports the government's efforts to increase the capacity for regulatory oversight of service providers, strengthen the review of each adoption case and expand social services to Ethiopian children and families."

Rumor I hope is a fact

So our wonderful agency is keeping us informed - a meeting they thought was going to happen today is now on Wednesday - I will take it.

Anyhow another few people have "heard" that they are increasing adoptions to 20/day instead of the 5  - still not the 40-50 that had been happening - but its a start.  I'll take that as well.  Just so many kids wanting a good loving home.

thanks to all that have signed the online petition - its important to get that out there - the agency running it is reputable and one of the best adoption organizations in the world.  They monitor and help - they do not adopt themselves.

Gail

birthday's - gotta love 'em and hate 'em

Yep - happy birthday to me (and my sister in law and mother in law (she's in heaven now) - so I'm trying to be happy.  Its hard - my mom always made a big deal out of it- with the little things.  the scavenger hunt for a few presents in the morning, family dinner - whatever we wanted (typically for me banquet fried chicken and mashed potatoes - yummy) - anyhow - if you ever want to see the sad story go back in blog history to 2004- starts then!  I miss her SO MUCH - and my dearest husband misses his mom today - so it sucks.

All to have the unknown of our future child. I finally met a facebook friend today - Rachel and her family she's been through this with Guatemala - so that was nice.  As she put it I'm probably numb - yep that's it.

so to top it all off our van that was in the shop yesterday $$$ - hit a nice pot hole - not hard to do in Detroit suburbs - I hit the same one earlier in the day - but one flat and possibly two bent rims- great!  more $$$ - ha like we have it - gotta love fate or life - whatever you want to call it - it sucks sometimes.  And guess what - they are brand new tires too!  - just loving the joke there -

so hopefully tomorrow brings us much needed good luck - we have our small group an that's good - and just  a meeting that NEEDS to turn positive.

so here I am  alone typing this missing family - my dad's moved away and my brother had stuff going on I just wish My family was one larger - one more little one  I thought I'd have that wish next year - but now I have to wonder.  I"ll be a new mom at 42 - Lord help me.

ok - yeah depressing but I think it is this way in adoption with holidays- always hoping the next one you have your child - I just don't know if that will be the case - but I did get some good books - can't wait to start reading them.

Have a good night all - thanks for reading my thoughts - and remember - turn those clocks a head.
Gail

US Dept of State meeting notes

Ok - not sure if this is good or bad news - but below are the meeting notes from a meeting today with the US DOS and ET govt - a delay of 1 year!  That's if you ALREADY have a child referred and court date - this could mean a few years for us - not sure what will happen.

But they confirmed that the staff was fired.  Hopefully with all the countries helping, they can come up with a solution to move things along! 

Please continue to pray for the kids, govt AND all the people affected by the earth quake and tsunami today.

Gail

ETHIOPIA UPDATE 3/11/11

Following are our notes from the Department of State Office of Children’s Issues conference call regarding Ethiopian adoptions conducted earlier today. These notes do not represent nor are they in any way attributable to the Department of State or US Citizenship and Immigration Services. We are providing the notes with respect to those who could not participate in the conference.

We extend our thanks to the Department of State for conducting the conference call and to US Citizenship and Immigration Services for their participation and contributions.

_______________________________________________________________

The Department of State is Actively Involved

The Ethiopian Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs announced a reduction in the processing of intercountry adoption cases from 50 per day to 5 per day, effective March 10, 2011.

The Department of State is actively involved in discussions with the Government of Ethiopia, other governments and stakeholders.

A coalition of countries is preparing a proposal to assist the Ministry increase its capacity.

Embassy suggested that children with special need’s cases should not be delayed.

The US Embassy officials have a scheduled meeting with the Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs for Monday, March 14, 2011.

There are areas of concern related to intercountry adoption, however the reduction is disproportionate.

Adoption Cases

Currently there are no implementation guidelines for in-process cases.

For adoption cases registered with the Ethiopian court, the best estimate is a one-year delay.

