Morocco Adoption and Kafala UPDATED

We have mentioned kafala in a few posts about Egypt and Algeria here. We gave a brief explanation in our Egypt post and are reposting that here:

“Adoption as it is in Western society is not available in Muslim countries. This makes immigration to the US even more complicated as guardianships are involved. Only 2 legal adoptions occurred to the US from Egypt in FY2010.

“Egyptian family law…forbids adoption among Muslims and makes it very difficult for Christians to adopt. Sharia, or Islamic law, expressly forbids conventional adoption as it is known in western societies. Since Article 2 of the Egyptian constitution states that “the principles of the Islamic Sharia are the principle source of Egyptian legislation”, the question of legalising adoption does not even figure in Egypt’s political discourse. Instead, Muslims are allowed to sponsor children through a system called kafala – a sort of foster sponsorship that precludes naming the child after his or her adopted parents”

US Egyptian Adoption
[Reuters 9/17/09 by Cynthia Johnston]”

In countries in which Sharia law is prominent, there have been all kinds of immigration issues. We have covered 5 of those Pakistan cases here.

Morocco has been advertised by adoption agencies in the past few years as an excellent option for single women. We at REFORM Talk have been flabbergasted by the hard push of adoption agencies to sway people to sign up for these programs because the programs are being marketed to nonMuslims. In order for a nonMuslim to “adopt”, they must  undergo conversion to Islam and gain guardianship to obtain an immigration visa. This process has been advertised in private forums as not a big deal and easy! Agencies brag about the quantity of children placed from Morocco and are still advertising today that the process can be as short as 3 months!

In FY2007, there were 7 adoptions to the US. In FY2011, it had jumped to 46 with one agency boasting of placing 25 of those children.

Now, the Department of State has issued an interesting adoption notice. They quote a Justice minister in a newspaper article. We were unable to find this publication on the internet and the reason perhaps is that there has been a crackdown on publications in Morocco, including this particular one in the recent past.

Find the notice here . We have pasted it below:

Notice: Ministry of Justice Plans to Review Kafala Laws and Procedures

On July 25, the Moroccan newspaper Akhbar al-Youm (Today’s News) published a story on Justice Minister Mostafa Rahmid’s views on the granting of kafala (guardianship) to non-Muslim, non-resident foreigners. The article quotes Minister Rahmid as saying that he has decided to “stop granting guardianship of Moroccan children to foreign families”, insisting that “guardianship of abandoned children is for Muslims, and foreign Muslims residing in Morocco.” The Minister subsequently stated that kafala guardianship would only be considered for those foreign families who are long-term residents in Morocco.

The status of pending kafala petitions by U.S. citizens is unclear.

U.S. citizens wishing to obtain kafala of Moroccan children should be aware that is unclear at this time whether the courts will accept new kafala petitions.”

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update: Another notice was published by DOS on November 6, 2012. The link is here and the text is pasted below:

“Notice: Ministry of Justice Provides Prosecutors New Instructions on Kafala Guardianship Decrees

On September 21, 2012, Justice Minister El Mostapha Ramid published a notice instructing Moroccan Prosecutors to formally oppose a petition filed with a juvenile judge seeking the granting of Kafala guardianship decrees to prospective adoptive foreign parents who are not resident in Morocco.  In his notice, he asks the Prosecutors to emphasize the importance of in-country residency for the Kafala guardianship with the court judges, verify whether the prospective adoptive parents reside in Morocco, and request that judges not issue Kafala orders to foreign prospective adoptive parents (PAPs) who are not residing in Morocco.  The notice states that it is difficult for the courts to ensure that conditions of the Kafala guardianship are met when the child is taken abroad by foreign parents and notes it needs to be possible for courts to cancel the guardianship in cases of failure to comply.  The Minister’s notice appears to indicate that Kafala guardianship should only be granted to Muslim families who are long-term residents in Morocco.

The notice states that its purpose is to ensure the implementation of the existing law.  It does not contain any provisions addressing already pending Kafala guardianship petitions.  At this time, it is unclear whether prosecutors will formally oppose petitions for Kafala guardianship decrees filed by U.S. citizens which were already pending with the Court at the time the notice was issued.

U.S. citizens wishing to obtain Kafala guardianship of Moroccan children should be aware that the Prosecutors are now obligated to confirm the prospective parents’ Moroccan residency and the courts are requested to deny Kafala orders to foreign PAPs who do not reside in Morocco.”

