DÁIL QUESTIONS addressed to the Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Mr. Andrews)

for WRITTEN ANSWER on 16/09/2009  

  For WRITTEN answer on Wednesday, 16th September, 2009.

 *  To ask the Minister for Health and Children the position regarding the arrangement of a new bilateral adoption agreement with Vietnam; the further steps being taken to progress matters.   
Alan Shatter TD    

REPLY.

The issue of intercountry adoption and, in particular, the negotiation of a new bilateral agreement with Vietnam has been given considerable priority by my officials over the last year. I have advised the House and parent/prospective adoptive parent representative groups on many occasions regarding the developments in relation to those discussions. I must emphasise, yet again, that the Government’s objective is to provide a regime in which the child is at the centre of the adoption process, whether it is an intercountry or domestic adoption, and that adoptions are effected in a manner which is safe and secure.

The most important development in achieving that objective is the development of an appropriate legislative regime which recognises the changed and changing global situation regarding adoption over the last 20 years. The Adoption Bill, which includes the regime of the Hague Convention, provides an assurance for individual children, their families, and the State, that appropriate procedures have been followed and that the adoption was affected in the best interests of the child. A core principle of the Adoption Bill and the Hague Convention is that the child’s interests must be paramount. The Hague Convention, which is given the force of law in this Bill, effectively puts in place an agreement between states to regulate the standards that will apply in each jurisdiction. It is to safeguard that acceptable standards are being applied in other countries, over which we have no jurisdiction.

Over the last month two significant Reports have been undertaken regarding child welfare, protection and adoption in Vietnam. Firstly, in August 2009 Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs with technical assistance UNICEF in Vietnam published a report entitled “Creating a protective environment for children in Viet Nam : An assessment of child protection laws and policies, especially children in special circumstances in Viet Nam” . Some of the issues raised in this Report had already been under consideration in the context of ongoing deliberations of the drafting of a new bilateral agreement with the Vietnamese. However, this Report has highlighted significant policy and legal implications and warrants further deliberation.

Furthermore, I have received in draft form a report of an examination of intercountry adoption in Vietnam carried out by the International Social Services (ISS) . The Report was commissioned by UNICEF  in coordination with the Ministry of Justice of Vietnam. It aims, inter alia, to “identify and address problems in both domestic and Intercountry Adoption  processes with a view to assisting Vietnam in its preparations to ratify  the Hague Convention. This report is likely to give rise to further issues that will need to be considered.

I must stress that these two reports, both prepared in co-operation with the Vietnamese Government, and UNICEF, go to the heart of the matter in relation to concerns in relation to intercountry adoption in Vietnam. I would be failing in my duty to protect children if I did not acknowledge and consider the content of these reports extremely carefully before deciding on next steps. In saying that, these Reports also serve to highlight the commitment of the Vietnamese Government to ensuring that the adoption process in Vietnam is in line with the best international standards and their willingness to address issues at the core of that commitment.  I am currently awaiting finalisation of the ISS Report. While work is continuing on the draft of the Agreement under discussion, I am of the view that the next round of talks at official level in Ireland should await the outcome of our consideration of the these two reports.

This is an extremely sensitive matter and I am aware of the likely concerns of the many Irish families that have already adopted children from Vietnam. I have consulted with the Adoption Board and they have advised that all adoptions from Vietnam, which have been registered on the Register of Foreign Adoptions, are safe and secure.

I am also acutely conscious of the concerns of prospective adoptive parents. Over the past number of months I have met regularly with both individual prospective adoptive parents and representative groups.  I am deeply aware of the angst, frustration and emotion that prospective adoptive parents continue to experience at this time. I have communicated at every opportunity updates on these matters and I have committed to continuing with this process. I can only reiterate that my personal commitment and the Government’s commitment is to seeking the necessary assurances to allow us to proceed to conclude an intercountry adoption agreement with Vietnam.