United Nations Radio

A new study on adoption in Nepal has called on the authorities to suspend inter-country adoption until there are safeguards to protect children.~~The report, released in Kathmandu today, is a result of a six-month research by the United Nations Children's Fund and an organization known as Terre des Hommes.~

The study says that child rights not profit must be at the centre of all adoptions in Nepal and notes that standard of care and protection in many orphanages in Nepal does not respect these rights.

The spokesperson for Terre des Hommes, Claude Deplazes, says that over 80 per cent of children in Nepali institutions do have relatives and the priority must be to re-unify these children with their families.

"Biological parents are not provided with sufficient information about adoption process, free and informed consent is not guaranteed. The research found instances of undue pressure and solicitation of birth families to relinquish a child."

Claude Deplazes says it is hoped that the study will act as a catalyst for civil society debate on adoption and the rights of children in Nepal.

Reporting for UN Radio, I'm Dianne Penn.

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