Publications

There is universal agreement that the best interests of the child should be a primary consideration in any decisions made about a child’s future. In the case of adoption, which represents one of the most far-reaching and definitive decisions that could be made about the future of any child – the selection of their parents – international law qualifies the best interests of the child as the paramount consideration. The implications of this obligation are all the greater in the context of the intercountry form of adoption, since this involves in addition the removal of a child to a new country and, usually, a new culture.

However, there is no universal agreement on who is ultimately responsible for determining what is in a child’s ‘best interests’, nor on what basis the decision should be made This study responds, in particular, to one key question: what is it that enables a policy, process, decision or practice to be qualified as either respectful or in violation of the best interests of the child in intercountry adoption?

Social Monitor 2003 reviews recent socio-economic trends in the 27 countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States. It contains six articles: Economic Growth, Poverty and Long-Term Disadvantage examines recent trends in national income, poverty and public expenditure. Debt Service: An Emerging Problem looks at the growth of external debt in the poorest countries in the region. Refugees and Displaced Persons: Still Large Numbers reviews trends in the numbers of refugees and displaced persons and their living conditions. Intercountry Adoption: Trends and Consequences analyses factors behind the increasing number of children who are internationally adopted from the region. Confronting HIV? considers recent developments in HIV/AIDS in the region and the care and treatment of people with HIV/AIDS. The special feature article, Counting Infant Mortality and Accounting for It, draws on recent survey data to question official infant mortality rates in several countries in the region. It also seeks to explain factors associated with high infant mortality rates in these countries. In addition, the Statistical Annex covers a broad range of indicators for the years 1989 to 2000-2002, including population trends, births and fertility, mortality, family formation, health, education, child protection, crime, and income, as well as comprehensive statistical profiles on each country in the region.

Social Monitor 2003 reviews recent socio-economic trends in the 27 countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States. It contains six articles: Economic Growth, Poverty and Long-Term Disadvantage examines recent trends in national income, poverty and public expenditure. Debt Service: An Emerging Problem looks at the growth of external debt in the poorest countries in the region. Refugees and Displaced Persons: Still Large Numbers reviews trends in the numbers of refugees and displaced persons and their living conditions. Intercountry Adoption: Trends and Consequences analyses factors behind the increasing number of children who are internationally adopted from the region. Confronting HIV? Considers recent developments in HIV/AIDS in the region and the care and treatment of people with HIV/AIDS. The special feature article, Counting Infant Mortality and Accounting for It, draws on recent survey data to question official infant mortality rates in several countries in the region. It also seeks to explain factors associated with high infant mortality rates in these countries.

There is a growing global consensus on the need to promote family-based alternatives to institutional care for children. No residential institution, no matter how well meaning, can replace the family environment so essential to every child. This Innocenti Insight examines efforts to prevent the institutionalization of children in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Italy and Spain, focusing on both public and private initiatives, as well as local and national policies. The study highlights the fact that policies to discourage institutionalization are not enough. The right climate is needed to create alternatives, including raising public awareness.

This Digest looks at intercountry adoption as one of a series of possible solutions for children unable to live with their families. Broadly accepted international instruments specify the conditions under which intercountry adoption should be undertaken if the rights and best interests of the children concerned are to be protected and fully respected. Although substantial efforts are being made to implement the standards and procedures set, current practices are often in violation of these norms. The Digest identifies abuses of intercountry adoption as well as the measures required to combat such violations and to uphold 'best practice' in this sphere. A commentary explores some popular fallacies about intercountry adoption, including the notion of 'the right to a child', and suggests measures that will ensure that the rights of the child will be "the paramount consideration". The Digest also provides information on existing Central Authorities under the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption.

Este Digest examina la adopción internacional como una de las soluciones posibles para aquellos niños que no pueden vivir con sus familias. Los documentos internacionales, generalmente aceptados, especifican las condiciones en las cuales se debe llevar a cabo la adopción internacional si se pretende proteger y respetar plenamente los derechos y el interés superior de los niños implicados en dicho proceso. Aunque se están realizando esfuerzos significativos por implementar las normas y los procedimientos establecidos, la práctica actual suele implicar la violación de estas reglas. El Digest indica cuáles son los abusos que se cometen en la adopción internacional, así como las medidas que hay que tomar para luchar contra tales violaciones y para defender las “prácticas mejores” en este campo. Un comentario titulado “Los niños y la adopción: Qué derechos y de quién” desenmascara algunos errores comunes relativos a la adopción internacional, como por ejemplo la noción del “derecho a tener un hijo”, y propone medidas que puedan garantizar que los derechos del niño sean “la consideración primordial”. El Digest proporciona también informaciones sobre las Autoridades Centrales que han adherido al Convenio de La Haya en Materia de Adopción Internacional y detalles sobre algunas de las organizaciones internacionales y regionales activas en este ámbito, y sugiere además lecturas ulteriores para quienes quieran profundizar el tema.

Il Digest sulla adozione transnazionale presenta in maniera imparziale le problematiche relative alla adozione di bambini provenienti da un altro paese e da una diversa cultura. Il rapporto illustra le misure atte a garantire il rispetto dell'interesse superiore del minore nel corso del processo di adozione, facendo anche luce sulle pratiche illegali di adozione volte allo sfruttamento dei bambini dei loro genitori, sia biologici che adottivi.

Even though all South Asian countries have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, there is as yet little awareness in the region of the importance of this Convention at various levels including policy planning, activism and legal reform in the on-going effort to achieve children’s rights. Thus argues Savitri Goonesekere, whose primary objective in this book is to outline the options available for using the Convention to create a legal system favourable to the realization of the rights of the child in South Asia. The first chapters discuss the international legal environment and the assumptions underlying South Asian domestic legislation on children’s rights, together with the conceptual framework of the Convention. The core of the book focuses on ‘best interests’ and examines such issues as trafficking in children, the status of the girl child, adoption and foster care, child prostitution, and the child as victim of abuse and violence.