Current News on Ethiopian Abandonment Cases

2011-02-11T09:01:00.001-07:00

A European agency reports today that MOWA has approved the adoptions of 63 children from the Gambela region (for various agencies, not just European) that were pending since December. They are now waiting for court dates.

BFAS

2011-02-08T19:55:00.002-07:00

From adoption.state.gov:

February 8, 2011

On December 9, 2010, the Government of Ethiopia revoked the Better Futures Adoption Services’ registration to operate in Ethiopia because of the organization’s misuse of its license in activities concerning the welfare of children.

The U.S. Embassy strongly recommends that prospective adoptive parents who have entered into an agreement with Better Futures Adoption Services, or who are planning to adopt through Better Futures Adoption Services, seek the advice of a legal professional.

The Embassy's Adoptions Unit can be reached at consadoptionaddis@state.gov.

Please continue to monitor http://adoption.state.gov/ for updated information as it becomes available.

2011-01-14T06:52:00.002-07:00

From a European PAP, concerning the meeting held on the 13th:

"They have decided to take off all the referrals with both birth parents alive. At least my agency had 7 families that have been informed. Now they are asking for death certificate but, at the moment, suppossed to go on with adoptions with at least one birth parent alive..."

This may only affect this particular agency and/or country; please let us know if your agency says their referrals are similarly affected.

2011-01-11T11:09:00.006-07:00

From a PAP using a non-US agency:

"They have 'stopped' all the adoptions of children with at least one of biological parents alive...It's going to be a meeting in Addis this thursday 13th between Ministry and MOWA to clear it up...
On the other hand, adoptions from Gambella region are also stopped as they need an aproval from the Gambela president."

More from this European agency about the Gambella region:
"About Gambela orphanage: they need regional approval for each orphanage and this next friday, at least Selam Orphanage will have this approval in MOWA at Addis Abeba."

*Please note that I simply pass on what agencies around the world are telling their clients, when asked.

1/12/11 update:
A US agency with a care center in Addis recently received approval from the President of Gambela to complete adoptions. A representative inspected their care center last month. Also, this agency has not heard (or told their clients) that there will be any additional stipulations on adoptions, such as children with a living parent being unavailable for adoption.

Birth family court dates

2010-10-21T18:16:00.002-06:00

It seems that several agencies have been told that the birth family hearing and adoptive family hearing will now be held (at different times) on the same day. Though at least 2 US agencies with recently assigned court dates were still given two separate dates as in the past, others have already started to receive one single date for both the birth family hearing and the court hearing that adoptive parents are required to attend.

Court Re-Opening

2010-08-24T07:43:00.002-06:00

A couple agencies are saying court will resume on Monday, September 27, with others saying it's closed through the 27th and re-opening on Tuesday the 28th.

US Embassy staff shortage

2010-07-06T22:49:00.002-06:00

At least 2 different US agencies have told their clients that embassy dates have recently been cut in half. This is supposedly due to a staff shortage at the US Embassy (unknown if its just for the summer or permanent). This change was announced suddenly, and some families with previously assigned embassy dates have recently been told their appointments have been pushed back.

2010-06-10T23:49:00.003-06:00

A US agency has given an update concerning the situation in the Oromio/Oromia region:

-They believe the MOWA office for the Oromio region is still officially closed.

-Despite this branch of MOWA being closed, they have written the necessary letters for this particular agency's paper-ready children. [We can assume it is likely they have done or will do the same for other agencies.]

-MOWA will be implementing new procedures for this region, and last Friday they gave some training about these procedures to all orphanages in the Oromio region (20 orphanages have been shut down in Oromio, hopefully reopening soon with the new procedures in place.)

-This particular agency has not yet received any court dates for people who will need to be present at the court hearing under the new court system. They asked the court when they think new court dates will be issued, but they wouldn't give them a timeline.

More on the 9 orphanages and the Oromia hold

2010-05-06T07:04:00.003-06:00

Here are the locations of 7 of the 9 orphanages with revoked licenses, if this is of interest to anyone (as far as we can tell, the licenses have not been restored yet.)

Adera Child- located in Addis
Almaz- located in Nazareth/Adama (Misraq Shewa Zone of the Oromia region)
Biruh Zemen- located in Sebeta (Debub Mirab Shewa Zone of the Oromia region)
Help for the Needy- the branch located in Zeway/Ziway/Zway (Misraq Shewa Zone of the Oromia region)
Holy Savior- located in Wonji/Wenji (Misraq Shewa Zone of the Oromia region)
Kunket/Kunkeet- located in Addis
Tsega- located in Addis

*The only two that have been verified by an adoption agency are Biruh Zemen and Help for the Needy. The others are according to adoptive parents with children from those orphanages.

As you can see, several of the orphanages are in the same zone of the Oromia region. The Oromia region has been a problem area for adoptions for awhile now. According to PAPs from various agencies (these apply to Oromia region only):
-New adoption guidelines will be introduced after the May elections
-The regional MOWA office is closed
-Several orphanages are having licensing trouble, as seen above
-Paperwork is not being completed for some referred children, probably due to the MOWA office being closed

To read comments discussing the situation, see this post.

9 orphanages have had their licenses revoked

2010-04-13T11:34:00.003-06:00

The nine are:

Adera Child
Agar Lewegen
Almaz
Biruh Zemen
Bitania
Help for the Needy
Holy Savior
Kunket
Tsega

If your child is from one of these orphanages, you should have already been informed. From the reports I have seen, this is not an issue of children being illegally obtained, and the children from these orphanages will still be available for adoption. They are being moved to licensed orphanages.

Update on Parents Attending Court-4/13 update

2010-03-31T19:50:00.005-06:00

Several agencies confirm that a meeting to discuss the new rule change happened earlier today (Wednesday). At least 2 US agencies are reporting that the rule that parents must now be present for their prospective children's court hearings will go into affect on May 9, 2010. Any case filed for court by May 8th, regardless of when the court date actually is, will be exempt.

4/11 update:

A vast majority of US agencies have confirmed the new rule, with most stating May 9th as the effective date. At least 2 have stated that they are hopeful there will be a POA exception for families where only one parent can travel, but it seems nothing has been confirmed on that.

