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Adoption Alert for Congo, Democratic Republic of the
Source: Wikipedia.org.
There have been numerous U.S. State Department adoption alerts for the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The most recent alerts are included here.
The Department of State Strongly Recommends Against Adopting from the DRC at this time (October 6, 2014)'
In light of the DRC’s September 26, 2014 announcement that its exit permit suspension for adopted children remains in effect indefinitely, the Department of State has asked all adoption agencies to cease referring new DRC adoption cases for U.S. prospective adoptive parents at this time. The Department of State strongly recommends against initiating an adoption in the DRC at this time, as adoptive children cannot leave the DRC without an exit permit issued by the DRC’s Directorate of General Migration, even with a finalized adoption. Congolese courts continue to issue adoption decrees under existing Congolese law, despite the exit permit suspension.
We continue to press the DRC government on lifting the suspension so that Congolese children with finalized adoptions waiting for an exit permit can join their adoptive families as soon as possible.We are committed to working with the DRC government to address their concerns and continue to advocate for opportunities to engage on long-term adoption reforms in the DRC.
Status of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) exit permit suspension for adopted children (September 29, 2014)
On September 26, 2014 Director General of the Directorate of General Migration, Francois Beya, announced the DRC’s official policy that the exit permit suspension for adopted children will remain in place until further notice. The Congolese government initially issued the exit permit suspension for adopted children on September 25, 2013, indicating that the suspension would be in effect for up to 12 months.
Although the Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Kinshasa have pressed the Congolese government repeatedly to lift the exit permit suspension, the September 26 announcement is the only definitive response the Congolese authorities have provided to us since they originally stated that no exit permits would be issued until promulgation of new adoption laws in the DRC in July.
Bringing relief to the children and adoptive families impacted by the exit permit suspension remains a high priority for the Department of State. We understand the hardship children and families are facing and we remain vigerously engaged on this issue at all levels. Secretary of State John Kerry met multiple times with DRC President Joseph Kabila since May to advocate on behalf of the affected families.
President Kabila and the Congolese government continue to state that the reason for the suspension is that the DRC adoption process needs to be reformed because it does not adequately protect Congolese children. We are committed to working with the DRC government to address their concerns and continue to advocate for opportunities to engage on long-term adoption reforms in the DRC. We will also continue to press the DRC government on lifting the suspension so that Congolese adopted children waiting for an exit permit can join their adoptive families as soon as possible.
The U.S. government still receives immigration applications for adopted and prospective adoptive children in the DRC. We also understand that Congolese courts continue to issue adoption decrees under existing Congolese law, despite the exit permit suspension. Given these circumstances, we strongly urge all adoption agencies to inform prospective adoptive families of the suspension on exit permits and caution prospective adoptive parents who are interested in adopting from the DRC to weigh the risks and uncertainty of the process at this time. Prospective adoptive parents should be aware that children may not be able to leave the DRC even with a finalized adoption.
Alert: U.S. Secretary of State Meeting with Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) President (August 5, 2014)
On August 4, Secretary of State John Kerry met with DRC President Joseph Kabila to stress the urgency of lifting the suspension on the issuance of exit permits for Congolese adopted children. Secretary Kerry strongly emphasized our humanitarian concern for the children and families affected by the suspension, and urged that children whose adoptions were completed in Congolese courts should be allowed to obtain exit permits and join their adoptive families in the United States.
President Kabila did not provide any new information during the meeting regarding the DRC government’s policy to not review cases during the suspension. President Kabila stated that the DRC adoption process has involved many inconsistencies in case processing and needs to be reformed.
The Department of State deeply regrets that families continue to face an indefinite wait for exit permits. We will continue to stress to the DRC government our concern for Congolese adopted children who are not able to obtain exit permits and stress our commitment to addressing the Congolese concerns about intercountry adoptions. Our offers to provide technical expertise, and to bring a delegation of Congolese officials to the United States, remain on the table and will continue to be reiterated at every opportunity.
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