Nihao From Nanping - Page 5
- Touring The Yanping Social Welfare Institute -
- Day Two -

6-16-2000

Back at the hotel, I am able to organize my thoughts.
 
Mr. Lin has sent out two groups to American adoption this year.  The first group of adoptees were two girls, five year old twins.  The first girl was adopted in 1996 by a family in the United States.  When the family found out that their daughter had been separated from a twin sister, the family requested to adopt their daughter's twin sister also.   The father flew back to the states and had his secretary fly back to Fuzhou, where she tried to get the Chinese government to allow the adoption of the twin sister.  Even though a large monetary donation was proposed, still they were unable to adopt the girl.  However, following the recent amendments to the Chinese laws regarding adoptions, the couple was allowed to adopt their daughter's twin sister earlier this year.

Also taking advantage of these new adoption laws are many of China's rural farmers, who are adopting baby daughters to serve as wives for their young sons.  A long held tradition in the Fujian Province, rural farmers have been buying baby girls to be their sons' wives for many generations.

Mr. Lin is very concerned of these activities, as many of these girls have been adopted by rural farmers from the institution.  Once they are adopted by a farmer, the girls lose their rights to other means of adoption, either domestically or internationally.  In most cases, this means they also lose their opportunities to a prosperous life.

In addition, if the institution does not have enough children for international adoption, the children remaining at the institution will lose the financial resources provided by international adoption fees.  It is through these fees that the additional money has come to pay the caregivers better wages, and that more nutritious foods have been able to have been purchased.  

Mr. Lin's concern is that would again force lower wages for the caregivers, leading those with better education and childcare knowledge and training to leave, leaving only illiterate caregivers to stay.  Fewer international adoption fees could also result in fewer dollars being available for the purchase of food for those living at the institution, which could be detrimental to future children's health.

Let's hope that a harmonic balance will be found, which will work out to the best advantage of all the children living in the Yanping Social Welfare Institute... both now and in the future.

INDEX          1    2    3      4   5   6