All of the families with adoptions pending in Guatemala have been on pins and needles waiting for the new Guatemalan Adoption Law to be passed by the Guatemalan Congress. This legislation was necessary for Guatemala to comply with The Hague Convention on InterCountry Adoption which is an international treaty that governs intercountry adoptions. Not all countries have to abide by it (For example, Ethiopia does not), but if you do choose to, you have to set up laws in your country that are consistent with the Hague. There are a lot of different opinions on whether The Hague is good for children or not. I am not an expert by any means, but my opinion is that it has not done a good job protecting children around the world. I do not think it will be positive for future children from Guatemala. The main objection I have is that it is so ethno-centric. It is built on the fundamental belief that all children should be raised by parents from the same ethnic background where at all possible. That fundamental pillar translates into country specific laws that will discourage intercountry adoptions. When 75% of a country's citizens are living at or below poverty like in Guatemala, I think it is naiive and unrealistic to think that there is a large supply of Guatemalan families that can adopt children. I worry about where the children will go if Guatemala does not provide adequate foster/orphanage care for children in need. Today, the foster care system is totally private and not supported by the government at all.
Finally, on December 11, the new Guatemalan Adoption Law was approved by the Guatemalan Congress. What does this mean for me and my adoption of Abby specifically? It still depends on how "in process" cases are defined. But, I am very optimistic that I am far enough along in the process to be considered "in process" under any scenario. All that is required is that my case will need to be registered with the Central Authority in Guatemala by January 30th in order to continue under the laws in effect at the time they were started. My adoption is one of 50+ cases that my agency has in process in Guatemala, and they believe that ALL of us will be allowed to continue our adoption under the old rules.
Bottom line - I have mixed feelings. I think the law will slow or stop intercountry adoptions from Guatemala in the future, but the law may allow me to bring Abby home in 2008. For that reason alone, December 11th was a very good day. Emotions are still up and down because there are always questions about what something means, and it takes weeks/months to get answers, but all in all, I feel much more confident that things are going to work out.
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