To sum up both issues...maybe.
The US reformed their I-600 review practices. The I-600 is the Petition to Classify and Orphan as an Immediate Relative. What used to take them 2 weeks is now taking them 60+ (business) days. These petitions used to be handled in country and now families must file them before travel and wait and wait and wait. The US changed this practice to insure that nothing unethical happened in classifying each child as an orphan. ie: buying of the child, etc. In my opinion, it has simply made them lazy and a pain in the arse for the waiting families and the orphanages in Vietnam. If you have the time read Laurie & Travis' take on the whole thing. I do agree that some action needs to be taken to insure that ethical practices are happening however, must it be at the expense of the children. I heard that the Dept. of State (DOS) has been going unannounced into the orphanages and hospitals to investigate these petitions and that is what is pissing the orphanages off therefore, leading them to withhold referrals from US agencies. I have to somewhat believe this since it's been 4 weeks since the last referral and we only received 1. However, it may not be the case either.
The other issue is the Hague Convention. The JCICS (which is NOT a US government agency) is suggesting to the DOS/US and Vietnam that Vietnam should abide by the Hague Convention rules & regulations and therefore not work with adoption agencies who are not Hague accredited. Vietnam is NOT a Hague Country and should not be forced/threatened into implementing rules and regulations set forth by a treaty they are not a part of. By doing this a good number of the US agencies working in Vietnam will no longer be allowed to participate in international adoption with Vietnam UNTIL they get their Hague accreditation. Many of these agencies only work in Vietnam and/or other NON Hague countries, so accreditation could take months. I think this is, dare I say, BULL SHIT and the JCICS & DOS are beating their chest trying to prove how wonderfully powerful they think they are. OK, so the DOS probably is.
Soap box time....Didn't the US already screw over this poor country enough during the Vietnam War (American War to the Vietnamese)? To try to enforce a change that is supposed to become effective with little notice (April 1) is basically saying to Vietnam, "Bend over and take it." Granted, Vietnam has the right to say no, they have the right to screw US families waiting or in process of adopting, but is any of this really fair to the children? I say NO, but I'm not a bureaucrat hell bent on proving something. I have heard that officials in Vietnam have asked US agencies to write letters as to why this is unfair and why it should not happen. They plan to present these letters to the DOS and voice their opposition. I really hope ANYTHING and EVERYTHING will help because I really would like to complete my adoption sooner than later as I know MANY other families would. I really dislike when the US tries to flex its muscle where it really doesn't need to. And we wonder why so many countries dislike us.
Below is a statement from the US Department of State's website:
Please note that only those adoption service providers who have been accredited, temporarily accredited, or approved by either COA or CO will be able to provide adoption services for Hague adoption cases after the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption enters into force for the United States on April 1, 2008. Adoption service providers who have not been accredited or approved by the UND may still be added to the list on the Department of State website on a rolling basis if they are subsequently accredited or approved.
"Hague adoption cases" What exactly is that? To me it would mean adoption cases taking place in Hague countries, but maybe my viewpoint is a bit skewed.
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