There is some discrepency on who will be exempt from the rule, with many saying that a case just needs to have their paperwork and court application submitted prior to the May 9th deadline, and with at least one agency saying a family will have needed to pass court before May 9th.

One agency has recently given a list of requirements for exemption. Before May 9th:
1) The family’s dossier must be in Ethiopia
2) The family must be USCIS approved and [this particular agency] must have a copy of the I-171-H on file
3) The family must have a referral
4) The child’s documents must be complete
5) Second medicals must have been done and approved
6) Child’s documents and family’s dossier must have been submitted to court

If your agency gives you any further clarification on this new rule, please feel free to post it in the comment section or email me. Thanks!

4/13 update
The US State Department has announced the new change in Ethiopian adoptions:

The Federal First Instance Court of Ethiopia has announced that as of May 9, 2010, adoptive parents must appear at the federal court hearing for their adoptive child in order for the adoption to be approved. This new requirement will affect all pending and new adoption cases that have not yet been presented to the court. If there are two adoptive parents but only one parent can attend the hearing, the attending parent must have a power of attorney from the other. However, please note that if only one parent meets the adoptive child before the court date, the child will qualify for an IR-4, not an IR-3 visa (which means that the child will not become a U.S. citizen upon entry to the United States).

Gelgela Orphanage

2010-03-23T11:08:00.002-06:00

PEAR has posted some very important information regarding Gelgela Orphanage.

http://pear-now.blogspot.com/2010/03/ethiopia-gelgela-orphange.html

(Some agencies passed this information on to their clients at the time of the latest State Department update.)

Parents now required to attend court

2010-03-10T15:02:00.019-07:00

updated 3/31 11:30 am EST
As many of you know, an announcement was made today that adoptive parents are now required to be present at the court hearings of their prospective children. This has been verified so far by at least 7 US agencies. Several agencies are saying the change is due to the high number of families who choose not to bring their new children back home with them after passing court, despite the child being legally theirs. This new change is supposedly affective immediately, though there is some discrepancy on how this will affect cases with court dates already assigned. Some say it will and these dates will likely be postponed; one says it will not affect those with upcoming court dates.

*Additional info: It's believed that the parents will be required to testify in Ethiopian court that they are committed to the child and have a desire to adopt the child.

3/11 update
More conflicting information today. At least one agency reported that the sign/note indicating the change had been removed from the court, and a couple agencies have amended their announcements to say they aren't sure if or when the rule will go into effect. At least one US agency has stated that this information is just a false rumor, while at least two others have indicated that the rule is agency specific.

3/13 update
A family scheduled for court yesterday passed, and they say that several others from their agency have also passed since the announcement. The change is so far not effecting those with court dates already scheduled.

3/23 update
According to one US agency, any applications for court dates submitted prior to April 8th will be exempt from the new rule, regardless of when the actual court date takes place. For applications submitted to the court after April 8th, both parents will be required to attend the hearing in Ethiopia. They will give a statement to the court that they will adopt the referred child. If the court date gets postponed or the case does not pass for any reason, the adoptive parents will not be required to come back on the rescheduled date; their statement to the court will suffice.

3/24 update
One US agency is reporting that today a sign was posted at the court saying that the new rule of having families appear at court had been suspended, indefinitely. Another US agency says that the meeting to discuss the rule change has been postponed, not the rule itself.

3/30 update
At least 2 US agencies confirm that a meeting to discuss the two trip change was to take place today, Wednesday. If anyone has any information about the results of this meeting, please let us know!

2010-03-06T07:29:00.002-07:00

One US agency is saying that the new State department rule is currently only affecting children from one particular orphanage, and that the prospective parents of those children have been notified of the change to their process. If you are in process and have not been notified, they say the new change will probably not affect you.

*Note: The I-604 has been required for some time, with little impact on the adoption timeline.

State Department Adoption Notice

2010-03-05T21:31:00.004-07:00

(edited)
The United States has issued a statement regarding the I-604/orphan investigation of all children before an immigration visa can be issued. It is unclear at this time if they are requiring a more extensive investigation than what has been done previously.
http://adoption.state.gov/news/ethiopia.html

Also, Australia has recently decided to lift their suspension on Ethiopia adoptions. Details here.

Relinquishment hold in Oromia region

2010-02-02T09:39:00.001-07:00

An email:

We have been told since September that there is a "hold" on relinquishment cases (Oromo Region). Does anyone have any information about this. How long is this hold supposed to last?

Requiring parents to appear in court

2010-01-20T18:29:00.003-07:00

One US agency is reporting that the Ethiopian government is currently discussing the idea of requiring prospective adoptive parents to be present at their children's court hearings. This would mean either 2 trips for parents or an extended stay until embassy, and possibly the end of the escort and one parent traveling options. If anyone has any additional information to share, please feel free to email me or comment here.

2010-01-01T22:31:00.002-07:00

For those who have not yet read the story about one family's recent experience with adoption corruption, please see this blog post (posted with permission).

Relinquishment hold in the Assela region

2009-12-29T12:52:00.003-07:00

An email:

Two weeks ago we were told that the courts will not be hearing relinquishment cases in the Assela region. There is a hold due to MOWA revising their procedures and policies. Our case is the only one held up for our agency. I was wondering if there are any others out there. Our [children] are at the Numan Orphanage. Our referral was in September but we will not get a court date until they pass court regionally. Apparently the official court date isn't assigned until they are approved by their local MOWA and Courts. Then they will be transferred to the transition home and the Addis courts will hear their case.

If anyone is affected or has any information on this hold, I know this family would appreciate your response.

2009-11-30T17:49:00.000-07:00

An email I received:

My agency informed us on November 13th that our case, among five others within our agency, is caught up in a delay due to an investigation of the local government (I guess this is called the Kebele) in the district that our son came from before he was moved to our agency's orphanage. We were told that this investigation is in response to the negative press that was aired by the Australian BBC a couple of months ago. We were told that the investigation has been going on for quite some time, but they are not sure exactly when it started or exactly when it will end.

