Minister seeks to reopen Vietnam adoption links

MINISTER for Children Frances Fitzgerald is to visit Vietnam as part of talks aimed at establishing a safe inter-country adoption system between the south-east Asian nation and Ireland.

In a statement last night, Ms Fitzgerald said she will be “accepting an invitation extended to her” to visit to help ensure adequate adoption practice standards are in place.

Between 1991 and 2008, Vietnam was one of the top three nations in the world from which Irish inter-country adoptions took place. However, Ireland chose not to renew its bilateral agreement with Vietnam in 2009 due to concerns raised by a major Unicef international social services report into inter-country adoptions from that country.

The document found that there was virtually “no active promotion of domestic adoptions” by Vietnamese authorities, giving rise to concern that some cases may not have been in the best interests of the children involved.

In recent months, Irish and Vietnamese officials have been discussing how administrative arrangements could be improved.

This process is specifically focussed on the ratification of the Hague Convention on Inter-country Adoption, and guarantees that plans for safe and secure domestic Vietnamese adoptions are also implemented.

This process has already led to visits by Irish authorities to the country earlier this year, with a second visit planned for January, said Ms Fitzgerald. “The Vietnamese authorities are committed to putting in place the legislative framework that supports safe and secure domestic and inter-country adoption,” she said.

“Once this is in place, and with the work of the Adoption Authority on the Irish side, I am confident arrangements for inter-country adoption between Ireland and Vietnam can progress.”

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