Latest news with #CamillaWalterssonGronvall
Epoch Times
2 days ago
- General
- Epoch Times
Sweden Urged to Halt International Adoptions After Decades of Child Trafficking Uncovered
A Swedish government commission has recommended halting all international adoptions after an investigation found that decades of illegal adoptions amounted to child trafficking involving state authorities and adoption agencies. At a press conference in Stockholm, Social Services Minister Camilla Waltersson Gronvall told the Swedish language Epoch Times on June 2: '[There are] appalling cases of deficient background information, and even children simply being stolen from their parents.' 'There has been an unreasonable level of trust in the governments of the countries of origin for the children adopted to Sweden.' According to roughly 60,000 people have been adopted into Sweden. It started with children from South Korea in the 1950s, and then grew to include China, Chile, Ethiopia, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, peaking in the mid 1970-1980s. By the early 2000s, the numbers began to steadily decline. Amid growing concerns that adopted children may have been taken from their biological parents illegally, the commission found confirmed cases of child trafficking spanning every decade from the 1970s to the 2000s. Head of the inquiry Anna Singer, professor of civil law, told The Epoch Times that this practice is 'winding down by itself.' Related Stories 6/3/2025 6/3/2025 'Last year, 54 children were adopted to Sweden [from abroad]. ... Many countries have ceased putting children up for intercountry adoption.' 'Adoption agencies are not a sustainable solution for meeting the needs of these children,' she added. 'It's better to try to improve conditions in their countries of origin. Intercountry adoption may have worked to slow down such efforts.' China in the Spotlight The final two-volume report It said that all children adopted from China were described as abandoned and lacked any background history, making it difficult, or impossible, to assess whether the adoptions were in the child's best interest. 'Chinese authorities have confirmed that four adoptions to Sweden were linked to the systematic child trafficking in Hunan that was exposed in 2005. However, it cannot be ruled out that more Swedish adoptions are affected by the child trafficking in China,' it said. Financial incentives were created, as orphanages in China received compensation of $3,000 to $5,000 per child placed for international adoption. The Swedish supervisory authority found that the orphanages were dependent on these fees. In total, just under 4,300 adoptions from China have been carried out to date, making China the fourth-largest country of origin for adoptions to Sweden in terms of total numbers. Most adoptions occurred during the period 2000–2010, when more than 3,200 children were adopted from China to Sweden. China is one of the few countries that approved adoption of young children to single adoptive parents. The report also In many cases, signed documentation from biological parents was missing, even when those parents were known. Files also often lacked critical details needed for adoptees to understand their origins. 'Ultimately, it is the Swedish State that has failed to protect the rights of children in intercountry adoption activities. This means that the State must take responsibility for what has happened and take measures to ensure that it does not happen again,' the report said. It recommended an official apology to adopted people and their families as well as providing financial aid to help those who have been adopted to travel to their country of origin. The Netherlands said in December it would phase out international adoptions over the next six years, after an official 2021 report found that children had been stolen or bought from their birth parents in cases going back to the 1960s. Switzerland said in January it also plans to end international adoptions, amid similar concerns of abuse. Epoch Times reporter Roger Sahlström, Reuters, and Press Association contributed to this report.
Straits Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Sweden should end international adoptions, government commission says
STOCKHOLM - Sweden should phase out international adoptions, a government-appointed commission said on Monday, after an inquiry prompted by concerns that children had been taken from their biological parents without permission. "Today, it has become even clearer that for decades, children and parents have been affected and harmed in the context of international adoption," Social Services Minister Camilla Waltersson Gronvall said. The commission identified irregularities including illegal adoptions and other unethical practices, the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs said in a statement. Sweden launched the probe in 2021 amid growing concerns that adopted children may have been taken from their biological parents illegally. There are nearly 60,000 international adoptees in Sweden, the commission said in its report. The report recommended an official apology to adopted people and their families as well as financial aid to help those who have been adopted to travel to their country of origin. The Netherlands said in December it would phase out international adoptions over the next six years, while Switzerland said in January it also plans to end the practice, amid concerns of abuse. Waltersson Gronvall said the government would now analyse the commission's findings and proposals. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Reuters
3 days ago
- General
- Reuters
Sweden should end international adoptions, government commission says
STOCKHOLM, June 2 (Reuters) - Sweden should phase out international adoptions, a government-appointed commission said on Monday, after an inquiry prompted by concerns that children had been taken from their biological parents without permission. "Today, it has become even clearer that for decades, children and parents have been affected and harmed in the context of international adoption," Social Services Minister Camilla Waltersson Gronvall said. The commission identified irregularities including illegal adoptions and other unethical practices, the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs said in a statement. Sweden launched the probe in 2021 amid growing concerns that adopted children may have been taken from their biological parents illegally. There are nearly 60,000 international adoptees in Sweden, the commission said in its report. The report recommended an official apology to adopted people and their families as well as financial aid to help those who have been adopted to travel to their country of origin. The Netherlands said in December it would phase out international adoptions over the next six years, while Switzerland said in January it also plans to end the practice, amid concerns of abuse. Waltersson Gronvall said the government would now analyse the commission's findings and proposals.
Malay Mail
4 days ago
- General
- Malay Mail
From China to Colombia: Swedish inquiry urges apology, ban on adoptions over stolen children
STOCKHOLM, June 2 — A Swedish probe ordered by the government recommended Monday banning international adoptions, citing serious irregularities spanning decades. Children brought to Sweden have been adopted from abroad without the free and informed consent of their parents, erroneously declared dead, or put up for adoption by someone other than their parents, the head of the probe, Anna Singer, told a press conference. 'In some cases, they have also been given up by parents who did not understand the implications of consenting to international adoption,' Singer said, as she handed her report to Social Services Minister Camilla Waltersson Gronvall. There had also been 'confirmed cases of child trafficking in every decade from the 1970s to the 2000s, primarily in the context of private adoptions', Singer said. Cases of trafficking had been reported from Sri Lanka and Colombia in the 1970s and 1980s, Poland in the 1990s, and China in the 1990s and 2000s, she said. The probe also showed the government had been aware of these irregularities 'very early on'. About 60,000 people in Sweden have been adopted from abroad, according to the Family Law and Parental Support Authority (MFoF). The top five countries of origin are South Korea, India, Colombia, China and Sri Lanka. The report found 'significant and systemic gaps' in documentation in Sweden concerning the origin of children adopted abroad. False information such as 'the date of birth, information on the parents, as well as the circumstances and reasons' for the adoption had been identified in documents, Singer said. The report noted that Swedish regulations had been aimed primarily to facilitate international adoption. Most of the adoption activity was handled by private organisations, which had an interest in having as many children as possible adopted, according to the report. Due to the irregularities, the probe proposed banning all international adoptions and that Sweden publicly apologise to those affected. 'The state needs to recognise the human-rights violations that have occurred,' Singer said. International adoptions have drastically decreased in Sweden since the 1980s, according to data from Adoptionscentrum, the country's largest adoption mediation group. In 1985, more than 900 children were adopted abroad, compared to 14 since the beginning of 2025, according to the organisation. — AFP
