CASE STUDY: MAGS KELLY and her husband Alan Cunningham had been due to travel to Vietnam in the summer of 2009 to meet their new baby daughter.
They had decorated her room, bought clothes for her; Kelly’s two boys, Jamie and Eoin, were minding little toys for her.
Then, in May 2009, those plans suddenly unravelled.
Ireland’s bilateral adoption agreement with Vietnam lapsed on May 1st. There had been mounting concern over the adoption process and the rights of children.
While the Letterkenny-based couple fully understood the need to ensure the adoption process safeguarded children, they felt dismayed that Irish authorities had not acted earlier to address concerns.
“It was very disappointing for the whole family,” she said. “We had chosen Vietnam because Ireland had a bilateral agreement which gave us great confidence that it was the right place to go.”
She and her husband were among 19 couples who had received declarations of eligibility and suitability.
They had been on course to meet their adopted children within months. In addition, a further 200 were at an earlier stage in the adoption process.
After adoptions were suspended, many of those affected formed mini-support groups to help and encourage each other. Significant numbers also began to look at alternative countries for adoption such as Russia and Ethiopia.
“We had two children and felt we didn’t have a right to be too vociferous . . . But we felt we could give a child a good life and were in a position to do so. So, that’s why we went to Russia,” Kelly said.
Last July they were finally able to adopt the child they had sought for several years – Maria.
“She’s absolutely flying,” Kelly said.
“The kids are mad about her. The boys are aged nine and seven and are very protective of her.”
However, the options for adoption have narrowed significantly in recent times.
Russia and Ethiopia are no longer options for adoption since Ireland formally adopted the Hague Convention’s standards on adoption, which stipulate that Ireland can only receive children from other signatory countries.
While the decision to halt adoptions from Vietnam was hugely disappointing at the time, Kelly said new safeguards could only be a good thing.
“If it has turned around, then I hope that people in the queue to adopt in Vietnam feel reassured that the process has been raised to a better level.”
