Lately, some news items about adoption caught my attention.
This number is so small, and the wait time so long (averaging 5 years!) that many couples interested in this process give up or perhaps not even try. I remember years ago an officer from the NSW Department of Community Services (DOCS), when asked on how many couples were on the waiting list, replied that this statistic is not held - you can imagine why!
Australian authorities are thinking of changing the regulations, so that children which are currently in foster care may more easily be adopted instead. Today this doesn't happen very often, as authorities prefer to wait as much as possible to try and reunite children under foster care with their biological parents. Although this is a positive goal, is seems that in practice the situation in the original parents' home rarely permits this to happen, and children end up losing the opportunity of having adoptive parents before they come of age (at 18).
This situation led me to question whether there might be another solution to the low number of adoptions. I thought of the sad reality where girls and women decide to undergo an abortion, when they decide they are unable or unwilling to raise the children they are carrying.
The idea that came to me was this - why not attempt to turn two negative situations to a positive one? Why not create a structure and organisation that makes an offer to these girls and women who don't want the children they're gestating, the opportunity of matching them with couples who are ready to adopt? I'm sure not everyone would be interested, but equally sure there will be some.
For this process to be of interest to the biological mother, it has to be guaranteed, i.e. at the end of the day the biological mother needs to be assured she will no longer be legally responsible after birth.
This process perhaps already exists, however if so I have the impression it's only on a small scale. From my perspective, if it exists it is not very visible, and I'm amazed by this.
Given these figures, the possibility is clearly there. Even if just 1% of abortions are diverted into an adoption process, in 2014 an additional 570 local adoptions would have occurred, almost an increase of 300% on the 200 that occur today.
I can see an opportunity for those organisations which state their opposition to abortion, as are the Christian churches, to unite and instead of just speaking against the practice and preach about the morality of their position, offer a practical solution to those girls and women who may end up not wanting to raise the babies in their womb.
Therefore, I propose that such organisations seek to partner up with the Department coordinating foster care and adoption (in NSW today called the Department of Family and Community Services), in Malta the Department of Social Security) and pursue an agreement to identify from their communities women who are ready to give up their child upon birth. This can be promoted through notices during liturgical celebrations and other occasions as well as media campaigns.
From their part, government departments already have information on couples wishing to adopt, and can prepare them as they do today, with the difference that the number of them undergoing the process would be higher than it is today.
Naturally, not everyone actively considering an abortion would agree to this. We have to accept that a woman considering termination has her reasons for thinking this way, and may have experienced violence, rape or other difficult situations. Thus, the final choice should always be hers and hers alone, and respected without condemnation.
Nevertheless, I think that with such a scheme and a national campaign, I think a good proportion may accept this call, and society can only benefit.
I would encourage all those interested in this subject, especially those who have some influence in the organisations involved, to consider this suggestion.
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Dan l-aħħar kien hemm xi aħbarijiet fuq l-adozzjoni li ġibduli l-attenzjoni.
In-numru tant hu żgħir, u l-istennija tant hi twila (medja ta' madwar ħames snin!), li twassal għal diversi koppji li jkunu interessati fis-suġġett li jaqtgħu qalbhom jew forsi lanqa jippruvaw. Snin ilu niftakar uffiċjal fid-Dipartiment tas-Servizzi Kommunitarji ta' NSW, meta mistoqsi kemm kien hemm koppji jistennew fil-lista, irrisponda li din l-istatistika lanqas tinżamm - tista' timmaġina għaliex!
L-Awtoritajiet Awstraljani qed jaħsbu biex jibdlu r-regolamenti, sabiex tfal li bħalissa qegħdin taħt it-trobbija ta' terzi persuni (foster carers) ikunu iktar faċilment jistgħu jiġu adottati. Dan illum ma tantx isir għax l-awtoritajiet iktar jippreferu jistennew sabiex jekk jista' jkun jerġgħu jlaqqgħu lit-tfal mal-ġenituri bijoloġiċi tagħhom. Għalkemm dan huwa għan pożittiv, jidher li fil-prattika s-sitwazzjoni fid-dar tal-ġenituri rari tkun tali li tippermetti dan, u t-tfal jispiċċaw jitilfu ċ-ċans li jkollhom ġenituri adottivi tagħhom qabel ma jiġu tal-età (ta' tmintax-il sena).
Din is-sitwazzjoni ġegħlitni naħseb ftit jekk hemmx soluzzjoni oħra għan-numru baxx ta' adozzjonijiet. Ħsibt fis-sitwazzjoni tad-dwejjaq fejn tfajliet u nisa jiddeċiedu li jagħmlu abort, meta jiddeċiedu li ma jistgħux jew ma jridux irabbu t-tfal li qed iġorru.
Ġietni din l-ideja - għax ma nfittxux li minn żewġ sitwazzjonijiet negattivi tinħareġ waħda pożittiva? Għax ma tinħoloqx struttura u organizzazzjoni li toffri lil dawn it-tfajliet u n-nisa li ma jridux lil uliedhom li qed iġorru fil-ġuf, l-opportunità li jlaqqgħuhom ma' koppji li jkunu lesti li jaddotawhom? Persważ li mhux kulħadd ikun interessat, imma ċert li jkun hemm min ikun.
