Last year, an adoption agency in Florida was denied permission to find children for American families in 77 foreign countries that have agreed to operate under the rules of an international treaty aimed at cleaning up abuses in international adoption.
But the agency, Celebrate Children International (CCI), is still promoting adoption in four nations that have not signed the treaty, including Ukraine and Ethiopia.
Critics say the case is a stark example of how the U.S. government has created a double standard as it implements the Hague Adoption Convention to protect parents and children during foreign adoptions.
"It just totally invalidates what the Hague is trying to do," said Elizabeth Emanuel, of Nashville, who has adopted four children from other countries. She is among the parents who complained about the Oviedo, Fla., agency when it was seeking Hague approval.
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The Hague treaty was drafted in 1993, when it became clear that the worldwide phenomenon of inter-country adoptions was overwhelming the ability of governments to deal with it. Dozens of nations got together and created a uniform set of rules aimed at removing fraud and duress from the process of finding new homes for orphans.
After spending more than a decade on approval and implementation, the treaty finally took effect in the United States last year, amid new allegations of corrupt adoption practices in Guatemala and Vietnam, including kidnapping and baby trafficking.
A lengthy process
The treaty promotes ethical conduct and professionalism by U.S. adoption agencies and their contractors abroad. Agencies that want to operate in Hague-approved nations must first undergo a lengthy accreditation process to make sure they meet various ethical and professional standards. A nongovernmental organization oversees compliance on behalf of the State Department.