PEAR Website Announcement

Our website will be down December 26 to January 6 for a redesign. Due to this, our web comments, membership forms and donate buttons will be inoperable.


Please direct your correspondence to the following board members:

Comments and requests for assistance:
Gina Pollock
Vice President Advocacy and NGO/Government Relations
rmprhp@yahoo.com

Membership Issues:
Shanna Wright
Secretary and Membership Chair
shanjwright@gmail.com

Donations and financial issues:
Margaret Weeks
Treasurer
meweek@aol.com

All other correspondence:
Kimberly Kennedy
President
kackennedy_2000@yahoo.com

Thank you for your continued patience and support!
Ethics, Transparency, Support~
What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/

DOS Adoption Notice: Cambodia Update

June 2011

Notice: Update of status of adoptions in Cambodia

The Office of Children's Issues wishes to provide a further update for American Citizens interested in intercountry adoptions with Cambodia. Although Cambodia is a party to the Hague Adoption Convention, they are still working to establish the necessary internal child welfare structures to function as a Hague partner.

The Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation recently announced to all embassies with diplomatic and consular missions in Cambodia that the Cambodian Government has decided to delay the date that it will begin receiving adoption petitions until April 1, 2012. The delay provides additional time for Cambodia to implement all necessary prakas (regulations), add staff, and complete training necessary to meeting its obligations under the Hague Adoption Convention.

The Special Advisor for Children's Issues, Ambassador Susan Jacobs met with Cambodian officials in March 2011, and explained what protections must be in place from the U.S. perspective before we will be able to resume adoptions between our two countries. She also encouraged the Cambodian Government to finalize and implement procedures that will enable Cambodia to operate as a Hague Convention partner country.

The United States continues to support Cambodia's efforts to create a child welfare system and an intercountry adoption process that fulfills its obligations under the Hague Adoption Convention. We welcome Cambodia's efforts to fully implement its new law on intercountry adoption.

Updated information will be provided on www.adoption.state.gov as it becomes available.

http://adoption.state.gov/country_information/country_specific_alerts_notices.php?alert_notice_type=notices&alert_notice_file=cambodia_2

Ethics, Transparency, Support~
What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/

MEDIA: Voice of America - UNICEF Concern Prompts Cambodian Investigation of Orphanages

UNICEF Concern Prompts Cambodian Investigation of Orphanages

Robert Carmichael March 23, 2011 Phnom Penh

The Cambodian government has begun investigating the country’s orphanages; just days after the United Nations Children's Fund expressed its concerns that nearly three out of four children in the country's orphanages have at least one living parent.

Earlier this week, UNICEF said most of the 12,000 children in Cambodia’s orphanages are, in fact, not orphans. Nearly three-quarters of them have one living parent, yet the number of children in care has more than doubled in five years.

UNICEF said the number of orphanage centers has nearly doubled, to 269 facilities in the same period.

Just 21 of those are run by the government. The rest are funded and run by foreign donors and faith-based organizations.

Full article: http://www.voanews.com/english/news/asia/southeast/UNICEF-Concern-Prompts-Cambodian-Investigation-of-Orphanages-118493469.html


Ethics, Transparency, Support~
What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/

Media Coverage of US DOS Visit to Cambodia

The following stories were published today concerning the visit by US Department of State officials to Cambodia



Voice of America: US Maintains Ban on Cambodian Adoptions

Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh Friday, 18 March 2011

A US envoy for children’s issues declined to lift a ban on US adoptions from Cambodia Friday, despite the 2009 passage of an adoption law, officials said.

The US banned adoptions from Cambodia in 2001, after allegations that mothers were being paid to give up their children to adoption agencies.

Susan Jacobs, the US Ambassador for Children’s Issues, told Cambodian officials the country had made improvements in children’s protection.

But after her two-day fact-finding mission, the US Embassy said in a statement, “The United States has not set a date for resumption of inter-country adoption with Cambodia.”

Full Story: http://www.voanews.com/khmer-english/news/US-Maintains-Ban-on-Cambodian-Adoptions-118241639.html

DAP News: US Adoption Official Visits Cambodia

Friday, 18 March 2011 07:53 By Virak Va

Special Advisor for Children’s Issues Ambassador Susan Jacobs visited Cambodia March 17-18 for fact finding meetings on inter-country adoptions, the statement from US embassy here on Friday.

It added: ambassador Jacobs met with Cambodian government officials and representatives from other embassies to discuss the state of implementation of prakas and level of compliance to the Hague convention on adoptions. The United States looks forward to working with the Cambodian government as it establishes a child welfare system and will review carefully the implementing regulations related to the new law on inter-country adoptions as they are issued.

“We recommend the Royal Government of Cambodia for their accomplishments to date in increasing protection for vulnerable children. The United States has not set a date for resumption of inter country adoption with Cambodia,” the statement said.

Full Story: http://www.dap-news.com/en/news/4075-us-adoption-official-visits-cambodia.html


Ethics, Transparency, Support~
What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/

Special Advisor for Children's Issues Ambassador Susan Jacobs' Travel to Cambodia and Vietnam

Media Note

Office of the Spokesman

Washington, DC

March 14, 2011

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Special Advisor for Children’s Issues Ambassador Susan Jacobs will visit Cambodia and Vietnam March 16 – 23 for meetings on intercountry adoptions.

In Cambodia, she will meet with government officials and non-governmental adoption stakeholders to discuss how the United States can work together with the Cambodian government to further support Cambodia’s efforts to fully implement a new law on intercountry adoption. Adoption from Cambodia was suspended in 2001.

In Vietnam, Ambassador Jacobs will meet with government officials to discuss Vietnam’s stated goal of acceding to the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-Operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption. The United States welcomes Vietnam’s strong efforts to create a child welfare system and an intercountry adoption process that will meet its obligations under the Convention. The processing of adoptions for Vietnam was suspended in 2008.

For more information about intercountry adoption in Cambodia and Vietnam, visit:
http://adoption.state.gov

For updates on Special Advisor Susan Jacobs’ trip, follow her on twitter: http://twitter.com/childrensissues

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2011/03/158333.htm

Ethics, Transparency, Support~
What All Adoptions Deserve.
http://www.pear-now.org/