If anyone has any information about this investigation, please email me or post a comment. Thank you!

Embassy Dates

2009-11-01T21:54:00.001-07:00

Since the court re-opened, there has been talk of some new delays between court date and embassy/travel date. One US agency is saying it will now be 8 weeks from court to embassy, another is telling their clients to expect a 5-6 week wait (which for their agency is about 2 weeks longer than usual).

Similar to our court date list:
Those who have passed court after the October 2009 re-opening of the courts- please post when you passed court, and what your embassy date was or is expected to be. Hopefully we'll be able to get an idea of whether most people can expect a longer wait after court or if recent travel delays are more agency-specific. Thank you!

Court dates

2009-10-23T21:24:00.001-06:00

(post bumped)

It was requested that a post be started about court dates so people could get an idea of current dates being assigned. Please post your newly assigned court dates here, whether it's the first date or a reassigned date, and when you got your referral (to see if earlier cases are being given priority).

The latest date I have heard of so far is:
-November 25

Medhanialem Investigation

2009-10-23T05:57:00.002-06:00

Apparently the orphanage known as Medhanialem Children’s Help Association, which is thought to be a newer institution, is under investigation by the police, and holding up court dates of those whose children came from or are residing there.

It seems that authorities hope the investigation will be finished by the end of this month or beginning of next month, but if anyone has information concerning the investigation (when it started, why they are under investigation, when they expect it to be over, etc) please post here or contact me.

Courts open

2009-10-12T13:24:00.003-06:00

At least one US agency confirmed today the courts are now open. Good luck to those with court dates this week!

Updated: Another US agency announced today (10/13) that the courts are indeed open.

2009-09-30T15:19:00.003-06:00

The court has extended their closure due to training. Many with early October court dates have already been rescheduled for later in the month; the latest date I've heard so far is October 21st. Here are what agencies are saying about re-open dates (updated):

-In 2 weeks, no date given- 2 US agencies
-October 12- 2 US agencies
-October 13- 1 US agency

Re-opening of the courts

2009-09-29T15:35:00.005-06:00

At least two US agencies so far have announced that the courts have delayed their re-opening until Oct 12th or 13th due to training.

At least one US agency has announced that the court will be closed for another two weeks for training (no re-open date given)

1 US agency said recently that the courts will be opening back up on October 7th 2009.

(post edited)

Abandoned children without clearance letters

2009-09-19T09:51:00.002-06:00

An email:

"Are there any families that received referrals of children abandoned in Addis Ababa that meet all of the following criteria?

1. The children were referred before or during the ban
2. They had been reported to the police as abandoned BEFORE the ban, but
3. Had not completed their 60 day police clearances at the time the ban started

I would like to know if any of these adoptions have been processed and how many are still pending. We are in this category and know 3 others from the same orphanage that are as well and we are still waiting for our police clearances."

If you have any information regarding cases like this, please respond or email me. Thanks!

Ethiopia and singles

2009-09-18T19:59:00.006-06:00

At least 2 US agencies have reportedly told their clients that Ethiopia is now closed to single individuals wanting to adopt. It is believed that those with referrals will be able to complete the process.

edited: At least 1 European agency was told no more singles after Sep 2009, and at least one agency in the UK has reported that the UK is officially closed to singles.

From the Australian government:
Australia has received advice from the Ethiopian Ministry of Woman’s Affairs (MoWA) that no further adoption applications from single applicants will be accepted by the Ethiopian program. This applies to any potential applications from single persons yet to be approved by State and Territory Central Authorities, including those who have lodged adoption applications and are currently under assessment.

MoWA has agreed that existing applications already approved by State and Territories can be progressed. This includes those applications lodged with the Australian Representatives in Ethiopia, and those approved and waiting with Central Authorities.

The Annual Court Closure

2009-08-19T10:55:00.003-06:00

Obviously the courts have stayed open longer than usual, but it seems they will likely be closed after this Friday. Here is the current list:

Closing after August 21st: at least 5 US agencies, at least 1 European agency

Reopening Sep. 25th: 1 US agency
...in about 4 weeks: 1 US agency
...in early October: at least 2 US agencies
...October 6th:at least 1 US agency

The earliest court date I've heard is October 6th. If you have a court date after August 21 but prior to October 6, please let us know!

The future of this blog...

2009-08-12T16:16:00.000-06:00

As you may have noticed, I've had nothing to post lately. This blog was originally set up to pass on information specifically concerning the abandonment hold, though often the information was beneficial to anyone with an interest in Ethiopian adoption (such as MOWA closing for training, the dates of the annual summer closure, etc.)

I'm happy and willing to continue posting what agencies are saying about any Ethiopian adoption related topic whatsoever, not just the abandonment ban. If your agency shares some interesting news, please feel free to pass it on to the rest of us! Not all of us have agencies that are quick to learn of and share new developments in Ethiopian Adoption.

As for the abandonment hold, many families have now passed court and some are currently traveling or will travel soon. We understand this hold was necessary to make sure all ET adoptions remain ethical, and very much appreciate those in Ethiopia who worked hard to complete their investigation in a relatively short time frame!

There are many families still affected, unfortunately...some who are waiting for new court dates to come or be assigned, some who are waiting on essential paperwork before they can move forward, and some who were referred abandoned children without police clearances who are currently waiting for decisions to be made on how to proceed with such cases. Our hearts go out to these families.

Thank you so much to everyone who was willing to pass on what their agencies were saying, and to anyone who may continue to do so in the future :-)

2009-08-02T07:55:00.002-06:00

Most agencies now seem to be getting court dates for new cases for early October, after the court closure. It appears that the majority of cases who had original court dates during the ban are being heard before the closure. If you're an abandonment case still waiting for a 2nd court date or if you've received one for October, please let us know.

2009-07-29T13:24:00.003-06:00

A US agency announced today that the courts will be closed from August 21st to October 6th. There are now 4 US agencies who have heard a date of August 21/22nd for the closing, and this is the first (that I know of) to give an exact date for reopening.

*Note: I've heard of a new court date given recently for October 6th, which seems to confirm the information above that the court is indeed closing.
edited to add: Another case with a US agency has a court date of October 7th.

