As just about everyone knows, the Olympics are being held in Beijing, China in 2008. Subsequently, the country is going nuts preparing for this huge event and invasion by all things international and sporty. I was in Beijing months before the Asian Games were scheduled to take place in the neighborhood of the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace and other remnants of the ancient and formerly grand, and saw the frenzy this sort of attention causes. (The games they were preparing for that year never happened, however, as this was March 1989,... more

More on the Zambia project ...

I just received this from Holly Richardson and am posting it for anyone compiling Birthing Kits for Zambia:

I must still be jet-lagged, but I keep forgetting things. First of all, I forgot to put the following items on the list for birthing kits - what was I thinking?!

*2 cloth diapers *4 diaper pins *1 pair tiny plastic pants

My FIRST trip back will be in a month to two, but I will be returning on an on-going basis, as will others. I expect to return a minimum of twice a year. I also have... more

Guatemalan adoptive families may find something familiar in this story titled, "Baby Hotel: The Gateway to Guatemalan Adoption", although some of it may grate.

In addition to accounts of beaten babies passed off by attorneys as having birth defects and allegations of trafficking, the portrayal of the process is ... interesting?

... But in Guatemala, of course, it is the profit-driven lawyers who all but run the show.

The lawyers are well... more

Continuing with a wrap of the week's news from the Kingdom of Cambodia...

Prime Minister Hun Sen is in Australia this week after warning that no coup attempts would be tolerated in his absence. On Wednesday he met with his Australian counterpart, John Howard, and hashed out some agreements.

A prisoner exchange treaty was signed, as well as... more

Former King Norodom Sihanouk will celebrate his 84th birthday at the end of the month, but has asked for a hold-off on the hoopla. HIs official website has posted the message seen here, as well as other information if you're feeling the need to keep up with the doings of Cambodian royalty.

In fact, if you'd like to follow the daily goings-on of the present monarch,... more

Yesterday, I briefly touched on a story out of India about new child labor laws coming into effect that now ban young workers in domestic service and the hospitality industry. I've been turning this issue over in my mind ever since, and a more detailed report today... more

A year ago this week a 7.6-magnitude earthquake shook northern Pakistan killing more than 80,000 people and leaving more than three million homeless. Because of red tape, not one child orphaned in the disaster has been adopted. The Pakistan-Canada Association in Vancouver have been working to move things forward, but without much luck to date.

Another winter is coming and more than a million people are still living in makeshift shelters and tents.... more

A report out of Kenya this morning indicates that the Hague may be ratified there by the end of the year.

The Government will establish a central body to handle child adoption. Vice-President, Mr Moody Awori, said many committees that deal with adoption were inefficient, adding that the process was open to abuse.

Awori said budgetary allocations and legal requirements for adoption of children, especially from other nations, should... more

Rosamond 'Roz" Carr, fashion illustrator, flower farmer, author, famous friend, hero of post-genocide Rwanda, and award-winning carer of orphaned children died on Friday at the age of 94.

From the Rwanda Project:

As a young fashion illustrator in New York City, Rosamond Halsey married an adventurous hunter-explorer, Kenneth Carr, whom she journeyed with to the Belgian Congo in 1949. After their eventual divorce, Kenneth left, while... more

An interview about international adoptions and Ukrainian orphanages is available on line. Ukraine's Minister for Sport, Youth and Family Yuri Pavlenko answers questions such as, "US citizens complain that their reports have been lost. Is this a real problem?" Part of his long answer:

... we cannot comment unambiguously on every report as we have been given the general information by the Centre of Adoption attached to the Education and Science Ministry of Ukraine.... more