Update on Kyrgyzstan

Dear Kyrgyzstan Families,

This is a follow up to proposed response from the Kyrgyzstan government regarding adoptions. This month the government was scheduled to make a public position on international adoptions, which we were hopeful would restart the program. The government announcement was postponed earlier this month stating that a position paper would be rescheduled later this month. As of today no rescheduled release date has been issued. We continue to monitor the situation and we will let you know as soon as we hear anything else about this situation. In regards to this being a negative statement we do not know if it is or not. What we do know is the program regulations are in place to restart the program but we are waiting for a government directive allowing the adoptions begin again. We will let you know as we get new information.
Again for anyone that wants to consider changing countries please contact me and we can discuss other alternatives.

Warm regards,

Brent

Brent E. Yoder, LCSW
Executive Director

Embracing Adoption

Adoption Alliance is celebrating National Adoption Month on November 15, 2009 at Turk Family Center 8804 Balboa Avenue, San Diego, CA 92123. This is their 5th annual conference and it is dedicated to providing education and information to prospective adoptive parents, adoptive families, adoption professionals and others who share a commitment to adoption issues.

This year they will be discussing medical concerns, attachments and bonding. Pre-registration is required and can be done on-line at www.jfssd.org.

From Adoptive Families Magazine

You Can Adopt: An Adoptive Families Guide is now the number-one selling adoption book on amazon.com. Without the contributions of so many of our readers, this book would not have been possible. We thank you! Susan PS: Don't forget to join your fellow Adoptive Families readers in our new adoption network, adoptivefamiliescircle.com . You'll find other families like yours, read blogs, and see gorgeous photos. Please join the discussion and upload your family photos.

Update on Kyrgyzstan

Dear Kyrgyzstan Families:

I wanted to bring you up-to-date on what I know. The government is scheduled to release a document in October as to the status of international adoptions. We hope this means that they will finally re-start their program but no one seems to know for certain. It appears to our people that they will re-open but they caution that we need to wait until next month to see what is in the document. I am sorry that I do not have anything more definitive. I will let you know as soon as I have additional information.

Warm regards,

Brent

Brent E. Yoder, LCSW
Executive Director

Russia Updates

Dear Russia Families,

This is a quick note to tell you that the adoption situation in Russia continues to improve. We have opened two new regions: Vladamir and Yaroslavl with another two we expect to confirm opening later this month. Vladimir and Yaroslavl are near Moscow.
We have been receiving referrals, with many families receiving referrals very quickly to their dossier being completed. I have another sibling opportunity if anyone is interested. I have two sisters born 12/04 and 12/05. If anyone is interested please let me know.

Warm regards,

Brent
Executive Director

Baby Clothes available

We have a blue baby snow suit (18 month) and a bag of clothes for infant girls. If you would like any of the items, please contact Adoption Options. You are welcome to come and pick it up! It's free!!

Possible Disruption

Sadly sometimes adoptions do not work out. I have been approached by a family that adopted a Caucasian infant boy in 2004 from Russia. The litte boy has been diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder. This family has taken good care of him but they have reached the limits of their care and have come to the heart breaking conclusion that he may be better cared for by another family that have the emotional resources to care for him. He is a beautiful young boy that is full of energy and enthusiasm. If anyone is interested in finding out more about this child or if you know of someone who may be interested please let me know.

Warm regards,

Brent

Brent E. Yoder, LCSW
Executive Director

Adoption Options, Inc
411 Camino Del Rio South
Suite 200
San Diego, CA 92108
Telephone 619-294-7772
www.adoption-options.org

Adoptive Families' Photo Contest

Adoptive Families' 2009 Photo Contest! Enter now!
Grand prize winners chosen from two categories—candid and formal portrait—will win digital camera suites and deluxe photography packages.
Runners-up in various age groups will receive portrait packages.
For more information, please go to http://www.adoptivefamilies.com/photocontest/

