Who is responsible for monitoring children after they are adopted by parents in another country? That’s the question at the heart of a controversy over a Russian child adopted by American parents. The seven year old, Artem Saveliev, was ‘rejected’ by his adoptive mother, and sent back to Russia alone on a long-haul air flight from Tennessee to Moscow. This article from Russia’s Interfax examines Russian reaction to the case and a new treaty now under discussion, calling for additional monitoring of adoptive families.
The article from Interfax says in part:
The case involving Artem Saveliev, a diminutive Russian citizen adopted by an American mother and then returned to his homeland, has again brought into sharp focus the question of mechanisms and procedures that must accompany the process of international adoption.
Michael Kirby, the deputy assistant secretary of state for consular affairs, intends to visit Russia to discuss the fate of the 7-year-old Saveliev, who was returned to Russia by his adoptive American parents from the state of Tennessee. The adoptive family returned the boy on a plane to Moscow alone, with a note saying that they rejected the adoption. This, in turn, triggered the indignation of the Russian public.
Following the case of Artem Saveliev, statements about the necessity of such a treaty between Russia and the United States were heard from many quarters. Russian Federation President Dmitry Medvedev also commented on the issue.
“It seems to me that given the negative experience that has accumulated in this area, we and our American colleagues have to think about signing some intergovernmental agreement, perhaps strictly defining the duties of parents who adopt a child from Russia, and create opportunities to monitor such families … We have to understand what’s happening with our children, or we will have to abandon the practice of allowing the adoption of Russian children by American parents,” stressed the president.
Let’s note that in case of Artem Saveliev, Russian officials insist that the boy is perfectly healthy, despite the fact that his grandmother spoke of his erratic behavior. But as is pointed out in a number of American forums, one of the main problems with adopting children from Russia is that prospective parents never receive complete information about the child – particularly about its psychological health.
Some commenters on CNN pointed out that the problem isn’t the countries, but the people, who have to be fully aware of what they are embarking on when adopting a child. One user writes: “An adopted child becomes part of your family. You have adopted him. Adoption is not an eBay purchase – you don’t have 30 days to return the “merchandise.”
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