US DOS China Notice Glosses Over Trafficking Allegations UPDATED

The August 15, 2011 DOS notice can be found here and is pasted below:

“Notice: Concerns About Information on the Background of Children Adopted from China

The press has reported allegations that in 2005 local family planning officials in China, in the name of enforcing the “One Child Policy,” seized children from their birth families and sold them to orphanages. Embassy Beijing has been in touch with China’s Centre for Children’s Welfare and Adoption (CCCWA) about the allegations mentioned in the articles and CCCWA has promised updates on their investigations when they have further information. We are not aware of any intercountry adoption by a U.S. family that has been confirmed to be linked to these alleged actions.

In response to these concerns, we would like to remind adopting parents that verification of a child’s eligibility for intercountry adoption is an integral part of the intercountry adoption process. If there is evidence that documents may have been falsified or are not accurate, then officials at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate conduct an investigation before the visa is approved. If you wish to get more information on your child’s background, we suggest that you contact the adoption service provider that assisted you with the adoption.

If you have any further questions about this notice please contact the Office of Children’s Issues at: 1-888-407-4747 within the United States or 202-501-4444 from outside the United States.”

Head in the Sand Much?

I wonder what DOS has to say about the case that we shared in March 2011 in which US parents are seeking the birthparents of their child .

Recap: “A US couple who adopted a boy in 2010 from Shanghai has enlisted the help of lawyer/microblogger Zhang Zhiwei at http://t.sina.com.cn/ . He has been involved in the campaign to find abducted children.

“The boy, Wu Yongfei, who believes he’s a Sichuan Province native, said he got lost at the age of five in 2006, while visiting his aunt and uncle in Shanghai with his parents.

How about the case that we shared in May 2011 in which the Chinese parents are seeking the child believed to be in the US. It says that the attorney through his “contacts” learned that the child was adopted to the US.

Recap: “Through Deng’s contacts, Li has found out that his son is a graduate now and believes his parents had abandoned him 19 years ago.”

Rally Advice

DOS needs to get a new notice-writer. Admitting their lack of awareness is a bizarre trait to promote and it is suspect for why they would be coming out with this wishy-washy statement at all. Get some facts first and then share them. Otherwise you look like a mouthpiece for the adoption industry trying to downplay very serious allegations.

Secondly, I did several   sduring the second paragraph when they tried to pat themselves on the back for the great investigative work that they do to supposedly stave off falsified documents. None of us have forgotten Vietnam, Nepal, or Guatemala or any of the other areas like Ethiopia etc etc who ALL have had falsified documents make it through the Embassy. Why should adoptive parents be so confident in China?Update: Fleas Biting gives additional commentary on this subject.

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