The staff change at the Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs has been confirmed as taking effect the week of March 13, 2011. The impact this will have on adoption cases is not known.

It is estimated that between 800-1,000 adoption cases are currently on the docket of Ethiopian courts.

ANNOYED

Ok -
First I realize posting here is part of my therapy to get through all the craziness.  I know I have a lot to learn and MUST learn how to deal with the "nay" sayers and those that don't believe in trans-racial adoption.

so that said - I posted the link on Facebook last night to sign the petition to help the kids in Ethiopia. Many of my friends signed it, and then shared the post to get more!  Awesome right.  so I see someone's post - to Help the kids in the USA first.  I'm still sick and NOT feeling well - so I just jumped on that.  Yeah we tried - it didn't work out.  Probably didn't help that God put ET on my heart I can't help that.  But really - the US system is messed up - how many stories have I alone seen lately of adoptive parents MURDERING their kids.  A story yesterday about how some parents never reported their adopted kids missing - last seen in 2001-2005!  Something crazy -  they haven't been seen in 10 years!  and NO ONE knew it!  Oh my gosh - where were the social workers.  We are getting examined left and right - why weren't these people?  Seriously.  Then the case in Florida and the woman here in Metro Detroit that killed or tried to kill their adopted kids (the lady here killed herself in the process of taking them all out - she didn't succeed with the kids - thank God).

so really - I had to post that this guy not judge people until they know the story AND that we should help ALL of God's kids - here and there.  Yes -  maybe when I have some free time I can fight for the kids here.  I don't think this guy is taking any steps to help any of the kids - but can judge someone else -

so yeah - I need to find a way to educate.  Hopefully I'll get some books I asked for as a birthday present this week - and I'll begin reading them.

But for now - I can post here - not really quietly - but I know this idiot won't even try to look or learn our story -and that is fine.

Hoping for some more news on ET and MOWA today - last I heard the rumors the head of MOWA may have been fired over all the antics of late - now I don't want anyone to loose their job - I hope the person was trying to send a message they need staff and funding but I also hope this means they go back to more letters or whatever per day.

Enjoy your Friday all - its my off day and I'm up early running around - gotta love it!  Getting my frustrations out here - and off to start my day.  Thanks for reading - and listening - sorry if you don't like it - but I know others deal with this as well.

God bless and lets continue to pray for the kids in ET but also ALL over the world and the people in Japan that are dealing with the major earth quake and everything else that brought today - pretty scary times.

Gail

Today's UPdate

below is the email communication from AAI today - I have to say they are awesome in all of this!  I know everyone is getting info from their agencies -and all pretty much about the same - but I really liked this - even though I've seen it on the groups - this communication is amazing. so a GREAT job to the AAI ET team - Sally,Laura and others
GAil

Dear Families~

Most, if not all of you, are aware of the recent events that have taken place in Ethiopia, regarding international adoption. We have been posting all confirmed information on the yahoo group website, but wanted to make sure every client was aware of what has taken place in the last 10 days, by sending this to your personal email accounts. Please see below for copies of the posts on yahoo. 

If you are not an active member of the yahoo group, we highly recommend that you do sign up and check your emails in order to have the most current information. I attached a copy of the instructions on how to sign up for yahoo, in case you need this.

Thank you,

~Sally, Laura, & Mary 

Posted March 1:

Dear Families~

Many of you may have heard about MOWA's recent announcement that they will only

be completing 5 letters of consent per day. (as compared to up to 40 per day

right now) There have been many pieces of information posted and shared online

such as:

-The reason for this is that MOWA is short staffed. What they are attempting to

do is get approval for hiring more staff.

-This will go into effect on March 7.

-This has already gone into effect.

-MOWA has not said when this will go into effect

-The adoption agencies are scheduling a meeting with MOWA to discuss this.

....the list could go on and on....The only thing that we are able to confirm at

this point is that MOWA did indeed say that they will only be writing 5 letters

of consent each day and that there are plans for adoption agencies and MOWA to

hold a meeting to discuss this. Please stay tuned for updates as we get them.

