Sir, - I refer to your editorial on foreign adoptions (May 30th). The adoption of Irish children 30 years ago by American couples was in some cases of doubtful legality. To equate the adoption of children from abroad by Irish couples today is grossly misleading: adoptions by Irish couples are in full compliance with Irish law and the law of the country from which the child is adopted (it should be noted that these countries have very strict legal processes in place). Furthermore they are in full accordance with the statutory requirements of the Health Boards and the Irish Adoption Board.
The Irish Foreign Adoption Group fully supports the introduction of the Hague Convention. However, any central authority must be adequately resourced and the staff employed must have an ethos which is supportive of the principle of inter-country adoption.
Applicants for inter-country adoption can wait up to three years before their assessment is completed. This is especially the case in the Eastern Health Board. Despite intensive efforts by our group we have never received an answer as to why the process in the Eastern Health Board is substantially more time consuming than in any of the other Health Board areas. In addition couples who have been deemed to be suitable and who have adopted have to go through virtually the same process a second time (unless they are lucky enough to have the social worker who performed the first assessment). This calls into question the use of resources within the Eastern Health Board.
I would welcome attempts to overhaul the fostering system. However, this must be done in its own right and not as an attempt to provide an alternative to intercountry adoption. The two, as you quite rightly point out, are completely different.
Research shows that intercountry adoption has positive benefits for the children and the adoptive parents. I hope that future debate on this issue will take place in a thoughtful and unbiased way. - Yours, etc., Francis McGeough,
Chairman, Irish Foreign Adoption Group, Shankill, Co Dublin.