Amending Republic Act 8552 otherwise known as Domestic Adoption Act in order to hasten the adoption process was the common view of the participants who attended the consultation dialogue on adoption organized by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Tuesday in Pasay City.

Under the law, the process of legally adopting a child involves several steps such as application of interested parents, preparation of home study report, approval and disapproval of application, matching or family selection, pre-placement and placement of child, supervised trial custody, finalization of adoption, issuance of adoption decree and amended birth certificate, and conduct of post-adoptive services. This process would usually take six months to a year.

Because of the lengthy process, social workers observed that some people resort to simulation of birth certificates instead of going through the legal process.

Simulation of birth certificate is the tampering of the civil registry so the adopting parents can have their names written as the parents on their children’s birth certificates.

“Some adoptive parents think this is better than going through the long process of legal adoption,” DSWD Secretary Corazon Juliano-Soliman said.

However, this creates a bigger problem since simulation of birth certificate is a crime.

Under the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), a child has the right to his identity and should be given the opportunity to know his biological parent.

Under the Philippine Law, those found guilty of simulating birth certificate may be punished with imprisonment of six years and one day to 12 years, and a fine not exceeding P50, 000.

RA 9523

“Adoptive parents and the adoptee face physical and emotional upheaval during the lengthy process of adoption but RA 9523 at least helps shorten the process,” Sec. Soliman pointed out.

In 2009, RA 9523 or “An Act Requiring the Certification of DSWD to Declare a ‘Child Legally Available for Adoption (CDCLAA)’ as a Prerequisite for Adoption Proceedings” was immediately implemented by the DSWD.

The law stipulates that the time period before a child is considered abandoned has been reduced to a maximum of three months from the original minimum of six months to speed up the adoption process.

Other possible solutions

In the open forum, one of the suggestions to speed up the process is for the adoptive  parents to have enough knowledge on adoption and urge them to ensure the completion of requirements before the application so as not to waste time.

It was also suggested that the adoptive parents should ensure that their lawyers are available during the scheduled hearing.

Furthermore, all Philippine courts should allocate one day per week exclusively for adoption hearing.

In her speech during the dialogue, Sec. Soliman Soliman urged the participants to find concrete solutions as well as to clarify issues and concerns on adoption process and foster care.

“It is essential that the whole process of adoption should be guided by the principle of identifying, and acting in the best interests of the child. It is imperative that the best interest of the child should be determined in a manner that ensures respect for all rights,”  Sec. Soliman expressed.

“We should  look into how we can speed up the  adoption process. We should not delay the child for an opportunity to belong to a loving family. We should ensure that no child will be left behind,” Sec. Soliman added.

The event was attended by representatives of different national government agencies;  non-government organizations; higher courts of justice; and, Embassies of the United States of America, Spain, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and the United Kingdom.

Representatives of the foreign embassies were also given the chance to share their rules and policies on immigration and adoption processes. ###