Thank you,

Sally, Mary, & Laura

Posted March 4:

 Re: [aai_ethiopia_adoption] Re: MOWA's announcement

Hi Sue & everyone else who is wondering about this~

I'm sorry for not being more specific. In order for the court process

to go through and have the adoption finalized, there are three things

that must take place. Birth parent testimony is approved, adoptive

parents testimony is approved, and MOWA submits letter of consent.

(they typically do not submit until the day of court) When these

three requirements are met, the adoption is finalized. So, to answer

your question, this is not something needed in order to have a

referral, to be assigned a court date, or for an embassy appointment.

This could greatly affect the time between referral and court

approval. We are still waiting for additional information as to

whether or not this will really happen and if so, when...

~Sally

On Mar 3, 2011, at 11:24 AM, Sue Dood wrote:

> Thanks for the information. At our "mom's meeting" Tuesday night we

> talked about this and none of us understood what part of the

> process this decision affects, are the letters of consent for the

> kids to be referred to AAI, or to be assigned a court date, or is

> it for an embassy date? Since none of us knew for sure, I'm

> guessing there may be others who are wondering what part of the

> process is affected?

> Thanks,

> Sue

Posted March 7 

 Re: MOWA's announcement

Families~

Many of you have read the VOA (Voice of America)article regarding MOWA's

announcement to significantly decrease the number of letters of consent they

will write each day. There are many rumors surfacing online and elsewhere

regarding this, however, we do not have any further confirmed information at

this time. When we do have factual information to we will be sure to share it

with all of you.

Thank you for your patience as we wait to see what, if anything, evolves from

this.

Sally, Laura, & Mary

Posted March 8:

Dear Families~

As you know, there have been so many rumors regarding MOWA's announcement of
reducing the number of letters of consent that they will write and submit to
court. If this does indeed go into effect, it will be devastating to the
children of Ethiopia. The Joint Council on International Children's Services
(JCICS) is asking all of us to step into our roles as advocates and to
participate in this cause.

Below is a link to a post from JCICS outlining what you can do:
blog<http://betheanswerforchildren.wordpress.com/2011/03/08/emergency-campaign-f\
or-ethiopia/

Please continue to pray about this as well,
~Sally, Laura, & Mary

Posted March 10:

Dear Families~
Many of may have heard and/or saw that the Department of State posted an alert
on their website yesterday regarding this announcement. They announced a few
days ago that they would be doing this, therefore, it was somewhat expected.

You may read it by using this link:
http://adoption.state.gov/news/ethiopia_alert.html
or read it below:
Government of Ethiopia Plans Major Slow-Down in Adoption Processing
March 9, 2011
Citing the need to work on quality and focus on more important strategic issues,
the Government of Ethiopia's Ministry of Women, Children, and Youth Affairs
(MOWCYA) will reduce to a maximum of five the number of adoption cases it
processes per day, effective March 10, 2011. Under Ethiopian adoption
procedures, MOWCYA approves every match between prospective adoptive parents and
an Ethiopian child before that case can be forwarded for a court hearing. The
U.S. Embassy is working with Ethiopian government officials and adoption
agencies to learn more about this change in procedures. We will continue to
share information as it becomes available.

Given MOWCYA's current caseload, the U.S. Embassy anticipates that this change
could result in an overall decline in case processing of some 90 percent. If
this change is implemented as proposed, we expect, that parents who have begun
the process of adopting from Ethiopia but have not yet been matched with a child
could experience significant delays. It is not clear if this change in
procedures would have any significant impact on cases in which MOWCYA has
already approved matches.

Prospective adoptive parents should remain in close contact with their adoption
service provider to obtain updates on individual cases.

The Embassy's Adoptions Unit can be reached at consadoptionaddis@state.gov.

Please continue to monitor http://adoption.state.gov/ for updated information as
it becomes available.

