Where we're at

We have learned a lot this past week or so about where our adoption case currently sits, who and what is restricting progress, and what people/the world says our future looks like.

So here's the skinny. The 411. The down low.

Our case has been completed, reviewed and is sitting on the desk of the new-ish Social Welfare Director in the Central Region of Ghana. Unlike his predecessor  he is cautious, fearful maybe, of the possible repercussions of filing a case in court during the "suspension".

Now remember (or hear me if this is new to you) that this "suspension" is completely illegal! One person in Ghana has effectively halted international adoption without ever amending or enacting a law. This is very much outside of her scope but fear and money are powerful weapons and when used with purpose, vision and energy, they have the power to change a country.

Additionally, our US Embassy, for a multitude of reasons, has upheld this "suspension" and communicated no desire to call it out as what it is: ludicrous.

We have received confirmation, in a few different forms, that our case will not be moving forward until the suspension has lifted. There is a lot of rumor that this could happen as soon as November but some highly respected, and connected, people in the adoption community say they are not confident it will come to fruition for some time yet.

Yesterday, our worker assured us that the agency has given clear directive to the in-country staff to file our case under the "emergency" clause. When approved (rarely) his clause allows adoptions to move forward for cases where the child:

• Has special needs or medical conditions
• Could "age out" of eligibility (meaning they are nearing the age 16)
• Are being adopted by biological relatives

We are specifically filing under the special needs clause, arguing that the trauma he has endured (abuse, neglect, abandonment) has had a profound emotional impact and that he needs therapy, stability and a family. I am not sure if our Power of Attorney will actually get to "argue" any of this though. From what I understand, there is a man. A man who sits behind a desk. This man reviews the file and makes a determination based on his perspective of the child's health, physically and otherwise.  I am praying for this man. Will you pray for him?

It's a long shot.  It's our agency's last ditch effort. We will have pursued every connection, every person, every article that we have found. There will be nothing else to do except wait. Wait for the government in a developing country where poverty, bribery, corruption and evil poke its way into the abundance of beauty, resilience and hope that is Ghana.  

This is where we're at.