Update 2: DOS issues an alert. See here and pasted below:

“On September 21, 2012, Moroccan Justice Minister El Mostapha  Ramid published a notice instructing Moroccan prosecutors to oppose any  petitions filed with a juvenile judge seeking the granting of Kafala  guardianship decrees to foreign prospective adoptive parents (PAPs) who do not  reside in Morocco. In his notice, he asks the prosecutors to emphasize to  courts the importance of in-country residency for the Kafala guardianship, to verify  whether the prospective adoptive parents reside in Morocco, and to request that  judges not issue Kafala orders to foreign PAPs who are not residing in Morocco. The  notice states that the new instructions are to ensure the proper application of  the existing law. It does not contain any provisions addressing already  pending Kafala guardianship petitions.

The  Department of State is asking U.S. families who are in the process of applying  for guardianship of a Moroccan child to contact the Office of Children’s Issues  at AskCI@state.gov.  We ask that you provide information about  where you are in the process (i.e., matched with a Moroccan child, matched and  met Moroccan child, child’s full name and date of birth, region from which the  child is being adopted, documentation showing you are approved to adopt a child  with special needs, and/or court date set).  This information will help us better  understand the number of U.S. citizens who may be affected by this Moroccan notice.  Please  use the subject line “Intercountry guardianship from Morocco” to ensure your  email is properly routed.  We are also requesting that your email include an attached completed Privacy Act Waiver (Form DS 5505), even if you have already provided this information to the  Department of State or the U.S. Consulate General in Casablanca.  If you choose to submit a Privacy Act Waiver,  please specify on the form with whom the Department may share information  regarding your case.  You may choose to include  the Moroccan government and/or your members of Congress.  Please do not send photos, any other  documents, or any additional information at this time.  Large documents/photos could hamper our  ability to access the inbox.”

Morocco limits international adoptions [Global Post 3/18/13 by Lydia Cheng] says “Ibrahim is like a lot of two-year-olds. He eats a big bowl of oatmeal for breakfast, goes to play groups, and “is a lovely, bright child. God has given him the gift of gab,” said his mother, an American named Hadija (not her real name, since she wishes to protect Ibrahim’s identity.)

Two years ago, Hadija, 38, and her American husband, adopted Ibrahim from Morocco and brought him to Qatar.

Today, it would be impossible for them to adopt Ibrahim and raise him outside Morocco, because in September of last year, the Moroccan government imposed a moratorium on international adoptions out of fear that children raised outside the country will lose their religion and national heritage.

When the moratorium was adopted, prospective parents from around the world were caught in the process of adopting Moroccan children, including more than 40 families from Spain that had reportedly moved to Morocco to improve their chances of adopting a child.

Late last month, after lengthy negotiations, Morocco and Spain reached an agreement that would allow Spanish families to adopt Moroccan children and raise them outside Morocco with one condition: Moroccan religious authorities must monitor the children to make sure they are raised as Muslims.

In a recent blog post, Soeren Kern, a Senior Fellow at a New York-based think tank, the Gatestone Institute, criticized the new Spanish adoption agreement as religious interference, saying it sets a dangerous precedent.

“The requirement, which will be enshrined in Spain’s legal code, represents an unprecedented encroachment of Islamic Sharia law within Spanish jurisprudence,” Kern wrote.

But regardless of the agreement between Spain and Morocco, large numbers of children are likely to remain in Moroccan orphanages, at least in part because of the moratorium on adoption.

UNICEF reports that there are more than half a million orphans in Morocco. Most are from single mothers, who face overwhelming social stigma and financial difficulties. According to Asmae Benislame, the founder of Bebes du Maroc, an adoption movement based in the capitol of Rabat, about 24 children are abandoned every day in Morocco. Bebes du Maroc organizes an annual conference that advocates for better orphanage care and lobbies Moroccan politicians to change their minds about international adoption.

“The best place for children is in a family,” said Benislame.

Children who are not adopted into families can suffer severe developmental problems, says Dana Johnson, an American researcher and expert on the effect of orphanages on children. Johnson cites studies showing that a child who spends only six months in an orphanage is smaller, sicker, has a lower IQ and more mental health problems than a similar child living with a family.

“From a freedom point of view, you can have your religion,” Johnson said. “But from a humanitarian point of view, it’s absolutely critical that these children live in a home.”

Amanda Mouttaki agrees. An American, Mouttaki met her husband in Morocco, converted to Islam and hoped one day to adopt a Moroccan child. But, because she lives in the United States, that seems unlikely as long as the moratorium is in place. Mouttaki donates frequently to an orphanage in Marrakech and also volunteers at the orphanage whenever she visits Morocco. She wants the Moroccan orphans to know that “there is someone out there that loves them and thinks of them every day.”

