Department of Justice

CANADA RATIFIES THE HAGUE CONVENTION ON INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION

OTTAWA, February 26, 1997 -- On behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lloyd Axworthy, and the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Allan Rock, the Secretary of State for Latin America and Africa, Christine Stewart, today announced the ratification by Canada of the Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption.

The Convention seeks to establish safeguards so that international adoptions are carried out in the best interests of the children. The system of cooperation between member States will ensure that these guarantees are respected and will prevent the abduction of, sale of, or trafficking in, children. It is estimated that there are approximately 20,000 intercountry adoptions around the world every year, of which 2,000 involve Canadians.

"By ratifying the Convention, we are providing Canadian men and women who wish to initiate intercountry adoption procedures with a mechanism that is open and less costly than the current system, does not involve any financial or other gains, and, above all, will defend the interests of children," said Mr. Rock.

"The Convention is an essential tool, as it sets out an agreement to cooperate at the international level in order to harmonize the practices of different countries. This cooperation will help promote the rights of children in the world," said Mrs. Stewart in Amsterdam, where she was addressing the Amsterdam Child Labour Conference.

Adoption falls within the jurisdiction of the provinces and territories, which must pass legislation to apply the Convention. To date, five provinces have passed implementing legislation: British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Saskatchewan. The Convention will come into force in those provinces on April 1, 1997.

Each province and territory to which the Convention applies must designate a Central Authority to monitor the intercountry adoption process. Canadians who wish to adopt children abroad will then be able to apply to this "single window." Procedures will be unchanged in those provinces and territories that have not yet passed the necessary implementing legislation.

The ratification of the Convention has made it necessary to amend federal immigration regulations. The amendments provide that the Central Authorities of the receiving country and the country of origin must agree to a child’s placement and that immigation requirements must be met before an officer may issue an immigrant visa. The amendments should come into force on April 1, 1997.

The Minister of Human Resources Development is designated as the federal Central Authority for Canada under the Convention. Responsibilities which flow from this designation will focus on the coordination of the practical aspects of the Convention in Canada.

Sixty-six States participated in drafting the Convention, which was finalized on May 29, 1993, under the auspices of the Hague Conference on Private International Law. The Convention has already been ratified by Burkina Faso, Cyprus, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Sri Lanka, Spain and Venezuela.

Ref.:       Louise Lussier
      Department of Justice
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