2009-07-28T09:40:00.002-06:00

In case it's of interest to anyone, a couple abandonment cases did not pass court today due to no MOWA letter. (On a happier note, at least 5 cases did pass!)

2009-07-27T08:36:00.003-06:00

Edited: Several abandonment cases with no prior MOWA letters (from at least 2 different agencies) have passed court today... congratulations to these families!

2009-07-24T22:04:00.002-06:00

At least 2 US agencies with court dates for Thurs and Fri (23rd and 24th) told their clients that court was canceled these days due to no MOWA letters, and their court dates have been postponed. One agency said it was because MOWA decided to open today, July 24th, instead of yesterday as planned.

2009-07-24T09:52:00.003-06:00

If anyone has any information on whether or not MOWA is reopen (numerous agencies believed it would be by now), please post it here. I'll be out today an unable to update the blog.

2009-07-20T15:31:00.002-06:00

A US agency that previously said the courts had cancelled their annual closure is reporting that they have decided to close on Aug. 21st, and will reopen sometime the first week of October. They decided to delay their closure because of MOWA's current closing. I've updated my summary below.

2009-07-17T08:17:00.004-06:00

Since there really isn't much news lately and the majority of agencies have their new court dates or are expecting some soon, here is another summary:

Courts staying open:
-all summer: 1 US agency
-open, but not saying for how long: 2 US agencies, 1 European agency
-at least through second week of August: 1 US agency
-1 week later: 1 European agency
-till August 21st/22nd: 2 US agencies
-through August: 1 US agency
-court will close beginning of Aug: 1 US agency

MOWA will reopen:
-22nd of July- 1 US agency, 1 European agency
-24th of July: 1 US agency
-28th July: 1 US agency

(I certainly may have missed some, but this is the minimum)

*Note: The latest court date I've been told about is for 8/19. This seems to be a decent indication that the court will be open at least till then!

2009-07-14T15:09:00.004-06:00

Today, a US agency confirmed that the courts would remain open at least through the end of August.

Another large US agency reports that since MOWA will be closed until the 23rd, the Federal court has decided to remain open for an additional 2 weeks, until the 21st of August. The courts will be closed from August 22 to sometime around September 25th. According to this agency, MOWA reports that they will be available to review files beginning on July 23rd, and will have letters for the court ready starting on the 24th.

This agency also confirms that the investigation into abandonment cases is over and that the ban is lifted.

*4 US agencies and 1 European saying the courts won't close (it's unknown if they meant they won't close at all, or won't close at the usual time), 1 European agency saying they will close a week late, 1 US agency saying they will be open at least through most of August, and 1 US agency saying courts will close on August 22nd.

2009-07-14T08:20:00.002-06:00

A European agency confirmed to their clients:

1. The court will not close during the rainy season
2. MOWA will re-open on July 22nd

*I will add this to my summary post; that makes 2 US agencies and 1 European saying the courts will definitely be remaining open.

2009-07-13T18:33:00.001-06:00

The agency that announced today that the courts will remain open says that this decision was announced on Friday, and that the process of referrals and court dates will continue on as normal from August through October. They said that all agencies are rescheduling court dates for after MOWA reopens. There is some contradiction as to when they’ll reopen, but they were scheduled to be out for 2 weeks, so this agency thinks they will reopen sometime mid-to-late next week.

2009-07-13T16:06:00.002-06:00

A US agency has given more information concerning the reorganization of MOWA. From what they understand, abandoned children who are reported to the police will then have their cases sent to MOWA for oversight. The children will now be initially placed into the government-run orphanages before being sent to the various private orphanages. It’s not known how their distribution to the private orphanages will be determined or how long a child will have to remain in the government orphanages before being moved.

This agency is almost certain this reorganization will not affect those who had court dates during the ban or for those who were referred before the ban. They are not sure whether children already in the private orphanages but not referred will be affected by the reorganization or not.

Go here to see where this has been discussed before.

2009-07-13T12:19:00.003-06:00

The US agency that had court dates scheduled for next Monday has had them re-scheduled for after MOWA reopens. (This is the agency that was told the judge would ask MOWA to have staff available to write the letters.) They believe they received some of the first rescheduled appointments for abandonment cases since they were one of the first to petition the court to hear their cases.

This agency also reported that on Friday an official announcement was made that the courts will stay open through the rainy season.

*That makes 2 US agencies who have announced that there will definitely be no closure.

2009-07-10T15:49:00.003-06:00

This is an email from someone hoping to find someone in a similar situation:

Our case is unique and wondering if anyone else is in the same position.

-Referral in early March for RELINQUISHED infant.
-Court date may 14 didn't pass
-Court date June 2 & 8 didn't pass
-Judge requested a paper Wk error be fixed on BM paperwk. It is now corrected BUTTT, our daughters case has been lumped into the abandonment cases now??!

No new court date :( and scared we won't make it thru before court closure

Anyone else with a relinquished child that had failed court dates caught in the delay?

2009-07-10T11:35:00.000-06:00

Several abandonment cases with new court dates scheduled for early next week have been rescheduled till the end of the July due to MOWA being closed.

Please note that there are now at least 6 agencies with new court dates scheduled and at least 8 more that have indicated they expect to get new dates soon.

2009-07-10T06:02:00.001-06:00

Today some clients from a European agency received new court dates for the end of July. (Their dates are for after MOWA reopens.)

edited: Other clients of the same agency received court dates of August 9th.

2009-07-09T15:56:00.002-06:00

An agency update:

[US Agency] has learned that there is an unexpected closure of the Ethiopian Ministry of Women's Affairs (MOWA) until July 28th. As you are probably aware, MOWA is involved in preparing letters for the court hearings. We are not yet sure what impact the Ministry closure will have on court cases that have been scheduled during this time. It is possible that they may be postponed and rescheduled before the court closure.

2009-07-09T12:54:00.001-06:00

A US agency received court dates for all the families that were in this abandonment delay. The court date that was given was for the week after next. The families originally had a court date on May 8th. They agency reported to the families that they do not have MOWA letters, but the judge requested to the MOWA to complete the letters prior to the court date given the families. The agency stated the judge feels that this can take place for the MOWA to get the letters written prior to the court date.