Helpful websites

http://www.babycenter.com
This website is a great source of information for parents with a toddler or small child. Baby center provides information ranging form height predictors, and growth charts to baby name ideas and great activities for kids. There are useful lists of questions like: “is it safe…, is it normal…, and ready or not”.

http://www.adoptionclubhouse.org/
This website provides information about both international and domestic adoptions. This website is set up to attract both parents and kids to use. There is a way that kids that were adopted can talk to other kids who have been adopted and form bonds over the internet. There is a link, for parents’ use, which provides access to talk and comment on the website with other families. There is another link for teachers and parents to use in regards to homework and other school work that children who were adopted might need help with, such as family trees and autobiographies. Additionally, there is kid-friendly adoption vocabulary, lists of famous people who were adopted, and lists of kid-friendly books and movies regarding adoption.

http://www.tapestrybooks.com
The Tapestry Books website offers a myriad of books about international as well as domestic adoption. They offer access to books for children who were adopted and also for their adopting parents. This website is a resource for information about prospective adoption clients, helping them with preparation and form realistic expectations. Their main resources are the books that they recommend but they also have an assortment of compact discs (CD), digital video discs (DVD), and e-booklets. There is a self help section where consumers may browse the website using simplified categories to find books, but they do offer a personal service directed toward recommending books to consumers.

http://www.adoptivefam.org/
This is the website for Adoptive Families Magazine and is quoted as an award winning national adoption magazine; it is the leading source of information for families before, during, and after the adoption process. There are links to their bookstore in addition to a page to write your adoption story. There are articles on many important adoption-related topics that can be found on the left hand side of the home page under “Quick Links”. They provide brief descriptions of many of the countries where kids are being adopted from such as: China, Russia, Ethiopia, and Korea. This website offers a multitude of information on many different topics under the adoption umbrella. Overall the website is very informational and educational.

Kyrgyzstan Adoption Update

Dear Families,

Below you will find an update from the State Department regarding Kyrgyzstan. This update is directed to the families that are stuck but it has relevant information about the general issues in Kyrgyzstan and some hopeful promises. I will update you as I receive new information.

Warm regards,

Brent

Brent E. Yoder, LCSW
Executive Director

Dear Kyrgyz Adoptive Families:

I am writing from the Office of Children’s Issues to provide you with a brief update on recent developments regarding the pending adoption cases in Kyrgyzstan, following the visit of Kyrgyz officials in late May.

On May 27 three officials from the Kyrgyz government, Deputies Gulnara Derbysheva and Damira Niiazalieva, and Child Protection Expert Ekaterina Khoroshman, met with adoptive parents, adoption professionals, and government officials as part of a U.S. Government-sponsored international visitors program. The visit succeeded in helping these officials better understand, first-hand, the intense commitment that U.S. families have for their prospective adoptive children. The officials also learned about the standards and protections for adoptive children that are built into the U.S. intercountry adoption process.

After they returned home, these officials held meetings and interviews to address some of the questions and concerns that people in Kyrgyzstan had raised about intercountry adoptions. These officials are clearly following up on the promise they made to work for release of the sixty-five cases.

In June, the State Department also sponsored the visit of a U.S. adoption expert to Kyrgyzstan. This expert met with Kyrgyz government officials, private organizations, and individuals to answer questions about U.S. adoption law and to explain the support and protections available to adoptive children in the United States. During these presentations, the expert emphasized the importance of resolving the sixty-five adoptions currently pending for the well-being of the children.

Recently, the State Department received promising news that proposals regarding these sixty-five cases may be presented to the Kyrgyz Parliament in the coming days. As of this writing, no official action had yet been taken. It is not clear what concrete effect these proposals might have, since the Parliament itself apparently does not have the authority to resolve these cases. Further, Presidential elections are scheduled for July 23. Nevertheless, we welcome this interest and are optimistic that if the proposals are introduced and passed, they could initiate a more positive shift in momentum on the sixty-five cases.

