We just received information that the Attorney General of Guatemala is going
to issue an order affecting adoptions in Guatemala. The order requires all
adoption cases to have a judicial letter from the
family court authorizing
the child to go to foster care. All adoption cases in Guatemala do not have such
judicial letter because, according to the attorneys, it is not required by law.
According to this order any person who carries a child or any adoption document
without the judicial letter will be detained by the authorities (police). All
other persons involved in the adoption case (social worker, facilitator,
attorney, etc.) will also be detained. The child will be brought to a Guatemalan
orphanage.
The Guatemalan adoption attorneys will meet tomorrow in order
to discuss the matter and to stop the order. According to the Guatemalan
adoption attorneys the Attorney General is exceeding his
functions and
misinterpreting the law.
The following information was posted on Guatadopt.com, a highly respected source for Guatemalan adoptions information and news.
The Directive by Ministra Publica
Last night, we received reports
from Guatemala of a "Directive" that MIGHT have been the reason for the recent
reports of police harrassment. (Several parents witnessed foster mothers being
harrassed and possibly detained in the front of several hotels. I've also been
told that a diplomatic visit to the Marriott last night might have also added to
the unease of parents). We have spent a good portion of the morning calling our
contacts and finding out the status. Before we discuss the supposed "Directive",
let me say that our sources are telling us that it HAS BEEN RESCINDED, is no
longer in effect , is defunct or is not an issue. The Department of State is
aware of the situation and is also working to resolve any outstanding issues.
What we have been told is there was a 13 page "Directive" issued by the
Ministra Publica with an effective date of October 1st which was issued to
Prosecutors. It stated that custody of a child in the adoption process was only
legal if the custodian had a judicial court order. Since the adoption process is
non-judicial at this time, the government issued custodial documents that the
foster mothers currently have in their possession (aka the "avis would not be
considered legal.
Our reports indicate that language was very disturbing in
how it described the current system as being something like organized crime and
gave free reign for the police to enter hotels in search of "falsified
documents" which by the wording of the Directive could include custody papers
not issued by the court.
Several agencies and attorneys felt this was the
reason for the recent reports of foster mother harrassment and have have put a
stop to visitation. Even though it is supposedly no longer in effect, I do not
advise visitation travel at this time. If you are already in Guatemala, do not
venture outside of your room with your child if at all possible. It is always a
good idea to keep the US Embassy phone number at hand when you are in another
country. It is also worth the effort to get a cell phone (rent or buy) and have
it handy at all times (along with either your attorney's phone number and/or
your agency's). Do not relinquish papers to anyone without first attempting to
get in touch with the Embassy. While I hope that parents will not be "targeted",
I would not dismiss the possibility. Most importantly, if your agency or
attorney informs you that they will not bring your child to the hotel to
visit...please understand that they are probably pretty concerned about the
current situation. If a child is detained, it could take several months for the
false arrest or detainment to be cleared.
WHAT??!!
Our lawyers have stated it is safe and OK to travel. We are leaving 10/24/06.
