AdoptionIreland concern for toddler Tristan
AdoptionIreland has said it is concerned efforts to have Tristan Dowse readopted, however well meaning, are not in his best interests.
Tristan's adoption from Indonesia by an Irish man and an Azerbaijani woman was certified by the Irish Adoption Board and the boy became an Irish citizen and holds an Irish passport.
But the three-year-old Tristan was later returned to the orphanage by his adoptive parents who claimed the adoption was not working out.
Today AdoptionIreland said the guiding principles for adoption are contained in the Hague Convention for the Protection of Children in Intercountry Adoption, which Ireland is to ratify later this year.
The Hague Convention states “appropriate measures must be taken to enable the child to remain in the care of his or her family of origin” and that all possible alternatives must be explored before a child is removed from his/her country of origin.
"Intercountry adoption is far too often seen as a seemingly ideal and immediate solution to poverty. However, the implications for the children are far reaching and do little to address the real problems faced by the so-called “sending countries”," said an AdoptionIreland statement.
"If poverty is one of the deciding factors, then this is not a valid reason to prevent Tristan from being raised in his natural family."
AdoptionIreland have already called on the Irish Adoption Authority to set up a child sponsorship programme for Tristan.