I cannot yet report any specific, concrete developments either in Kyrgyz adoption policy or on any of the pending adoption case files. We, in the Office of Children’s Issues, will continue to follow this issue closely and will make every effort to report to you if there are any new developments.


Gerry W. Fuller
Adoption Division Co-Chief
Office of Children’s Issues

FCC- San Diego 3rd Annual Kite Festival

FCC- San Diego invites you to their 3rd annual kite festival.

Time: 12 pm to 3:00 pm
Date: June 14, 2009
Location: Kate Session Memorial Park
5115 Soledad Road
San Diego, CA 92109

This event will include a fun craft adn an appearance by Sparkles the Clown. Please bring your own everthing: food, drinks, blankets, chairs, sunscreen, etc.

Questions: Contact Heidi Duncan at madelinehailey@aol.com or (619)312-2906

Kyrgyzstan update 4/16/09

Today I attended a conference call with the US State Dept, US Embassy General Consul in Bishkek, USCIS, and the 65 families that are stuck in the process. The meeting was designed to update these families on the current situation, what is being done by US officials to advocate resolution, and to answer questions from the families. The following was provided to the attendees as general information:

· The Embassy has confirmed that the Kyrgyz governmental working group submitted its report to the Kyrgyz Parliament. On Wednesday March 8, the findings of the Parliamentarian commission were presented to the three parliamentary committees with jurisdiction over adoptions. The presentation noted that numerous violations of adoption legislation had occurred and called for efforts to prosecute government officials and orphanage directors involved in “child trafficking.”
Vice-Premier Uktomkhan Abdullaeva told committee members that most of the children have been adopted by U.S. citizens, and happily live with their new families according to reports and photos. She mentioned that there is an urgent need for a database of adopted children to keep track of post-adoption reports. Another goal of the Government commission is to establish a national adoption agency.
The committee will recommend to the parliament the Kyrgyzstan ratify the Hague adoption convention.
The full Parliament is expected to discuss adoptions soon.

· According to recent press reporting, the Kyrgyz government has opened nine criminal cases, three involving U.S. adoptions that have been completed and the children are now living in the United States. In general in Kyrgyz criminal matters, the prosecutor or police collect evidence and, if appropriate, refer the matter to the courts, who then decide to proceed with prosecution or dismiss the allegations. The Embassy is aware that local adoption facilitators have been questioned, but It is unclear at this time if the courts have made any decisions about prosecution or are waiting for further investigations to be completed.

· The U.S. Embassy has not received an official notification or request from the Kyrgyz government regarding these investigations. Unofficial contacts have indicated to the Embassy that in their judgment it is unlikely that any adoptions will receive a final approval until these criminal investigations have been completed and a decision has been made regarding possible prosecution. The Embassy will attempt to get official confirmation.

· The Embassy is in contact with an organization called UpLift, which is currently working in Tokmok and Bishkek orphanages and may be able to provide services for and information about children at these orphanages. We understand that some adoptive parents may already be in contact with individuals who work for this organization. We anticipate we will be able to provide information by the time of the conference call.

· At every meeting, the Embassy continues to press Kyrgyz officials on the importance of resolving these cases as promptly as possible in the best interests of the Kyrgyz children.

The meeting confirmed much of what we already have known. The general sense is that Kyrgyzstan will reopen their adoption program and that the atmosphere is generally supportive. There continues to be no time estimate of when this will happen. The officials explained that the process is complicated because it involves multiple different government branches and that the Kyrgyzstan government is disorganized and complicated. The US officials identified what they were doing to promote resolution but clearly stated that they are limited due to soverienty of the Kyrgyzstan government. They also highlighted the Kyrgyzstan officials can be sensitive to slights and that caution needed to be taken in addressing these issues. The current focus will be on educating Kyrgyz officials as to why American desire to adopt and on the success stories of completed adoptions. The Consular reassured families that all adoptions that have been completed to date have been legal according to US standards. The Embassy investigates each case to confirm the legal status of the child and that no child trafficking is occurring. They believe that the primary legal issue being investigated is whether the children were made available for domestic adoption prior to consideration for international adoption as mandated by law. The officials also believe that Kyrgyzstan will ratify The Hague Convention.

