In the middle of this month, the Chinese Consulate General in Sydney held a special "open day" event. The Australian Family Association for adoptive Chinese Children, 12 adoptive Chinese children and more than 150 teachers and students from local Chinese schools.
The blonde Australian parents with yellow skin and black eyes of Chinese children, such a special family group suddenly attracted curious attention. In addition to curiosity, people pay more praise to Australian parents for their great love and boundless behavior.
Ms. Karen, president of the Australian Adoption China Children's Association interviewed by this newspaper, said that in recent years, more than 1000 children from China have been adopted by Australian families, and many children have been leave China at a very young age. Even then they could not speak, but foster families wanted the children to know: "although they grew up in Australia, it was the blood of ancient Chinese civilization. "
Two channels for adoption of Chinese children
Ms. Cullen, president of the Australian Adoption China Children's Association (FCC,), known as Families With Children From China), has adopted a girl herself from China. As a spontaneous, non-profit community organization, the association has been supporting and helping Australian families adopt children from China, Hong Kong and TW. Three years after the association was founded in 2004, Karen joined the association and served as its chairman.
``Applying for overseas adoption is a long and difficult waiting process, but thinking of the past four years of adoption experience, all the previous hard wait is worth it, children change our life, '' says Karen said, overseas adoption can be divided into two processes, one is in Australia, the domestic application, finally confirming you are eligible adopter, then waiting for the country to allocate the appropriate adoption children, '' I have waited about 5 years, '' Karen said.
"adoption is a good way for parents who can't have their own children, and it can also help children who need care and a good and stable living environment, and it's a win-win opportunity. "Karun told journalist that families with adoptive intentions can apply to government agencies at the state level, and then the social union will visit to learn more about the adoptive family, for example, the basic situation of the couple. Why adopt and whether there is enough economic ability to adopt and so on. In addition to communicating with social workers, adoptive parents have to take regular training courses to learn how to soothe and communicate with their adopted children if they have experienced traumatic pain before. "you know, Many children have been abandoned, how to get them out of the shadows, to welcome a new life is also adopted families need to learn. "
These learning and application processes take about a year or two. If you pass all the assessments, you will be identified by the Australian government as a "qualified adoptive family," and then prepare a "no criminal record certificate." Material such as income certificate. Data on adoptive families will also be sent to China's civil affairs department, waiting to be allocated appropriate children. "We waited three years for this process," Ms. Cullen said.
The Australian Association for the adoption of Chinese Children has joined more than 300 families across Australia, most of them adopted children from China, Karan said, adding that the Australian Association for the Adoption of Chinese Children has joined more than 300 families across Australia, the vast majority of which have adopted children from China. "according to my estimates, about 1000 Chinese children have been adopted by Australian families."
There are roughly two channels for Australian families to adopt children in China, Karen told the journalist: one, known as the "Adoption of Children without Special needs" program, which reached its peak in 2005. Most of these children are orphans or abandoned children, and there are no relatives in China, because according to international practice, children to be adopted will not be adopted by overseas families if they can find an adoptive family in the host country. This adoption channel has fallen sharply in recent years, in part because there are too many applicants, and families who want to adopt children without special needs now have to wait at least seven years before they can be assigned to their children.
The other channel is called the "adoption of children with special needs" program, which has gradually won the favor of overseas families after the waiting time of the previous scheme has been greatly extended, and has become the main source of adoption of Chinese children by overseas families. These children tend to suffer from some kind of congenital disease, and the program has a much shorter waiting time than the previous one, and in the fastest case, within a few months, it will be allocated to the right child.
Karen's daughter, leave China when she was two, has lived with the Karen couple for four years this year. When it comes to her daughter, Karen's love is overflowing. "although I've been waiting for more than five years, I feel like it's a gift from God, and all the waiting is worth it."
Although Karen's daughter can only speak a few simple sentences of Chinese compared to fluent English, in order to let her daughter know that she is a Chinese, Karen will celebrate with the whole family at the arrival of traditional Chinese festivals. For example, making dumplings.
"I can't lie to the child that we are her biological parents because of her different looks, but all we can do is tell her the real situation, that is, although she was born in China, she was raised in Australia, and we raised her. We treated her as if we had come out of her own way. "
In addition to celebrating every traditional Chinese festival, Karun also asked her daughter to attend the Chinese school on the weekend. She hoped that her daughter could speak Chinese and write Chinese. Don't forget language, the most cultural element of identity.
It is understood that the bilateral agreement on intercountry adoption between China and Australia was signed by the Ministry of Civil Affairs of China and the Australian government in 1999. The China Adoption Center is an international public welfare agency entrusted by the Ministry of Civil Affairs of China in charge of foreign-related adoptions. Over the past 10 years, with the efforts of China and Australia, more and more orphan and disabled children in China have been adopted by Australian families. The adopted Chinese children come from welfare institutions all over the country. Australian families who wish to adopt can adopt Chinese children by submitting documents such as health certificate, property certificate, no criminal record certificate and so on, which are approved by the government of the two countries.
The new state plans to reform law in the hope that families will adopt more local children
The new state government plans to reform the adoption of law so that new states eager to adopt local children can adopt (Adopt) or raise (Foster) as soon as possible, and those who need a stable family. New state family director Goward (Pru Goward) said plans to amend the conservation bill (Care Act) will be presented to parliament in the next few weeks, aimed at significantly increasing the number of successful adoptions in the new state each year.