2009-07-09T06:30:00.001-06:00

An email:

My European agency informed me that the MOWA will close for two weeks because of trainings. This closure does not affect cases having already the MOWA approval. New court dates for old cases will proceed in 1,5 weeks.

2009-07-08T20:48:00.002-06:00

A US agency has heard that all 'new' abandonment cases from here on out will be sent to one orphanage, and it is unknown if they will be available for adoption. If they aren't available for adoption, this could potentially be bad news for those who received referrals during the ban.

(If you have any more information about this, please contact me!)

2009-07-08T20:31:00.002-06:00

An email:

One family passed today. They had an original court date of May 4 (the first day of the ban, I believe). Five other families were issued court dates for this Friday (of course, we don't know whether a MOWA approval letter will be in place by then). The other six families from our agency (including us) still haven't heard any concrete news, except that our files are at the courts now.

Our agency also reports the MOWA "closing for training purposes."

Our agency also said the courts will continue processing cases through the second week of August, at least. They have not heard anything about court remaining open.

2009-07-08T16:48:00.002-06:00

An email:

"Two families from our agency passed today. Both were abandonment cases, with all the paperwork done and the MOWA approval from before the ban."

2009-07-08T14:55:00.001-06:00

A US agency (with no cases affected by the hold) reports that the court will be closing in 3 weeks. They did not hear how long they will close for.

2009-07-08T13:30:00.023-06:00

(**Updated with more agencies)

With so much information coming in, I thought I’d summarize:

Saying the Investigation is over:
-7 US agencies
-9 European agencies from 4 different countries

Saying the ban is lifted:
-7 US agencies
-6 European agencies from 4 different countries

Told by the court to expect new court dates soon:
-2 US agencies
-4 European agencies from 2 different countries

Already received their new court dates:
-8 US agencies
-2 European agencies

Passed court:
-4 cases from 2 US agencies

Didn't pass court
-2 cases from US agencies (no MOWA letter)

I may have missed some, but these are the minimum that I know of.

And...
Reporting MOWA is closed:
-At least 10 US agencies
-At least 2 European agencies

Reporting the courts are staying open:
-4 US agencies
-1 European agency
*saying open for 1 week later: 1 European agency
**saying open till end of August: 2 US agencies

2009-07-08T11:44:00.001-06:00

Another US agency reports that the court told them they will receive their new court dates tomorrow. Unfortunately, it is unknown how the MOWA closure will affect this. MOWA writes a summary to the court that is not presented until the day the case is heard in court. Because of the abandonment hold no MOWA letters were submitted for existing cases. The agency is unsure how this will be handled now that MOWA is closed.

2009-07-08T11:03:00.002-06:00

An email:

People from my agency have gotten their new court dates already. It's disappointing because they know they won't pass due to MOWA being closed, but everyone hopes when they are assigned another date it will be before the summer closure.

2009-07-08T10:19:00.001-06:00

Another US agency confirms that MOWA is closed (that's 3 US and one European).

Edited to add: A 4th US agency confirms that MOWA is closed and they state they expect them to reopen at the beginning of August.

2009-07-08T09:57:00.000-06:00

A European agency that was expecting news today says that it's still not clear whether we will be given new court dates (this agency's rep believes we will) or whether we will be passed without court as some are rumoring.

They also confirmed that the Department of Adoptions within MOWA has no staff available for passports, birth certificates, etc. until July 23rd. If they choose to pass our cases directly, that can probably still be done between today and 23. If they assign new court dates it would be after the 23rd.

2009-07-08T09:56:00.002-06:00

A US agency (who has not yet been mentioned as one told to come to court with their cases today) reports that the court has completed their investigation and has stated that they will now hear pending cases. Families who had court dates and weren't heard will be receiving new ones very soon. Families who were waiting for 1st court dates will also now be able to receive them, and they will resume the referral of abandoned children. A time frame is unknown.

2009-07-07T22:34:00.002-06:00

One US agency (wishes to remain anonymous) submitted their cases to the court Tuesday July 7th, and was told that all their cases were accepted and to expect new court dates in the near future. This agency thought it could even be possible that they would begin to hear cases by the end of this week.

*Note: Obviously this is not one of the 2 agencies that reported the MOWA closing.

2009-07-07T18:09:00.002-06:00

Two US agencies announced today that MOWA will be closing for training, effective tomorrow and lasting until July 24th. One agency reminded their clients that MOWA handles both pre- and post-court paperwork; the closing not only affects abandonment cases waiting for new court dates, but it affects all cases waiting for court dates, cases scheduled for that time, as well as people who have already passed court and are waiting for travel clearance.

2009-07-07T12:21:00.002-06:00

An email:

FYI. A friend from a different agency had their (first) court date today. It's an abandoned in Addis case. They didn't pass due to a paperwork issue, but as far as they know their case WAS heard.

2009-07-07T08:57:00.004-06:00

An email:

I have just come home to find a message on my answering machine from my [European] agency: they (in turn) got a phone call from their chairman, who seems to be in addis abbaba right now, that the ban is finally lifted. the in-country rep was asked to come to court tomorrow (wednesday) to hand in our papers (and those of the other applicants) in order to apply for a new court date. the agency reckons that it might take some time until we get news about our new court date but the application process is going to start tomorrow.

*Note: This is now 4 European agencies (from 3 different countries) and 4 US agencies who were told to come on Wednesday with their paperwork.

2009-07-06T13:44:00.000-06:00

The US agency that had the in-country rep at court late this afternoon/evening has stated that the rep was told to return to court this Wednesday. The agency has not received details on what was discussed in court but will let the families know as soon as they hear anything.

2009-07-06T13:35:00.003-06:00

One of the US agencies originally reporting to hear news on July 2nd is reporting that after some internet problems, they finally got through to their rep who told them that the investigation is indeed over and that the court should have their decision by this Thursday.

Also, today another European agency announced that the investigation is over and the ban is lifted.