According to our people on the ground there is considerable confusion going on with the investigations. This will likely take some time to sort out and everyone is going to be reluctant to move forward until the legal issues are resolved. Hopefully the adoption committee will move forward with the changes quickly. We will continue to monitor the situation and let you know as we get additional information.

Recent update on Kyrgyzstan

Dear Kyrgyzstan Families:

I have heard through the Joint Council that the findings of the adoption committee were presented to Parliament. The presentation was fair and well received. The presentation did address child trafficking and encouraged prosecution of the orphanage directors and officials that have been implicated in these situations. The Vice-Premier defended American adoptions encouraging the continuation of adoptions to American families. There was also emphasis placed on compliance with post-adoption reporting for continuation of the program. All of our families that have previously adopted have been in compliance with the post-adoption reporting.
Additionally it does appear that the Parliament will move towards ratification of the Hague Convention. What this will likely mean is that for those families that have already filed their I-600A they will be grandfathered under that current non-Hague regulations and for those that file after Kyrgyzstan ratifies the Hague Convention you will need to file the I-800A. The Hague Convention process is much more intensive in cost, effort and documentation so I encourage that anyone who has not filed their I-600A do so before this is ratified. I do not have a date as to when this will occur.
As you know this is good news that they have finally presented their findings. This is a step towards reopening their adoptions. We will follow these developments and update you as we get more information. I know that there is a tentative meeting scheduled with the State Dept for the families that are suspended on April 15th. I will let you know what is discussed during this meeting. Please let me know if you have any questions regarding this update.

Warm regards,

Brent

Brent E. Yoder, LCSW
Executive Director

Vaccination information

There has been a recent recommendation that all contacts of new internationally adopted kids should have Hepatitis A vaccination because of recent cases of families being exposed after arrival. Previously, it was just recommended for people traveling to developing countries, now it should be given to everyone who will take care of the child - siblings, grandparents, etc. This would be good information to include in your newsletter.

Michelle Dern, M.D.
www.elcaminopediatrics.com

Kyrgyzstan Update

Dear Kyrgyzstan Families:

I have attached below the latest communication from the US embassy in Kyrgyzstan. They confirm that the adoption process is supported and that it is a matter of when they will move forward. I think it significant that the Consular indicates “certainly not this week”. I would hear this as they think this could happen soon but again no one knows at this time. Let us all hope this is soon. I will keep you informed as we receive new information.

Warm regards,
Brent Brent E. Yoder, LCSW

As you may know the Parliament convened a special adoption commission to investigate the cases. Now the Parliament should discuss findings of this commission among 3 committees: Safety and Security, Migration and Children’s issues. After that the findings and recommendations will be discussed by the whole chamber and the Parliament will elaborate recommendations to the Government. According to our contacts, the adoption commission has changed its originally negative attitude, it sounds much more benevolent now. Its prediction is that eventually everything will be fine – however it is hard to predict when, certainly not this week. Government in its own turn is waiting for completion of Parliament’s work on adoptions. At the same time the Government is revising adoption regulations and working out provisional measures for 65 pipeline families. We have notified both Government and Parliament of immigration procedures and benefits for adoptive children. Currently we are closely cooperating with the General Prosecutor's office which is investigating a few fraudulent adoption cases, by providing it with explanation of adoption procedures for U.S. parents. We continue working with the MFA regarding authenticatio fees for adoptive parents.
Sincerely
Consular section

Home Study Fingerprint Requirement changes

The Federal government passed the Adam Walsh Act that requires more stringent criminal processing for applicants. The State of California has interpreted this change to mean that applicants must have an FBI clearance in addition to their California Department of Justice and their Child Abuse Clearance. In the past we have relied upon the FBI clearance done as part of your USCIS I-600A application. The State's interpretation along with the Hague requirements that all criminal clearances must be done prior to home study submission does not allow us to avoid this. Sadly this means you will have to get two FBI clearances to get your approval.

