What have the "M" sisters been up to?

Nearly 9 months ago, Mark and Ann along with a few family members traveled to Taiwan to pick up their 4 daughters from Taiwan! Looks like the "M" sisters are all settling in to family life with the help of their 3 big sisters, a nanny and two wonderful parents!

Proper Nutrition: The Key to Your Child's Success

Please join The Nutrition Twins as they share secrets that will help you to enhance your child’s life. The Twins will discuss the importance of proper nutrition and how it will affect every aspect of your child’s well-being. By providing the right foods, you can help him or her to flourish. You’ll be encouraged as you learn that by helping your children to choose the best foods and nutrients in specific combinations, your child’s growth and development will be optimized and your child’s focus, performance and behavior will greatly improve. That’s right, by providing your child with the right nutrients you can assist him or her in receiving high grades, becoming a better athlete, playing better with others and preventing tantrums!

The sisters will also share practical tips and simple changes that you can make in your family’s diet that will enrich the quality of all of your lives. You will feel empowered as you realize that a few simple dietary changes can have a great impact on your child’s life.

Brought to you by Gladney Center for Adoption - Pathways Training.

Register today to ensure your spot! https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/445847954  

Tiah Celebrates Chinese New Year!

Tiah joined her forever family in April 2010. She wears a beautiful pink dress from Taiwan to bring in the New Year as she celebrates with her parents and siblings in Phoenix, AZ!

Legislative Update #3

“DOMESTIC FIRST” -- Promoting Domestic Adoption Within Taiwan: Policy and Legislative Changes

As has been summarized and reported earlier, revised child welfare legislation is currently under consideration by the government of Taiwan. One significant policy change/guideline for US families planning to adopt from Taiwan is the policy of “domestic adoption first” – placing a priority on considering domestic families first for children, before considering international adoption. Acknowledging that it is not possible for all children to remain in their country of birth, best practices in child welfare support sound intercountry as well as domestic adoption polices so that orphaned children can be placed with loving, permanent families—either in their country of birth or through intercountry adoption.

Procedures for implementing the “domestic first” policy are under consideration by the Taiwanese legislature and include the use of a domestic database as well as other procedures to ensure that children are able to be considered first by Taiwanese families residing in Taiwan. It is expected that children will be available for domestic adoption for a period of approximately six months before being available for international adoption. In cases where children are harder to place, e.g., children who have, or are at risk for, medical conditions or developmental delays, earlier consideration for intercountry adoption may be possible. As of this time the effective date of the various provisions of the new child welfare laws are unknown.

Based on these considerations, Gladney anticipates that the youngest children matched and referred to US families will be six to seven months of age and older at referral. As the Taiwan court process generally takes approximately 8 months to complete, it is reasonable to assume that the youngest children coming home from Taiwan with their US families will be approximately 14 months in age.

Ben Making Beats on the Drums!

Ben has not only learned to play the drums since arriving in his

family in 2009 but how to style his hair! What a cute kid!

Legislative Update #2, Licensed Organizations

In Gladney's blog post on January 13, 2011 regarding legislative changes in Taiwan, we reported that significant changes to the child welfare system, including adoption process was expected with the new passage of the Children and Youth Welfare Rights Protection Act.

The new law provides for additional regulation of persons or organizations providing adoption services. To avoid child trafficking, only licensed organizations can process adoptions under the new law. Penalty for violation of the law will be put into place for non-licensed individuals or organizations providing adoption services. Currently, there are 10 licensed entities able to provide adoption services, both domestic and international. This includes 3 government orphanages, one quasi-governmental organization, and six private foundations.

The organizations that Gladney partners with, i.e., Cathwel, Chung Yi and New Hope, are all on the list that Taiwan government has published. Other licensed organizations by the Children's Bureau in Taiwan ROC include: The Northern Region Children’s Home, Ministry of Interior; The Central Region Children’s Home, Ministry of Interior; The Southern Children’s Home, Ministry of Interior; Child Welfare League Foundation; Good Shepherd Welfare Services Tainan Babies’ Home; The Home of God’s Love; Christian Salvation Services.

Working with licensed organizations in Taiwan makes it more likely that a visa is issued to children adopted by our adoptive families. The adoption process for Gladney families with referrals has continued un-interrupted to date. As Gladney continues to partner with Cathwel, Chung Yi, and New Hope- we will monitor the status of the proposed act and provide additional information and updates through passage.

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE – PROPOSED LEGISLATION IN TAIWAN, January 2011

The Children and Youth Welfare Rights Protection Act

There are significant legislative efforts underway to revise the current laws of Taiwan (Republic of China) in reference to the social welfare of children and youth. These efforts will surely have an impact on the adoptions in Taiwan, whether domestic or international. The law under revision is entitled “Children and Youth Social Welfare Law”. This law has been in effect since 2003 and contains 75 articles.

The new proposed legislation is entitled “ The Children and Youth Welfare Rights Protection Act”. The new law contains 115 articles. The title of the act, as well as the increased number of provisions, demonstrate the scale and scope of the changes being made in the area of child welfare.

According to the government in Taiwan, the new legislation will make some significant changes to the adoption systems in Taiwan. To avoid child trafficking, only licensed organizations can process adoptions under the new law. Penalty for violation is NTB 300000, which is about USD $10,000. Another change is that prospective adoptive parents (PAPs) are required to take training courses, undergo mental health and physical health assessments, as well as obtain drug and alcohol clearances, etc.

While the timing is not yet determined, passage of the new law is perhaps expected after the Chinese New Year in February, 2011. However, the government has already been very actively making guidelines, and procedures for implementation as of the effective date of the new law. One policy guideline, which is significant for US families planning to adopt from Taiwan, is “domestic adoption first” – placing a priority on considering domestic families first for children, before considering international adoption. Procedures for implementing this policy guideline are under consideration and include the use of a domestic database to list children for a period of time prior to consideration for international placement. Gladney will continue to monitor the status of the proposed act and provide additional information and updates through passage.

-- Gongzhan Wu, VP and Managing Director - Asia


Gongzhan Wu VP & Managing Director - Asia Gladney Center for Adoption gongzhan.wu@gladney.org
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