2009-07-06T10:50:00.000-06:00

An email:

My agency, who is very careful about passing along information, has just informed me that the court asked agencies to come on Wednesday to the court with their files. They are not sure what will happen on that day but this is HUGE progress.

2009-07-06T10:45:00.001-06:00

A US agency told families waiting to hear news today that their in-country rep has been at court all day and is still at court even though it is late afternoon/early evening in Ethiopia The agency will let the families know as soon as they hear anything.

2009-07-03T07:50:00.003-06:00

An email:

My agency from [European country] just called me at 14:45pm and he said that the process is OVER, and between Monday and Wednesday they give new courts dates.

He told me that he spoke with two more agencies here in [European country] and they said the same.

The lawyer that is working for our agency ( for more than 7 years) thinks that it is possible that the court date is in before summer time.

2009-07-02T13:05:00.003-06:00

An email:

This was posted on the EthopiaAdopt yahoo group this am, by one PAP:

"Our agency, which generally only discusses facts, not rumors, said that abandonment cases could start petitioning for a new court date today (July 2), but there were hundreds of cases. They said it might be a little while before they heard on when the dates will be. Also, there are families in our agency with abandoned children that will have court early next week."
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EthiopiaAdopt/?yguid=243469481

*Note: If this is the agency I think it is, the families mentioned with court dates are new cases, not ones who already had court during the ban.

2009-07-02T12:26:00.003-06:00

From one of the two agencies who were told there would be news on July 2nd:

Hello –

I know you are anxiously waiting to hear something today about the decision. I have been dialing our in-country rep every 15 minutes since 7AM this morning. I get messages like:

All circuits are busy
The Network is not working
The user’s phone is busy
The user is out of the area

I will keep trying and hopefully have something for you by the end of the day.

Thanks for your patience.

2009-07-02T12:00:00.002-06:00

An email:

My director just told me that they are expecting some kind of news or announcement tomorrow concerning this. I feel like we're just being strung along, and I know all our hopes have been dashed again and again, but I thought I'd pass it along anyway. My agency thinks we will hear something tomorrow.

2009-06-26T05:44:00.004-06:00

An email:

My European agency confirmed (the first time) that the investigation (police and orphanages) is officially over and that they found nothing suspicious. All currently existing cases are ok. The next step will be a meeting between the court president and the orphanages, it should have taken place last Friday, then Monday/Tuesday and now it is postponed to an indefinite date.

They assume that the cases have to go through the whole process again, i. e. need new court dates.

2009-06-25T07:47:00.003-06:00

An email:

Our agency (United States) told us that they are going to start reopening cases and rescheduling court dates starting on July 2nd. I don’t know how long it will take to get all of us new court dates, but our agency is optimistic that our cases, at least from our agency, will be heard before the closure. They are very careful about not passing on rumors, so I tend to believe them when they say cases will be reopened late next week.

*Note: This is not the same agency that mentioned the July 2nd date earlier this week.

2009-06-25T06:39:00.004-06:00

An email (European agency):

Our agency has informed us this morning that the rumors of the decision following the court should have announced this week and to be imminent. Unknown if the cases involved for which the trial took place during this period of time required new trial date or not. Think not. Hope so.

*Updated: This person has clarified a little using their case as an example. Their court date was on May 29th. All of their documents were submitted to the court, but of course their case was not heard because it was for a child abandoned in Addis. The orphanage this child resides has been investigated and cleared. The agency has suggested that cases like this may not require a new court date. The agency believes they may just sign the necessary paperwork to pass the case.

2009-06-24T07:05:00.001-06:00

Another US agency today is reporting that there won’t be an official decision from the court for another 2 weeks. This is the agency that has been keeping us updated about a meeting with the orphanage directors. The orphanage directors are supposed to call the office of the court in the next 2 weeks to find out the decision.

*Note: There is some conflicting information from the various agencies as far as a timeline for an official decision:
-2 US agencies and 1 European agency have told their clients it will be 2 weeks.
-1 US agency gave a deadline of July 2nd
-2 European agencies say there is a meeting this Friday to discuss a decision

It is possible that the 2 week timeline and the July 2nd timeline are the same information (depending on when the “2 week” wait began), and that the meeting on Friday is something different. We’ll just have to wait and see what unfolds.

2009-06-24T05:12:00.001-06:00

From a non-US agency:

I just talked to my agency and they told me, that the meeting that was supposed to take place last friday is now sceduled for this friday. The president of the court is supposed to meet the directors of the orphanages and they try to find a solution on how to proceed. That would be brilliant because it means we don`t have to wait for two more weeks. But my agency also said that you never know whether the meeting really takes place. They confirmed as well that the investigation is definitively over.

2009-06-23T10:48:00.004-06:00

A US agency is reporting that the final decision about the abandonment cases is supposed to be issued on July 2, 2009. This was confirmed to their coordinator by the judge today, June 23, 2009. This in-country rep has also heard the rumor that the courts will not close for the summer, but has not received any official word whether it's true.

*Note: This is not from the same agency we've been waiting to hear from concerning the outcome of the meeting, but it's possible that the July 2nd date was what was discussed in today's meeting with the orphanage directors and the court (if they held it).

2009-06-22T08:48:00.002-06:00

A US agency is reporting that the scheduled meeting with the orphanage directors (to find out the court's ruling concerning abandonment cases) has been postponed until Tuesday.

2009-06-19T12:39:00.001-06:00

From the US agency who expected some sort of announcement today:

The orphanage directors were told that the orphanages had cleared the investigation and we're just waiting to see how the cases will move forward. There was no information given out today so we will have to wait until next week to hear something.

2009-06-19T11:36:00.000-06:00

A summary of an update from a different US agency:

There was a scheduled meeting with the court and the orphanage directors today, which was postponed until Monday. The court has received their final police report on the investigation and a ruling is expected on Monday. This ruling will concern all those cases that had court dates that have been postponed.

It is believed (but not confirmed) that MOWA is going to now be responsible for issuing clearance papers on abandoned children, rather than the Bureau of Civil and Social Affairs.