Russia children availability for adoption

We have heard the rumor that Russia has stopped their adoption program or they are having horrible times, or that there are no children available. As with many rumors they are not true or have some partial truth that gets distorted. This is good time to adopt from Russia as long as you are flexible. The wait for infant girls can be long but for infant boys there is only a small waiting period. This past month our agency has had to decline several opportunities for boys because we did not have enough families. Even for an infant girl we have one region that it is likely that we can either get girls over 18 months almost immediately or younger girls within a few months. This particular region while having children readily available is a complex region that requires families to be flexible. If anyone wants to discuss availability please feel free to call us.

Russia supports international adoptions to US

The following is an excert from Moscownews.com:
Russia refuses to prohibit adoptions into the US19 Mar 2009, 12:11 PM Russian Parliament has refused to ban adoptions of its orphans by American nationals. The measure was suggested by a Communist MP, bitter about the December acquittal of a US father responsible for the death of his adopted son from Russia . Adoption into the US should be banned, even if temporarily, Nina Ostanina was quoted by Newsru.com website as telling the meeting of State Duma, the lower chamber of Russian Parliament. Between 1996 and 2008, 15 Russian children adopted by Americans died. In 14 cases through the fault of their new parents. At the same time, the US remains the largest adopter of Russian children; for instance, in 2007, 4,536 Russian children were adopted abroad, 3,468 of them into the United States . The projected bill was rejected by most MPs. Instead, a decision was made to develop a standard agreement between Russia and the adopting state, allowing to establish better control over the child’s life after the adoption. The issue of foreign adoptions stands sharp in Russia , where the number of orphans was estimated at 800,000 in October 2008. Of these children, 80 percent were so-called social orphans, rejected by their biological parents or taken from them by legal decision. But foreign help in this matter is regarded as controversial, especially in view of the recent case of American Miles Harrison, who was in December found not guilty of involuntary manslaughter of his 21-month-old adopted Russian son. Harrison left the child in his car unattended in hot weather, causing the child’s death from overheating. The acquittal was officially condemned by Russia ’s Foreign Ministry.

Change in processing I-600 in Russia

We received notice from the US Embassy in Moscow that they will be changing their processing procedures for the I-600 approval. The task of approval has been the responsibility of the USCIS but had been passed on to the State Department employees stationed at the embassies. The USCIS will be reassuming this responsibility as of April 1, 2009 in Moscow. What this means to families presenting their adopted children for final approval and requesting visas to bring their children home is that they will have an additional step than those prior. We hope this will not mean delays but it could possibly lengthen your final trip. What families need to be aware of is that there will be more scrutiny of the medical issues, ages, gender, and number of chilldren matching their home study approval. If they do not match a home study update will be required and a new I-171H given by their local USCIS. We are currently working on procedures to streamline this process.

Kyrgyzstan update

March 20th was the published date for presenting the recommendations for international adoptions to the Parliament from the adoption panel. The recommendations were not presented and have been placed on hold due to a new political crisis in Kyrgyzstan. One of the members of Parliament has assassinated recently while secretly traveling from Kazakhstan back to Kyrgyzstan. This assassination has many underlying political implications and has resulted in an investigation of key government officials. This crisis has taken precedence over the adoption issue, which has been postponed without comment on when it will be considered again. I know this is not the news you all hoped for. I hope that this will not be a long delay and that we get resolution soon. We will continue to monitor the situation. As one of our families so clearly stated, "Is anyone considering the children?'

Trips in April

Three of our families will be traveling next month. Congratulations to those families who have their first trips to Russia scheduled in April. We wish you a safe and joyous trip!

