| 2-29-08 | ASIA Receives Accreditation Under the Hague Convention |
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February 29, 2008 E-Letter from Sandra Miller, Executive Director ASIA To: All ASIA Families Associated Services is very pleased to announce that it received formal notification of accreditation under the Hague Convention through the Council on Accreditation. How the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation of Intercountry Adoption Impacts Agencies and Families As you know, ASIA and hundreds of agencies around the world have been actively engaged in the process of becoming accredited under the "Convention". Approximately 71 countries have ratified and will implement programs in accordance with the Convention. According to the Council on Accreditation: The Convention is an international treaty created to ensure that intercountry adoptions are in the best interests of children and to prevent abduction, exploitation, sale or trafficking of children. Go to www.hcch.net for more information. All agencies seeking accreditation must demonstrate compliance with the standards. How it is demonstrated will vary by agency. You might wonder how this accreditation will impact your family and its adoption process. Much relates to infrastructure, such as verification of licensing and board oversight as well as evidence of ASIA policies and procedures that demonstrate best business practices. Many of our policies have been in place for several years, others recently begun. For example, in May 2007 we implemented new contracts that require additional waivers of liability and more detailed information about grievance procedures. The Department of State will require annual reports with specific data requested. When fully implemented, these reports will be available to our families upon request. Perhaps the most significant impact to newer out of state families in process in China is that they cannot begin the home study process with their cooperating agency until the agreement is signed and returned to ASIA. This will slow the process if a family does not choose its home study agency in a timely manner. China, as a signer to the Hague Convention, must also meet new requirements. As you know, these changes are meant to insure the best interests of the child and to reduce the possibility of child trafficking from either sending or receiving countries. We believe that the Convention will add new levels of professionalism and consistency from all countries and agencies involved in international adoption and are extremely pleased to call ourselves a Hague accredited agency. Please free to contact Sandra Miller or Marci Siegel-Kittrell if you have specific questions. Regards, Sandra Miller, Executive Director ASIA
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