State's senators urge Guatemalan president to allow completion of adoptions in progress

By CONRAD WILSON, Star Tribune

Last update: April 29, 2008 - 9:09 PM

WASHINGTON - Minnesota couples hoping to adopt a child from Guatemala may have been apprehensive about a new law that took effect in the Central American country Jan. 1 tightening adoption rules.

The concern affected about 3,000 American families -- an estimated 50 to 100 in Minnesota -- who already were matched with a Guatemalan child when the new law went into effect.

On Tuesday, both of Minnesota's U.S. senators, Norm Coleman and Amy Klobuchar, met with Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom and Francisco Villagran, the country's ambassador to the United States, to discuss those pending adoptions.

Both senators said they wanted to ensure that the new Guatemalan law -- intended to bring the country into compliance with an international treaty -- would not prevent Minnesota families caught in limbo from losing the child they hope to adopt.

Said Coleman: "I think the news out of this gathering is that this issue has the attention of the [Guatemalan] president, has the commitment of the first lady, and I think that bodes well for families in the middle of this process."

"This is not just about helping families in America who want to adopt," Klobuchar said in a statement. "It's also about protecting Guatemala's children in need who deserve a permanent, nurturing family."

Guatemala's adoption policy was out of compliance with The Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoptions. Although not all the procedures are in place yet, the new law established a National Adoption Council in order to comply with the provisions.

Coleman, co-chairman of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption, traveled to Guatemala in November, where he urged government officials to pass the new law, while also allowing pending adoptions to go through.

Conrad Wilson • 202-408-2723

Recent U.S. Senate stories

Poll: Coleman should concede, voters say - April 29, 2008

Poll: Coleman should concede, voters say - A new poll has found that a majority of Minnesotans believe Norm Coleman should concede to Al Franken in the ongoing fight over the state's vacant U.S. Senate seat. More