Current Events, Please lend a Hand.

Dear Friends,
Guatemalan President Oscar Berger has announced plans to suspend all intercountry adoption with American families on January 1 2008. The Joint Council on International Children’s Services strongly opposes such a suspension and asks for your support in their efforts to ensure that all children retain the right to permanency through Intercountry Adoption.
President Berger’s plans also call for the suspension of adoptions currently in-process. Such a suspension would be extremely detrimental to the children referred to adoptive parents. If President Berger’s plan is actually implemented, up to 5,000 will unnecessarily remain in foster care or orphanages indefinitely.
This situation represents a pending crisis for the adoptive families who have lovingly chosen to provide permanency, safety and love to a child in need and most importantly a crisis for 5,000 children of Guatemala.
What can you do? Make six simple phone calls and one email.

1. Call your U.S. Senator.
• You can find your Senators’ phone numbers at www.senate.gov
• Ask to speak with the Legislative Director or Chief of Staff

2. Call your second U.S. Senator.

3. Call your representative to the U.S. House of Representative.
• You can find your representative at www.house.gov
• Ask to speak with the Legislative Director or Chief of Staff

4. Call or fax UNICEF Headquarter
• Ask to speak with Ann Veneman, Executive Director
• Their number is 212-326-7000
• Their fax number is 212-326-7758

5. Call or fax UNICEF Guatemala
• Ask to speak with Manuel Manrique
• Their number is 011-502-2327-6373
• Their fax number is 011-502-2327.6366
Please note that calls and faxes to Guatemala are international calls

6. Send and email supporting Intercountry Adoption to guatemala5000@jcics.org
• Write briefly or at length
• Joint Council will use the cumulative email petition in our advocacy for Intercountry Adoption
When should you call? Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday (October 9th, 10th 11th)
• For maximum affect, we are asking you to make these calls within a 72 hour window!

What should you say or write to member of the U.S. Congress? Speak from your heart and give them the following information.
• Inform them that you are calling regarding Guatemala 5000

• Ask them to sign the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI) sponsored letter to President Oscar Berger

• Ask them to sign the Joint Council on International Children’s Services sponsored letter to UNICEF

• Inform them that the Guatemalan government has announced that all intercountry adoptions with the U.S. will be suspended on January 1 2008.

• Inform them that President Berger’s announcement also indicated that there will be no ‘grandfathering’ of adoptions already in process.

• Inform them that if children referred to families are not allowed to be adopted, they will languish in institutions or foster care.

• Ask that their office get involved and sign the sponsored letters to the President of Guatemala and UNICEF. These letters ask that all adoptions in-process as of January 1 2008 be allowed to process to completion under the existing notorial laws.

Sample Statement
Hello,
We are calling/writing on behalf of the Guatemala 5000 Initiative. We, as your constituents, are asking that the Senator/Congressperson add their signature to two letters. First, the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute sponsored letter to Guatemalan President Oscar Berger. Second, the Joint Council on International Children’s Services sponsored letter to UNICEF.
As you may be aware, the Guatemalan government has announced that all intercountry adoptions with the U.S. will be suspended on January 1 2008. Their announcement also indicated that there will be no ‘grandfathering’ of adoptions already in process. If children referred to families are not allowed to be adopted, they will languish in institutions or foster care. Your office must get involved and sign the sponsored letters to the President of Guatemala and UNICEF. These letters ask that all adoptions in-process as of January 1 2008 be allowed to process to completion under the existing notorial laws.
Sincerely,



Can you explain the problem behind the pending crisis? Here is some additional information…

• Guatemalan President Oscar Berger has announced plans to effectively stop all adoptions into the United States including those children who have already been referred to adoptive parents

• Over 5,000 children have been referred

• The birthparents for these children have already relinquished their parental rights. As a result, they currently have no family and the Berger suspension will result in these children having no prospect for a permanent, safe and loving family

• The government of Guatemala currently does not have the finances or facilities to even provide housing for these 5,000 children