"A closed door but with no closure": China’s end to international adoptions leaves families heartbroken

Record ID: 1840050

  • Title: "A closed door but with no closure": China’s end to international adoptions leaves families heartbroken
  • Date: 6th September 2024
  • Summary: ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES (SEPTEMBER 6, 2024) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) RYAN HANLON, PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR ADOPTION, SAYING: "The hope I have, though, is that for families that needed closure, that this announcement can give that to them. And they've been in limbo for four and a half years. And, you know, many of them, I think will benefit b
  • Embargoed: 20th September 2024 23:41
  • Keywords: ADOPTION AIMEE WELCH CHINA CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY MAO NING
  • Location: LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY + ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES / BEIJING + GUANGZHOU, GUANGDONG PROVINCE + HARBIN, HEILONGJIANG PROVINCE, CHINA
  • City: LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY + ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES / BEIJING + GUANGZHOU, GUANGDONG PROVINCE + HARBIN, HEILONGJIANG PROVINCE, CHINA
  • Country: US
  • Topics: North America,Society/Social Issues
  • Reuters ID: LVA00E225006092024RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: China will no longer send children overseas for adoption, the government said, overturning a more than three-decade rule that was rooted in its once strict one-child policy.
    More than 160,000 Chinese children have been adopted by families across the world since 1992, when China first opened its doors to international adoption.
    Around 82,000 of these children, mostly girls, have been adopted in the United States, according to China's Children International (CCI).
    On Thursday (September 6), Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Mao Ning said the Chinese government had adjusted its cross-border adoption policy to be "in line" with international trends.
    It was not immediately clear what would happen to families who were in the process of adopting children from China.
    Among those affected is the Welch family, who have been waiting for over four years to bring their daughter, Penelope, home from China.
    The Welches, based in the Louisville, Kentucky, began their adoption journey in 2017 when they welcomed a one-year-old girl from China.
    Their deep connection with the country and their desire to help older children led them to begin the process of adopting another child, Penelope, in 2019. The family was matched with Penelope, then five years old, and completed all required paperwork for the adoption. The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 halted their plans when China suspended incoming travel, but they were told that the process would resume.
    "We prepared, we bought new clothes for her. Her bed has been ready since January of 2019. We worked on the language. We practiced making Chinese food that she would like. We did all of the things and we were ready, but the call never came," Aimee Welch said.
    A photograph sent to Aimee from oversees from shows Penelope drawing on a dry erase board. Her six-year-old self depicted her future with her adoptive mother, writing “Mom” in both Chinese and English.
    "She's a great little artist and we've gotten pictures of her, imagination of what it will be like to have a home," Welch said.
    The rule change comes as Chinese policymakers struggle to encourage young couples to get married and have children after the population fell for two consecutive years.
    China has one of the lowest birth rates globally and has been trying to incentivize young women to have children. Many, however, have been put off by the high cost of childcare, worries over job security and their future outlook as growth in the world's second largest economy slows.
    China implemented a rigorous one-child policy from 1979-2015 to reduce its population. When families were restricted to having only one child, many opted to keep male children, who are traditionally expected to be the main caregivers for their families, and give up females for adoption.
    China's move to halt international adoptions comes after the Netherlands in May banned its citizens from adopting children from foreign countries. In Denmark, people will no longer be able to adopt children from abroad after the only adoption agency said it was stopping operations.
    (Production: Liliana Salgado)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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