The legislature yesterday overhauled the country’s adoption system, recognizing government-licensed non-profit institutions as the sole legal channel for the adoption of children and adolescents, in a bid to prevent the sale of babies.
After drawn-out deliberation, the legislature unanimously amended the Children and Youth Welfare Act (兒童及青少年福利法), renaming it the Protection of Children and Youths Welfare and Rights Act (兒童及少年福利與權益保障法).
Six months after the promulgation of the new act, placement of children and adolescents for adoption can now only be undertaken by parents or guardians through non-profit corporations or placement and educational institutes for children and adolescents which have received official authorization.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The act stipulates that parents or guardians must commission a legally designated institution to locate suitable couples.
Exceptions to the rules apply to two situations — when adoptees are given to close blood relatives or relatives by marriage or when a spouse adopts a child of his or her partner.
Currently, other than applying to registered adoption institutions, people can also seek to establish an adoption case through court proceedings.
The amended act allows judges to demand that adopters receive parenting lessons and undergo psychological assessments and tests for alcohol and drug dependence before a court ruling on an adoption case.
Child Welfare Bureau director Chang Hsiu-yuan (張秀鴛) said the current adoption system leaves open the possibility of black-market trafficking of babies.
Under the new legal framework, legal adoption institutions are required to visit the original family to assess the need to put a child up for adoption after a case is received and conduct a thorough assessment of the adoptive family before the child adoption is approved.
National adoption takes precedence over international adoption, the rules stipulated.
The amended rules also allow the ministry to set up regulations governing the establishment and management of adoption institutions and rules on the level of adoption fees.
People found operating adoption services without licenses could be fined between NT$60,000 and NT$300,000 and have their names and institutions placed on a public blacklist.
The amendments also ban newspapers from publishing content deemed potentially harmful to the physical and psychological well-being of minors, including the description of rape, molestation, suicide and drug abuse, as well as words and photographs depicting violent or erotic subject matter.
The ban, however, does not apply when newspapers cite a public document issued by a judicial or administrative agency.
The amendments require all publications to be properly classified according to their content to protect children.
In addition, those who circulate Internet content deemed harmful to children without taking proper measures can be fined up to NT$500,000.
The amendments initially sparked debate over their possible impact on freedom of speech because the proposal presented by the Executive Yuan suggested banning newspapers from carrying any content that could have an adverse influence on children and adolescents, such as detailed descriptions and portrayals of crimes, violence and nudity.
Lawmakers resolved this controversy by requiring newspaper associations to draw up their own regulations governing the publication of content within a three-month period of the promulgation of the new law.
Additional reporting by CNA
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