Other information we have learned in the last 24 hours:
-They did officially start the "5 letters per day" process today.
-There was a meeting scheduled between the network of adoption agencies'
committee and MOWA today to discuss this further. Unfortunately, the meeting did
not take place. It is expected to take place sometime between now and Monday.
-There is an unconfirmed report that the head of the adoption department at MOWA
was let go. We are unsure if the new head will change this new "5 letters per
day" process or not.
-JCICS (Joint Council on International Children's Services) sent an email to
agencies yesterday afternoon. An excerpt from the email said "In only 24-hours,
over 11,000 concerned indiviudals have joined our Emergency Campaign for
Ethiopian Children by signing our petition. We extend our thanks to all of our
members who have supported this initiative by signing the petion and
distributing the campaign information.

Today, we have continued our communication with the Ethiopian Governmet and
respectfully brought the outpouring of concern to them. We believe that there
may have been postive developments and will provide further updates as
information is confirmed."

-NCFA (National Council For Adoption)- emailed a statement to agencies
yesterday:
NCFA Issues Statement Regarding Ethiopia Adoptions
At the end of February 2011, the Ethiopian Ministry of Women, Children and Youth
Affairs (MOWA) issued an unexpected directive indicating a dramatic reduction in
the number of intercountry adoption cases to be processed by the Ministry. This
directive is scheduled to go into effect by Wednesday, March 10, 2011.

In 2010, more than 2,500 Ethiopian children were adopted by American families.
Should MOWA implement the recent directive as indicated, the number of adoptions
from Ethiopia could fall as much as 90%, although the full impact of MOWA's
decision is unknown and cannot be predicted at this time.

This ruling follows a year of significant progress in improving and increasing
transparency in the Ethiopian adoption process. Following several safeguards
enacted last year, NCFA's confidence in the Ethiopian adoption system has grown
significantly. Additional protective measures may still be necessary, however,
to increase global confidence in the process. MOWA's recent decision appears to
have surprised many Ethiopian government officials, as well as the Central
Adoption Authorities in the U.S., Italy, and Spain. Many within the adoption
community, including the U.S. Department of State (DOS) and the U.S. Citizenship
and Immigration Service (USCIS), members of Congress, child welfare officials in
many countries, and the National Council For Adoption (NCFA), have criticized
the MOWA directive as unfair, unnecessary, and harmful to children in Ethiopian
orphanages who await permanent families.

NCFA is grateful for the swift action taken by the U.S. Department of State, led
by Special Advisor Ambassador Susan Jacobs, to communicate with Ethiopian
adoption officials in an effort to reach a favorable resolution that will serve
the best interests of abandoned and orphaned children in Ethiopia.

"We are encouraged by the advocacy taking place behind the scenes and hopeful
that these collective efforts will bring clarity and an immediate adjustment to
this unjust and unnecessary ruling, which has the potential to negatively impact
so many vulnerable children," said NCFA president and CEO Chuck Johnson.

Unconfirmed reports indicate that personnel changes within MOWA have resulted
from the rogue handling of this decision, and because of this, NCFA is hopeful
that new leadership will offer opportunities for better communication and a
swift resolution to this looming crisis. NCFA respectfully calls on MOWA to
amend its recent harmful directive and ensure that subsequent reforms reflect a
comprehensive child welfare policy that retains the option of intercountry
adoption for Ethiopian orphans while ensuring policies and procedures that serve
the best interests of children.


As you can see, there is a lot taking place right now and, although, MOWA did
indeed start the "5 letters per day" today, it is uncertain whether or not this
will continue longer term. Please continue to watch for updates from us. Also,
if you have not already done so, please sign the petition (JCISC website) and
pass it on to everyone you know.

We understand how difficult it must be to take all this information in and
figure out what this means for you specifically. While there is a lot of
uncertainty right now, we will continue to keep you informed as we learn more
information.
~Sally, Mary, & Laura

Ethiopia Program Team

Adoption Associates, Inc.