Last year, only 78 families in the new state successfully adopted local children, and many disappointed families in the new state were trapped in waiting too long, so they also looked overseas, such as China, Africa and South America.
According to Director Goward's proposal, the new reform measures will reduce the tedious application process and give the court more authority, using "adoption" as a permanent means for adoptive families to take care of "forgotten" local children. Instead of letting children live in foster homes for the time being, they return to their biological parents when things get better.
According to Australian law, judge, priority should be given to returning adopted children to their parents or relatives before deciding where they belong. Director Goward said she hoped the parliament would take her recommendations seriously into account to simplify the flow of adoption of local children by Australian families through these change, rather than "drive" them overseas. "more and more children are waiting to be adopted in Australia, and they, like overseas children, need to be cared for by their families. "said Director Goward.
In Australia's care law, adoption is divided into two categories: adopting (Adopt) or raising (Foster). Adoption, as a long-term and permanent means, is favored by adoptive families, who can change the name of their children. Live with adopted children like their own children. Upbringing is a short-term temporary means of adoption. Children have to live in foster families because of the unexpected situation of their own parents. When the time is right, they will return to their parents again. In some cases, Children can choose between 18-year-old adults, leave foster family.
At present, 18000 children in the new state hope to find a "permanent" home, and more than 1/3 children have even stayed in more than three families. For these children, a long-term and stable living environment is what they need most.
Barnados Australia News speaker, Australia's largest adoption agency, supports the reform in the new state, government, in the hope that it will make adoption easier and faster. "the previous law preferred children to stay in foster care until the age of 18 and then choose leave, but the new amendment proposes to choose permanent adoption so that adoptive families can treat them as their own children. Not just to take care of a certain point in time. "
But even if the new law is approved, it will not be easy to implement, because the consent of the biological parents is required for permanent adoption, although many parents do not have the ability to raise their children. But not willing to sign the consent form, it is not easy for them to think about the relationship.
Therefore, Director Goward also proposed to explore a new way out of "open adoption", that is, although the child and the adoptive family live together, they can still maintain a certain degree of contact with the biological parents. But it is unclear whether this approach will lead to new ethics problems.
Li Huaxin sends a message about adopted Chinese Children: contributing to the Friendship between China and Australia
At the opening day of the consulate general, Li Huaxin, the Chinese consul general in Sydney, said the adopted children had not been able to grow up in China, but China's government never forgot them and was always concerned about their growth. The open day provides children with an opportunity to feel China at close range and hopes to further strengthen ties between the consulate general and adoptive families. The Consulate General will maintain close contact with the Family Association for adoptive Chinese Children and parents, and is willing to provide all possible help and services.
Li Huaxin thanked the Australian Association for adopting Chinese Children. They said they had done a "great job". Li Huaxin said: "in 1999, China and Australia formally signed a bilateral agreement on intercountry adoption and began cooperation in the field of intercountry adoption. For more than a decade, your work change the fate of countless Chinese children and add color to the lives of countless Australian parents. I would also like to thank the parents who adopted Chinese children in particular. I am also a father, knowing that it is not easy to raise children. You also have to overcome many difficulties, such as language, culture and life habits, and are destined to pay more effort and sweat than the average parent. Thank you for taking good care of you, for the good life and education you provide to the children, so that they can grow up so healthy and lively. What is even more rare is that you respect the origin of your children and are willing to help them learn Chinese culture. We are moved by the love and tolerance embodied in them. "
Li Huaxin also cited the famous saying in ancient Chinese ethics books 2500. The famous saying``People don't belong to their own parents, not their children's sons'' , saying that the adoptive families have practiced the spirit of love in this sentence with their own practical actions.
Li Huaxin said that although these children grew up in Australia, there is the blood of ancient Chinese civilization in their veins. "I hope you will grow up to be self-reliant and able to assume responsibility for your family, community and state. If you go any further, I hope you can make your own contribution to enhancing the friendship between China and Australia. "
What is the risk of overseas adoption?
Of course, there are many advantages to overseas adoption, but at the same time, there are also many risks. Each adoptive family applying for it needs to know that:
1. There is no guarantee that you will be able to pass the application smoothly in the final stage of your application and then adopt it overseas.
2. The procedures for the implementation of overseas adoption plans or the applicant's conditions may be change at any time;
3. The background information you get about the child from the adoptive country may be incomplete or inaccurate;
4. The timing of the application was unpredictable, and even if it was passed in Australia, the trial time in the adoptive country could not be estimated;
5. It is not easy to raise a foreign child;
What is the current situation of orphans in China?
In 2009, the number of orphans in China reached 712000, according to a nationwide survey on the status of orphans launched by the Ministry of Civil Affairs of China. According to the 2009 Civil Affairs Development Statistics report released by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, a total of 44260 adoptions were registered in China in 2009, and 39801 adoptions were registered in China. For a country of 1.4 billion people and 712000 orphans, less than 50, 000 children are able to have families again, of which nearly 10 percent are helped by foreign parents.
Chinese adopters are more qualified to adopt healthy orphans than foreigners, the biggest difference is that Chinese adopters must have no children.
If I am single, can I adopt overseas children?
Many countries with bilateral adoption agreements with Australia do not accept applications for adoption by single persons. In some countries, applications from single women may be accepted, but in terms of priority, they are still behind husband and wife applicants.
