September 7, 2007

Happy Birthday Maya. You are 18 weeks old today!

No new pictures or medical update as of yet. I guess it will be next week (hopefully). This weekend is the Presidential Election in Guatemala and they have implemented a holiday on Monday due to that. This election could be very important for the status of future adoptions as the current president is anti-adoption and causing a lot of trouble. Please pray for good news for adoptions. Then Friday the 14th is Gautemala's Independence Day so all offices are closed again. So it looks like I have Tuesday through Thursday to possibly receive new pictures.

Here is an update on the situation in Guatemala regarding adoptions. It is all really scary and makes me remember just how up the air things really are. I know this is long but I want everyone to have the information and be in prayer that I will be able to bring Maya home as soon as possible. I don't know how people who don't believe in God survive adoption...the WHOLE process is such an act of Faith.

Mr. Tom DiFilipo, President of the Joint Council for International Children's Services (JCICS) sent this message out to all JCICS member agencies
"Dear Colleagues,
The right to permanency through intercountry adoption continues to be challenged by a variety of factors in Guatemala. Hague implementation, competing legislative initiatives, nation wide elections, government raids on social service providers, negative press, ethics concerns and pressure from the international community, all give the immediate future of ICA in Guatemala a very unstable and uncertain platform. Given the increasing uncertainties and in assessing the current and future environment within the Guatemalan adoption arena, Joint Council again strongly recommends that all adoption service providers reassess their programming efforts within the following context.
1. The Guatemalan Congress reaffirmed the Hague Convention with an effective date of January 1, 2008.
2. The Berger administration continues to demonstrate a desire to significantly alter or eliminate intercountry adoption; most recently demonstrated through the raid on Casa Quivira.
3. The Berger administration leaves office on January 14, 2008, 13 days after the Hague Convention goes into force in Guatemala.
4. Based on the aggressive posture demonstrated by the Berger administration and the 13 day window, the possibility exists that the Berger administration may attempt to alter the ICA process.
5. The Guatemalan congress is currently reviewing adoption legislation, most specifically 3217 (with the changes recommended through the technical assistance provided by the Hague Permanent Bureau and other governments such as Colombia). Passage of this legislation, while not assured, would none the less significantly alter the current ICA process. Current cases in the Guatemalan process may or may not be "grandfathered" and it remains an uncertain issue.
6. While the `grandfather' clause in the US IAA does provide for the completion of `pipeline' cases, it does not provide any protection against significant changes to the Guatemalan ICA process.
7. Client families who have applied with USCIS can have their cases transferred to another country program. The significant risks to agencies, families and children begin when the referral is made and accepted.
It can be noted that current efforts include amendments to both 3536 and 3217 providing for a continuation of the current ICA process (a `grandfather clause'); however this assumes that either piece of legislation is actually passed by Congress. It can also be noted that separate legislation could be introduced which would extend the effective date of the Hague Convention for a specific period of time (i.e. 30-90 days).
In assessing this information, one can easily draw the conclusion that the Guatemalan ICA process will be significantly altered as early as January 2008 and no later than March 2008. Assuming that most adoptions from referral to finalization can easily exceed 6 months and in some cases extend over 12 months, it can be concluded that referrals issued in the third and fourth quarters of 2007 may face a very uncertain conclusion.
Of significant concern is the potential for unresolved pipeline cases. USCIS reports no slow down in new applications. Through July, I-600A applications continue at over 400 per month with most being identified with a small percentage of agencies.
It is not outside the realm of possibilities that should this pace continue, over 2,000 cases may be unable to proceed to completion. This leads to yet another concern related to an adoption service provider's capacity to sustain services to children and adoptive parents over a prolonged period which may include legal challenges. It is the recommendation of Joint Council that all agencies again reassess their programming and take the appropriate action to minimize your organizational liabilities, to avoid the problems seen in Cambodia, Romania and recently in Nepal and most importantly to safeguard the best interest of client-families, birthparents and the children we serve.
In a related matter, Joint Council, with the cooperation and support of the Joint Council Guatemala Caucus, issued a letter to President Berger regarding our significant concerns over the recent raid of Casa Quivera. Joint Council called for an immediate halt to such raids, a transparent accounting of all children and the prompt resolution of each case."