On February 28, the House International Relations Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights and International Operations approved, by voice vote, a resolution (H. Res. 578) that would urge the Government of Romania to amend its child welfare and adoption laws and allow intercountry adoptions by persons other than biological grandparents. The Subcommittee on Europe and Emerging Threats approved the resolution on February 14 (see The Source, 2/17/06).
Chair Christopher Smith (R-NJ), who sponsored the resolution, explained that the Romanian Parliament prohibited intercountry adoptions in June 2004, adding that “when the ban was enacted there were approximately 200 cases pending in which children had been matched with adoptive parents in the United States; approximately a thousand more had been matched with parents in Western Europe, Israel or Australia. These cases will be denied if the Romanian Government applies the ban retroactively. Each of these pipeline cases involves a prospective family who has proven their good faith by waiting for years for these children. Many cases involve older children, Roma children, and children with special medical needs who will not be domestically adopted in Romania. In at least 3 cases, children with severe medical needs are already in the U.S. on medical visas and living with their prospective adoptive parents. Each was abandoned at birth and were legally adoptable until the new adoption law took effect. If returned to Romania they will live in institutions and will not receive the medical care they need.”