March update

Adoption Options wishes the best of luck to our family who will have their court hearing in Orenburg, Russia during the first week of April!

March update

Congratulations to our 3 families who brought their beautiful children home from Russia in March! The children are from the Kirov, Yekaterinburg and Kazan regions.

Informational Meetings in San Diego and Other Counties

Our San Diego Informational Meeting is on Thursday, February 19, 2009 at 6:30 pm.
We also have couple of Informational Meetings scheduled in the Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. For more information, please visit our website at www.adoption-options.org and click on the 'Event' link.

St. Patrick's Day Family Festival San Diego

AO was invited to participate in the parade that will take place on Saturday March 14, 2009. This year the theme is Celebrating Children’s Services: Adoption, Fostering, and Mentoring. The Parade begins at 11 am at 6th and Juniper.

This event will be a wonderful opportunity for AO to make the public aware of our work, international adoptions, and bring out our families and volunteers for a fun day. After the parade, roam about the festival area and visit vending booths with assortments of Irish and other goods, information booths, food vendors, and kid’s zone.

If you are interested in participating in the parade while representing AO, please contact Lori Weiner at (619) 249-7772 or lori@adoption-options.org. We will send out more information regarding this event via email.

USCIS changes for filing I-600A in San Diego

You can still submit the application in person on Tuesdays between 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. to the locations below OR mail it via CERTIFIED MAIL (with return receipt requested) or FedEx to:

For the last names that start with A-M:
ATTN: Margaret Porcelli, Orphan Unit
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
880 Front Street, Room 1209
San Diego, CA 92101-8834

For the last names that start with N-Z:
ATTN: Nancy Guerrero or Connie Flores, Orphan Unit
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
1261 3rd Avenue, Suite A
Chula Vista, CA 91911

AO Newsletter

Our Winter Newsletter has been published on our website. Click on the link to access the newsletter http://www.adoption-options.org/current.htm

We will email our future newsletters instead of mailing them out. Please contact us if you would like to see the photos of your kids in our next issue or if you have a story to share!!

Chinese New Year Celebration!!

Families with Children from China- San Diego - is putting together a New Year Celebration on February 21, 2009 from 11:00a.m.- 2:30 p.m. at

Chinese Community Church
4998 Via Valarta
San Diego, CA 92124

If you would like more information or if you want to RSVP, please email Madeline Hailey no later than February 13, 2009 at MadelineHailey@aol.com

Weekly update

There is an Informational Meeting today at AO office in San Diego that starts at 6:30pm.

We are getting a steady flow of referrals from Russia at this point. One family is finishing court this week, and one family came back from their first trip to Russia.

Our Executive Director is working on opening a program in Colombia.

Joint Council Webinar:The Role of the U.S. Government in Intercountry Adoptions

• Are you interested in learning what role the U.S. Government plays in your adoption?

• Do you want to learn how you can advocate for your child and prevent unnecessary delays in the adoption process?

• Do you want to hear directly from your key U.S. government representative?

• Join the Joint Council on International Children’s Services, a leading child welfare advocate, for a January 29th Webinar designed for you!

The Role of the U.S. Government in Intercountry Adoptions:
A Joint Council Webinar
January 29th - 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Featuring speakers from the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services and the
U.S. National Benefits Center
Cost: $20 per Family
Register online at http://www.jcics.org/Webinars.htm

REGISTRATION DEADLINE:
January 23 (if paying online); January 21 (if paying by check)

AO groups in January

Our "Waiting Families" group will be in January 14, 2009. The Pre-travel group will be on January 21, 2009. Please remember to RSVP for the groups.

We are excited to announce that the 3rd annual Russian story telling and potluck will be held on February 25 at the Mission Valley library. Please RSVP and let us know what you will be bringing.

Please refer to our website for group dates and times.

December-January update

We have six families traveling to Russia in January. Kyrgyzstan program will be re-opening this month as well, and we anticipate that some of our families will travel to pick their children in January-February 2009.