Government took year to act over Tristan

THE Department of Foreign Affairs was aware that three-year-old Tristan Dowse was left in an orphanage by his family a year ago, however the investigation into the legality of the adoption only began last week.

A spokesperson for Adoption Ireland said serious questions must now be asked as to why the Irish Adoption Board recognised this adoption, when a simple check with the Indonesian authorities would have confirmed its illegality.

The Department of Foreign Affairs only became aware of question marks surrounding his adoption from a media report last Sunday and have since sent a team to Jakarta to investigate the matter.

"Procedures must now be reviewed to ensure that this can never happen again. This also demonstrates the immediate need for adopted people and natural parents who are already active in the adoption field to be appointed to the board of the adoption authority, along with the adoptive parents who are already there.

"This situation goes to further prove that Ireland should not be recognising adoptions with countries who have not yet ratified the Hague Convention and, indeed, calls into question whether we should be conducting foreign adoption at all until Ireland itself ratifies the convention later this year."

Adoption Ireland said following statements from the Dowse family solicitor, it is now clear that Tristan was returned to the orphanage when he became "surplus to requirements". They also called for a full investigation and for a prosecution for child abandonment and neglect to be brought.

"Everything possible must now be done to help Tristan, who is the innocent victim in all of this. Many doubts have been cast over the legality of this adoption, therefore Adoption Ireland is calling on the Irish Adoption Board to make every effort to locate Tristan's natural mother so that her views can be obtained. A child sponsorship programme should be set up by the board to allow him to remain in his own country and culture, if at all possible with his natural family."

Tristan was just two-months-old when he was adopted by the Dowse family, who were living in Jakarta. Two years later, when he was left at the orphanage, he spoke and understood only English.

Now the Irish Adoption Board has asked the Department of Foreign Affairs to investigate whether the adoption of the Indonesian boy was illegal.

Because it was accepted by the Irish Adoption Board, Tristan was put on their register of foreign adoptions and granted Irish citizenship and a passport.

Joe Dowse, an accountant now living in Azerbaijan, has denied the adoption was improper. He said they left Tristan behind because the adoption "wasn't working out", believing it was in the child's best interests.

"Over time we came to a painful realisation that the adoption wasn't working out, an extremely difficult and painful realisation to make."

His wife, Lala, became pregnant and they decided to place Tristan in the orphanage and leave Indonesia. The Dowses have one other daughter, Tata.

Tristan has been visited by Irish embassy officials based in Singapore, who say they are trying to sort out the bureaucratic mess.

How did this little boy end up abandoned in a Jakarta orphanage?

Tristan Dowes was adopted by Joe Dowes, an accountant from Wicklow, and his Azerbaijani-born wife, Lala, when he was two months old in 2002. The couple were living in Jakarta at the time and applied for and were granted an adoption application by the District Court of Jakarta. This adoption process had nothing to do with the Irish Adoption Board and as such was just a domestic Indonesian adoption as the couple lived and worked in Indonesia.

So how did the Adoption Board get involved?

After the adoption was completed, Joe Dowes, still living in Jakarta, applied to the Irish Adoption Board for Tristan's adoption to be added to the register of foreign adoptions in this country. This move allows the child Irish citizenship and the right to an Irish passport. A child can only be added to the register, however, if Adoption Board approves of the foreign, in this case Indonesian, adoption process. The Adoption Board had on two separate cases examined the adoption structure in Indonesia, in 1992 and 2002, and so they acceded to Dowes request. Tristan was put on the register and became an Irish citizen. Tristan has never been to Ireland.

So what happened then?

A year ago, however, the Dowes contacted the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Adoption Board to say they had put the then two-year-old at the Emmanuel Orphanage in Jakarta as they believed they had not "bonded" with the child and they said the "adoption had not worked out". They asked if his adoption register entry could be cancelled so Tristan could have the possibility of being re-adopted. Shortly afterwards, Joe and pregnant Lala moved to Azerbaijan where they now live with their older daughter, Tata, and their infant son.

This is a tragic story. But why can't he be re-adopted by somebody who will give him the stability he deserves?

According to the Adoption Board, under Section 15 of the 1998 Adoption Act, he can't be re-adopted without his family making an application to High Court to have the adoption cancelled. This can only be done if the High Court deems it is in the best interest of the child. According to the Adoption Board, it has no idea why the family won't do this.

If the adoption is essentially a domestic Indonesian adoption, why don't the Indonesian authorities take control of the situation?

Dr Makmur Sunusi, of the Indonesian Ministry of Social Affairs, has said in recent days that Tristan is an Irish citizen living illegally in the country. He says the investigations have found the adoption by Mr Dowse and his wife was illegal as they did not follow procedures and had not received proper authorisation. "We can do nothing," he said. "Tristan is stateless. He should be deported because he is here without a visa." Mr Dowse denies the adoption was improper.

So what's happening now?

Irish Ambassador to Indonesia Hugh Swift has met with officials in recent days to discuss the legality of the adoption. The department says the legality issue only arose following a media report. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, this problem must be solved before Tristan's long-term future can be planned for. Strangely, if it turns out that the Indonesian adoption was not valid, theoretically, Tristan can be re-adopted without involving the Irish courts as this would invalidate his entry on the foreign register here. It would, however, raise questions about how the Irish Adoption Board sanctioned its entry. A spokesperson for the Adopted People's Association, Adoption Ireland, yesterday said serious questions must be asked as to why the Irish Adoption Board recognised this adoption, when a simple check with the Indonesian authorities would have confirmed its illegality.

And his adopted parents?

On Thursday night, through their solicitor, the family offered four solutions to the Adoption Board. They say that the Department of Foreign Affairs could issue a letter to Jakarta asking for a court order from Indonesia revoking the Indonesian adoption and then Tristan could be adopted. Alternatively, they say the Adoption Board could give a letter to the Indonesian authorities informing them that they have no issues with Tristan's re-adoption. They said that a passport could also be re-issued to Tristan so he could fly to Ireland to their extended family or else fly to them in Azerbaijan. The Adoption Board has dismissed these options.