The USA Govemerment : Adoptions of Nepalese children has suspended
The United States announced Friday it has suspended adoptions of Nepalese children in their countries, saying failure of the system used in Nepal to determine if the children had been abandoned.
The State Department and immigration authorities have issued a joint statement indicating they had "decided to suspend discussions on the submission of new adoption applications and issuing visas for children" presented as abandoned.
A spokesman for the State Department, Rosemary MaCray, told AFP that all procedures were de facto frozen.
The statement said that American officials responsible for studying the procedures have often been confronted with documents "unreliable", including birth certificates had been "altered or falsified."
They also reported having had difficulty contacting the Nepali officials cited in the documents.
Ms. MaCray indicated that about 80 cases of adoption were underway before the suspension, saying they would be considered on a case by case basis.
In March, U.S. authorities had already warned their citizens about the adoptions of Nepalese children, citing "serious concerns" about the procedures.
Nepal has introduced new legislation in this area in 2008 after reports citing numerous violations by unscrupulous agents, taking advantage of child trafficking.
Posted by Learning Foreign Exchange
on 9:37 PM.
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