2009-06-19T09:46:00.003-06:00

An update from a US agency:

We have word from our staff in Ethiopia that the ban on Abandonment Cases in Addis, has been lifted. We are currently assessing the issue and finding out our next steps to get court dates for those who have been effected by the ban.

*Note: This is a different agency from the one who reported yesterday about a coming announcement.

2009-06-18T16:28:00.001-06:00

A summary of an update from a US agency:

An announcement is expected tomorrow, and we think the outcome is going to be positive. All the papers provided by the orphanages were found to be in order.

2009-06-18T10:18:00.002-06:00

An email I received:

I have conducted a lot of research and upon hearing the news on the ban, my first impulse was to figure out who I could lobby to get my case through. Now after becoming an expert on Ethiopian affairs, I know that is not the correct approach. What I think we need to focus our efforts on is to ensure that our agencies are pushing the courts to postpone their recess until the situation is resolved. Unlike trying to influence the ban where tinkering in Ethiopian affairs by westerners is shunned, I think this is a doable approach on the grounds that any further delay is not in the best interest of the children being held up by the ban. I would ask that we all get in touch with our agencies and ensure that they are working on this.

*Note: The court apparently shortened their closure a couple years ago, so it would seem they would be open to doing this again. Most agencies should be aware of the rumor about the court closure being canceled this year, as it has been discussed on the JCICS member list serve. As of now though, I've only heard of one US agency who has stated that it is official and not just a rumor.

2009-06-16T10:01:00.000-06:00

An email was received this morning from a US agency that gives daily updates:

Our director from our US agency is now in Addis Ababa. They have learned that the investigation is indeed over with the five orphanages have been cleared. The director is hoping to hear something by Friday on how all the families will proceed at this point.

2009-06-16T08:19:00.001-06:00

Sorry for no official statements yet on the investigation being over.
An email:

With all this talk about the investigation being over, I thought I’d tell you that our agency says there are two different investigations. There was the overall investigation into why there was such an increase in abandonment cases, and there was also a separate investigation into police corruption. A policeman signed clearances for 17 children before their abandonment period was up. I’d like to know which investigation is over, because if it’s just the police investigation, then they still need to decide how to handle abandonment cases which is why the ban is still in place.

*Note: I’ve heard that the policeman was giving clearances to children after a week, instead of the required 60 days.

2009-06-12T07:01:00.002-06:00

An email this morning:

I have just received newsletter from my agency here in [European country].
They have been confirmed both by the leader from the orphanage Edget (which was one of the 5) AND staff from the court that the investigation is OVER and the result was that nothing was found suspecious :-D
They expect new courtdates to be given very soon to the waiting cases :-D

2009-06-11T04:26:00.003-06:00

There has been some contradiction regarding the orphanage Betesaida and whether it’s one of the 5 orphanages that is/was under investigation. A couple non-US agencies have said they believe it to be one of the 5, while a US agency that works with Bete Saida says it is not. It is also possible that Betesaida and Bete Saida are two different institutions, though highly unlikely.

ETA: further information regarding Bete Saida versus Betesaida
(an email I received):

Bete Saida Hitsanat Merja Mahiber is not an orphange under investigation. I know someone that has seen the list and I can assure you they are not under investigation.

2009-06-10T11:57:00.001-06:00

An email:

I received word from our agency that the courts are going to remain open through Aug/Sept. This is great news!

*Note: At least one US agency and 2 European agencies have been hearing this rumor over the last few weeks as well.

2009-06-10T11:08:00.003-06:00

Notes from an agency conference call today:

- Our agency stated again that the investigation is over
- This issue is not an agency issue, but an orphanage issue
- They are hoping that next week this will be formally announced, the orphanage directors will be informed on how this will proceed
- Our in country rep thinks this will be resolved very soon and remains optimistic
- They have no idea how court dates will be re-issued and what the time frame will be

2009-06-10T07:02:00.003-06:00

One agency’s take on the new court dates being given out to cases from orphanages not involved in the investigation (summarized):

First, the simplified process of abandonment-
-Abandoned child is "found" and brought to orphanage or police
-Police issue a letter of abandonment that starts the 60 day wait
-When 60 day wait is over, orphanage petitions "the Bureau" for a "clearance"
-As soon as "clearance" is received and family's dossier is in
country, all the adoption case paperwork is compiled and a court date
is applied for

This agency says that for a couple weeks now they have been getting
June court dates for kids who have their "clearances", as well as for
kids who have finished the 60 day waiting period, but have not been
issued their "clearance" yet. Getting a court date for a child from
an orphanage that was not involved in the investigation does not mean
the case is going to pass. This agency has gotten new court dates for
children with their police clearances with the understanding that they
will not pass court if the ban is not lifted by the time their court
date comes. This agency has also gotten new court dates for children
without their clearances but knows they will not pass until the
suspension is lifted AND the "clearances" are given [apparently police
clearances are not being given at this time],

Only IF the ban is lifted will kids with their "clearances" that are
being scheduled court dates pass court.

*Note: This explains why some agencies are receiving dates for new
cases, but not receiving new dates for cases who have already been
affected by the hold.

2009-06-09T15:46:00.002-06:00

From a US Agency that gives daily updates :

The orphanages that are affected by the abandonment issue are supposed to go and ask that the ban be lifted concerning the abandoned children. At this time we do not know what the result will be but I’ll let you know what we find out. This hopefully will take place within the next week or so. This is all of the information that I have regarding this at this time.

2009-06-09T08:46:00.001-06:00

An agency from outside the U.S. told their clients that last Thursday all the orphanages in Addis had a meeting to choose a delegation of them to meet with the Ministry of Social Welfare “in order to finish as soon as possible”. No mention of when the meeting with the Ministry will take place or if it already has.

2009-06-08T14:35:00.001-06:00

The agency who posted last week about the investigation being possibly over says today that while it does indeed appear to be over, the ban is still in place. The individual orphanages are responsible for getting the results of the investigation, and not the agency representatives.

