A child brings happiness and brightness to any home. Since ancient times, Mongolians have valued children and have spent very precious time raising and educating them. But nowadays, we are unaware of how to treat them. Among children's biggest difficulties, I am happy to be talking about the challenges of adoption, because this issue only receives a small amount of the public's attention, and also because I am a child of adoption.
According to the National Statistical Office of Mongolia, over 2,500 children were adopted by local families and brought them happiness. Looking at more comprehensive statistics, approximately 10,300 children were adopted from 2009 to 2013, out which 113 were adopted to foreign families..
Adoption is an issue that we have to consider carefully. Living in an orphanage at an age when it is crucial for a child to receive their family's love is a very delicate thing. Orphanage workers prefer placing children with someone who will love them. A child's whole life and destiny can depend on a successful adoption.
There are so many reasons to adopt children. Sadly, some people look to make money off of children, to have many children to retire earlier (and receive state bonuses), to receive the "Famous Mother" medal, and so on.
It is critical to complete the correct documents and address the District Governor's Office when filing for adoption. Many types of investigations and research have to be conducted to adopt a child.
Mongolian organizations need to pay attention to this simple structure, because changing a child's living environment affects a child's entire life. This is a really delicate issue of human rights. A very flexible and broad range of research has to be done. For example, very specific research on what age is most suitable for adoption, or at what age a child is best able to adapt to a new environment.
There are many issues related to adoption. For example, what if adopted parents get divorced? Issues like this always can't always be foreseen, but this research has not been conducted in Mongolia. Who will supervise the child after adopted parents get divorced?
The Child and Family Development Centers of 21 provinces and social workers from some soums conducted interesting surveys on the issue of adoption around the world. As a part of these surveys, it was discovered that children's rights organizations do not participate in the process of adoption.
How to live happily, how to study successfully, and to how to create good things all depend on a child's behavior. They do not grow up wanting to steal or do bad deeds. What leads some orphaned children to this life?
We don't know how many children are delivered to orphanages and suffer because of uneducated and irresponsible parents. On the other hand, maybe children who grow up in an orphanage are luckier than children who grow up begging for money outside or those who start working at an early age.
Children who live with their parents cannot know what emotional difficulties orphans face even after being adopted. Also, we don't know how many orphaned children or children living on the streets are kidnapped and trafficked.
If we don't take this issue seriously, what future will our children be living for?
All involved parties must be present to address the Governor's Office. Once a child reaches age seven, parents who are adopting a child must receive the child's permission for adoption.