Biex dan il-proċess ikun ta' interess għall-omm bijoloġika, irid ikun garantit, jiġifieri fl-aħħar mill-aħħar l-omm bijoloġika tkun ċerta li ma' tibqax iktar legalment responsabbli wara t-twelid.
Dan il-proċess forsi diġà jseħħ, imma jekk iva għandi l-impressjoni li sseħħ fuq skala żgħira ħafna. Ngħid għalija, jekk teżisti ma tantx hi viżibbli, u niskanta bis-sitwazzjoni.
Ċertament, b'dawn il-figuri, il-possibiltà hemm qiegħda. Imqar jekk 1% biss tal-interventi ta' abort jiġu ddevjati f'proċess ta' adozzjoni, fl-2014 kien ikun hemm żieda ta' 570 adozzjoni lokali, kważi żieda ta' 300% fuq il-200 li jseħħu issa!
Jien nara opportunità hawnhekk għal dawk l-organizzazzjonijiet li jgħidu li huma kontra l-abort, bħall-knejjes insara, li jingħaqdu, u minflok sempliċement jitkellmu kontra l-abort u jippriedkaw il-moralità tal-pożizzjoni tagħhom, ifittxu li joffru soluzzjoni prattika għal dawk it-tfajliet u n-nisa li jaslu jiddeċiedu li ma jridux irabbu lit-tarbija fil-ġuf tagħhom.
Għalhekk, nipproponi li dawn l-organizzazzjonijiet jidħlu fis-sħab mad-Dipartiment li jieħu ħsieb il-proċessi ta' trobbija (fostering) jew adozzjoni tat-tfal (f'NSW illum jissejjaħ id-Dipartiment tal-Familja u s-Servizzi Kommunitarji, f'Malta d-Dipartiment tas-Sigurtà Soċjali) u jagħmlu ftehim biex mill-komunitajiet tagħhom jidentifikaw nisa li lesti jċedu lit-tfal tagħhom mat-twelid. Per eżempju, jistgħu jagħmlu avviżi waqt iċ-ċelebrazzjonijiet liturġiċi u okkażjonijiet oħra kif ukoll kampanji fil-midja.
Min-naħa tagħhom, il-dipartimenti tal-gvern diġà għandu l-informazzjoni ta' koppji li jixtiequ jadottaw, u jippreparawhom bħal ma jagħmlu llum, bid-differenza li n-numru jkun ħafna ikbar milli hu llum.
Naturalment mhux kull min qed jikkunsidra li jagħmel abort ikun konvint minn dan. Irridu nirrikonoxxu li mara li tkun qed tikkunsidra li tittermina t-tqala tagħha għandha r-raġunijiet tagħha, u tista' tkun għaddiet minn vjolenza, stupru jew sitwazzjonijiet diffiċli oħra. Għalhekk, l-għażla finali għandha tkun tagħha u tagħha biss, u rrispettata mingħajr ma' tiġi kkundannata.
Madankollu, jien naħseb li b'din l-iskema u b'kampanja nazzjonali, naħseb li jkun hemm persentaġġ tajjeb li jaċċettaw din is-sejħa, u s-soċjetà tista' biss tirbaħ b'dan.
Inħeġġeġ lil min għandu interess fis-suġġett, speċjalment dawk li għandhom influwenza fl-organizzazzjonijiet involuti, biex jikkunsidra dan is-suġġeriment.
1Adoptions Australia 2014--15, Australian Institute of Health & Welfare, Fig. 3.1
2Ibid., Fig. 4.1
3http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/adopting-a-child-in-or-out-of-australia-is-far-from-simple-20150326-1m837i.html, retrieved 29/12/2015
4http://www.childrenbychoice.org.au/info-a-resources/facts-and-figures/unplanned-pregnancy-profiles-of-abortion-adoption-and-parenting, retrieved 29/12/2015
5Use of Routinely Collected National Data Sets for Reporting on Induced Abortion in Australia, Australian Institute of Health & Welfare, December 2005, p.32
6http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/policy/abortion/ab-australia.html, retrieved 29/12/2015
1Adoptions Australia 2014--15, Australian Institute of Health & Welfare, Fig. 3.1
2Ibid., Fig. 4.1
3http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/adopting-a-child-in-or-out-of-australia-is-far-from-simple-20150326-1m837i.html, retrieved 29/12/2015
4http://www.childrenbychoice.org.au/info-a-resources/facts-and-figures/unplanned-pregnancy-profiles-of-abortion-adoption-and-parenting, retrieved 29/12/2015
5Use of Routinely Collected National Data Sets for Reporting on Induced Abortion in Australia, Australian Institute of Health & Welfare, December 2005, p.32
6http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/policy/abortion/ab-australia.html, retrieved 29/12/2015
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