For Hadija, the requirement that an adopted Moroccan child be raised as a Muslim, is understandable.

“In our case, we’re practicing Muslims and we’re raising Ibrahim as Muslim. In that respect, he’s not losing his Islamic heritage,” she said.

But Ibrahim is being raised outside Morocco and that would have disqualified him under the new moratorium. The idea that the boy might have remained in a Moroccan orphanage rather than with her is unthinkable, said Hadija.

“When you hold a baby in your arms, all of these instincts that you never knew you have come up,” said Hadija. “I knew he was meant for me.””

Update 3: “For more than a year Yassamane and Eric have been waiting to adopt a child in Morocco. But a decision to tighten the adoption law has thrown the whole process into doubt, leaving dozens of hopeful foreign couples in limbo.

Kafala as it is known in Morocco, or “custody” in Arabic, allows Muslims — including converts to Islam — to assume the guardianship of orphans in the North African nation.

The same conditions apply in most Muslim countries, where religion is a determining factor in the adoption process.

But last September, Morocco’s government amended the law and barred foreigners from adopting, in order to better protect the children’s interests and identity, according to Justice Minister Mustapha Ramid.

Since then, foreign couples who had already begun the process fear it may retroactively be invalidated and their cherished hopes dashed.

“I was awarded my child in April 2012. It was the happiest day of my life,” said Yassamane Montazami, who gave up her psychology practice in France and moved to Morocco to complete the kafala process.

“But since that date, the judicial procedure that usually lasts a few months has dragged on for more than a year.”

Gabriel Pernau, a Spanish journalist who frequently travels between Madrid and Rabat, is also waiting nervously to see whether the goverment’s [sic] ruling will affect his adoption of a 15-month-old boy.

“I’m afraid this decision will be applied retroactively,” he said.

More than 100 families — Spanish, French and Americans, as well as Moroccans living in Europe — were awarded children before the adoption laws were changed and are still awaiting a final decision.

Around 40 of them are hoping to become the parents of children they found at an orphanage in Rabat, which they are allowed to visit for six hours a day.

Another orphanage, in the southern resort town of Agadir, limits visiting times to one hour a day.

Under Moroccan law, the kafala must be undertaken by “virtuous Muslim couples, both morally and socially responsible, who have sufficient means to support the needs of the child.”

Islamic law also stipulates that the adopted children do not have the same inheritance rights as any biological offspring.

“We are not disputing any Moroccan law. We are simply asking that this new provision not be retroactive,” said Montazami, whose husband, a French novelist, commutes between Paris and Rabat.

But Pernau’s hopes are fading.

“We have the impression that since the amendment, the judges have pushed back the court hearings indefinitely.”

On Monday, the family court in Rabat announced a new delay — the sixth since last September — to June 3.

“The judge is waiting for the police investigation, which has to be ordered by the public prosecutor. As long as that doesn’t happen, we won’t get the agreement of the judge,” he said.

The justice minister denied seeking to impede the work of the judges, when contacted by AFP, saying he had “never interfered in the judicial process.”

Speaking to parliament in November last year, Ramid said the changes to the law were designed to better protect the interests and identity of the child.

“We found that there were many foreigners who declare themselves Muslims, stay in a hotel and, when they get their child, they leave the country. How can we be sure that they will respect the law and protect the child?”

The countries of those affected are taking the issue seriously, with 40 couples saying in a statement last week that it was discussed during a high-level meeting in October between the Spanish and Moroccan governments.

The couples said they could not bear to be separated from their propective [sic] charges, “who call us ‘mummy’ and ‘daddy’ and cry every time we have to leave the orphanage.””

Moroccan adoption law change leaves foreigners in limbo

[AFP 4/21/13]

Update 4: “Morocco’s new restrictive adoption laws are causing pain and suffering, not only for the children, but also to the parents waiting to give the children a family and a home.  To make matters worse the number of children awaiting adoption is increasing every day and many of the orphanages are struggling to cope.

Monica Díaz first met her adopted son Abdallatif in an orphanage in Rabat when he was not even a month old, and now,  nearly two years on, new adoption laws in Morocco mean she hasn’t been able to take him back home with her to the Spanish region of Catalonia.

Morocco: Adoption Law Causes Pain and Suffering

[Morocco Board 7/28/13]