Agency Updates

2009-06-08T14:26:00.003-06:00

Recently several agencies have been asking their clients not to post agency updates over the internet. You also may have noticed that I have amended several recent posts at the request of the sources who later felt like they had given away too much information, and didn't want to jeopardize their case or the investigation as a whole. To be respectful, I will no longer be posting any agency names on this blog, nor any word-for-word updates from any agency. However, as so many of us are so desperate for information that we may not be able to get from our own agencies, I will still be posting paraphrases or summaries of agency information from anyone who is willing to share. You can summarize the information any way you choose, and share whatever you feel comfortable. Again, no agency names will be used. I’m hopeful people will still be willing to pass on what they hear to the rest of us. Thank you!

2009-06-05T15:36:00.003-06:00

An email I received (amended by the source):

The agency update you posted today seems coherent with what we were told by our agency today; we had planned to fly to Ethiopia... our agency suggested not to cancel our trip just yet but to wait until next week. I guess they have heard the same rumor and hope something happens soon.

2009-06-05T12:15:00.002-06:00

An agency update (today):

Dear Families,

I hope you are still staying strong. I wanted to send you an email regarding the Abandonment Children’s Issue in Addis Ababa and my conversation with [Name withheld] this morning. I first want to preference this email by saying that the information was presented to me as RUMORED and not that anything has been officially confirmed or announced, but that this is what some agencies and orphanages in Addis have been discussing among each other. So there may be some truth to some of the information. I generally do not post about what’s “rumored” but I just wanted to give you a sense of what it might be looking like in Ethiopia regarding this issue. I will be traveling to Ethiopia on June 13^th for 2 weeks and will look further into this situation while I’m there if it is not resolved before that time.

First of all, my understanding is that the investigation has been completed. This was told to our in country rep by one of the judges. Our rep was at the court to process other families’ adoption cases. This is all of the information that he received from the court and was not given any information regarding what the decision of the investigation is and what was going to be put in place to move forward. The ban has not been lifted as of yet regarding when they will start hearing abandoned children’s cases, as the announcement regarding the investigation or the next steps have not been officially announced. When asked what the decision was, our rep was told to go and find out himself as it is not in the judges power to give that information – it has to be given from a higher authority then her. I asked our rep to go to the proper authority to ask about the results, and he said that it is not an agency issue (except for the agency/agencies who were involved), but that it’s an orphanage issue, and a orphanage director in Addis would have ask for that information . I asked him to have one of the orphanage directors that we work with to go and ask. He noted that no one is going to ask. They want to wait until the orders are officially given, and not rock the boat, so to speak. I did mention to him to have Enat Alem orphanage to go the officials on behalf of our families who are waiting for children from that orphanage. Everyone is concerned about making waves before everything is announced. I will follow up on this when I am in Ethiopia.

[Name withheld] is very hopeful that all of our cases will go through and he has mentioned that even though the information that he is hearing is “rumored”, it’s all positive for the most part.

Unfortunately, our phone conversation disconnected before I could ask further questions or whether he thought your cases would be heard before the courts closed. I tried calling several times after the disconnect but was not able to reach him again. I’ll check in again with you one Monday to let you know if there is anymore information that I have received.

We’ll also be happy to have a conference call with you on Wednesday for those families who would like to be on the call. We’ll email you with the time. If anything more concrete takes place before than were we might need to have the call sooner, we’ll let you know. I know many of you still have questions and concerns. Hopefully this is helpful. At least it looks like it’s moving in the right direction. Again Ethiopia culture is one that doesn’t give out much information until the results are final, but I’ll continue to dig into this and keep you posted.

2009-06-05T12:10:00.002-06:00

An agency update from yesterday:

"Good Afternoon Waiting Families:

...I do not have any "new" news to share. The court is still investigating past case files looking for any patterns which fall outside of protocol. As of this week the only situation we are aware of is the one concerning 16 cases which were cleared in one week to one orphanage by one police official. The orphanage is not one in which we work. I can say to you that the attorneys
representing the licensed adoption agencies are asking for a speedy resolution by the court but I will tell you what they have told me and that is the court will resume when they have completed their investigation and not before.

So, we are able to refer children, get medicals and labs, photos and monthly updates. During this suspension we cannot get legal papers on the child, abandonment clearances, review by the MOWA, court dates or finalization hearings."

2009-06-04T12:51:00.006-06:00

(This post was amended at the request of the source):

From a non US-agency it is reported that court dates are now given for abandoned children found in Addis Abeba from the orphanages Kids Care, Almaz Ashene and Sele Enat, and they expect more court dates.

The agency believes that five orphanages seem to be in focus: Enat Alem, Betezata, Edget, Betesaida and Godanaw, and that families with children here have to wait for the investigation to finish before getting court dates.

Unfortunately they have no news as to the status of the police investigation.

(12/6/2011 update: The organization Edget Baandnet Children's Center, located in Awassa, would like it to be known that they are not the Edget mentioned in this post, and that they were not involved in an abandoned children investigation in 2009.)

2009-06-02T17:30:00.007-06:00

From an agency representative (on May 29th):

What we were told today, from reputable sources in Ethiopia, was that the investigation will be complete and they will begin hearing cases again of abandoned kids by the end of June. That is really all I know. I guess that is at least a timeline. I am not saying that by the end of June doesn't mean it couldn't be earlier than end of June, but I really don't know that is just what we were told. They will get these cases on the docket through before courts close, I am sure.

Note: At least 2 other agencies have also been hinting about a possible resolution by the end of June.

*Edited to remove the name of the agency. I like to include agency names so people know where the information is coming from (and that it's coming from a reputable source--an adoption agency licensed in Ethiopia), but in this case I've decided to remove it. The person providing the information didn't tell me themselves which agency it was, and I'd like to respect their anonymity.

2009-06-02T11:40:00.001-06:00

From CHI:

Still no closure to the abandonment child issue in Addis Ababa as of yet. As far as the questions that have been posed from some families regarding getting a new referral or getting a second referral while the abandonment issue is being investigated, the response was that the abandonment cases waiting must wait and can not be touched/moved until the investigation has been completed. As well, there can not be two cases open in the court for the same family and for different children. I still have no idea when the ban will be lifted; no date or time frame has been given. I have no other information at this time, I am sorry.

Blessings
Toni Lynch
Ethiopia Adoption Consultant