Orphans of the Tsunami: Survival, theft, trafficking, and adoption
              (by Kaley Kennedy)

Usually in the most terrible natural and human phenomena it is the most vulnerable in society that suffer the most, which often includes the children, the elderly, and the disabled. In such cases, the most attention is given to the children, as their health and well-being is of the utmost importance, not only for moral reasons, but also for logistical and demographic ones. It is, therefore, only logical that as Southeast Asia recovers from the devastating tsunamis that hit the region just over a month ago, the children of the area are of supreme priority. An abundance of issues surrounding the safety and security of these children have arisen over the past six weeks. These include not only ascertaining how to make aid available for basic necessities such as food, drinking water, shelter, and medical attention, but also impeding child kidnapping, trafficking, and abuse, as well as finding more permanent arrangements for the thousands of orphans. As time goes on, more and more concerns arise regarding the welfare of these children, and governments of the world are trying their best to catch up.

While an intense focus was put on getting emergency supplies in the first few weeks following the natural disaster, it soon became apparent that there were many other threats to the survivors that required extensive attention. Perhaps the most imminent threat identified is the risk of kidnapping and abuse. It is a recognized fact that there is a large underground market in the trafficking of children throughout the world, and especially in Southeast Asia. Children are often sold by their parents or kidnapped off of the street to work as laborers, sex workers and guerrilla fighters. These children are repeatedly abused and are typically unable to escape. Sadly, those who are most susceptible to such a life are orphaned children. UNICEF has estimated that as many as 50,000 children have been suddenly orphaned by the devastation, and despite relief workers doing the best they can to keep all accounted for and taken care of, the sheer volume of children makes this task impossible.

Not only do the children face the risk of being captured by criminals, but there is also another group of people who are kidnapping children in the region. Estimates say that a third of those killed in the Tsunami were under the age of sixteen, and consequently, many parents have been left to mourn their deceased children. What this has translated to is an abundance of kidnapping and falsified claims on children by grieving parents. It is difficult to decipher whether the claimed parents are legitimate or not, especially since so much dispersion occurred during the disaster and with the high level of issues facing aid workers on all fronts, attending to each case is almost a hopeless endeavor.

However, despite the difficulty in attending to the above troubles, governments, both in the affected countries and abroad, have taken the appropriate steps to help ensure the safety of all those concerned. Most of the involved countries have closed the borders to those sixteen and under, preventing anyone in this age group from leaving the country until the governments are able to coordinate guardianships and other arrangements. In Sri Lanka, relief workers and government officials are working even harder, as the children in these regions are also faced with dangerous landmines that have been washed out of the earth by the high volumes of water, as well as expected kidnappings by rebel forces in the regions. It is hoped that through such measures, governments will be able to seize, as well as discourage, criminals in the trafficking market.

These efforts are all complemented by the endeavors of foreign governments, who are also trying to reunite children with their families, as well as find homes for the remaining orphans. Initially, many thought that an influx of foreign adoptions would be accepted, however, this has not shown to be the case. Because of strict laws in Indonesia and Sri Lanka relating to foreign adoptions, they are often very difficult to acquire, and with the added dangers of trafficking, this difficulty has seen a sharp increase. While many see this as a setback, there are obvious precautions that must be taken in order to assure that decisions are made in the best interest of the children. In order to do this, it must first be confirmed that the children do not have any living relatives who would be willing to become their guardians. At this point it is very difficult to determine who is dead, missing, and alive, so it may take some time for this to be established.

In particular, Canada has taken many steps to help facilitate this process. Many immigration policies have been loosened to allow for relatives living in Canada to achieve guardianship over orphaned relatives more quickly and easily. Not only have they reduced fees and processing times, but also are allowing Permanent Residents to sponsor orphaned relatives, as opposed to the standard policies that allows only Canadian citizens to sponsor relatives. The government is also working closely with international agencies and the governments of affected countries on the issues of foreign adoption and hopes to play a key role in that process once other matters have been settled.

Until then, countries are more interested at the moment in reuniting children with family members or finding them permanent placements within their home countries. All parties involved are in agreement that uprooting the children and sending them to a different country so prematurely could be detrimental to their mental and physical health, although a great deal of research and discussion is being generated on the options that lie ahead.

Essentially, the road ahead for the orphans of the tsunami will be both a long and hard one, no matter how relentlessly relief personnel and governments work. The issues facing this group, one of the most vulnerable in society, are vast and plentiful, yet thankfully, as time progresses it seems that the available resources to confront these obstacles are growing immensely. It can only be hoped that as time goes on, these children are able to find homes, either with relatives or through adoption; in their countries of origin or abroad.

Sources

“Concern grows for plight of tsunami orphans.” CTV. 4 Jan. 2005. 1 Feb. 2005. <http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1104850516633_100259716>.

Flaccus, Gillian. “Adoption Efforts Hampered.” CNEWS - World. 6 Jan. 2005. 1 Feb. 2005. <http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/World/Tsunami/2005/01/06/814617.html>.

“Tsunami and Earthquake Disaster Relief - Adoption Fact Sheet.” Citizenship and Immigration Canada. 7 Jan. 2005. 1 Feb. 2005. <http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/tsunami/factsheet-adoption.html>.

“Tsunami Disaster in Asia.” British Columbia Ministry of Children and Family Development: Adoption. 1 Feb. 2005. <http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/adoption/alerts_fact_sheets/asiatsunami.htm>.

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