The family of Madonna's newly adopted African child, David, has hinted they would like to visit him from time to time at her 9M quid estate in Wiltshire, England. The first paragraph of this Times on Line article mentioned it took Madonna as long to choose a child as it usually does to buy a handbag. Here's an excerpt:
>>inter-country adoption is booming. In France there were 4,079 cases in 2004, in Spain 5,541 and in America 22,884. Peter Selman, a reader in social policy at Newcastle University, estimates that the number of overseas adoptions in 20 western countries was 44,860 during 2004, an increase of 42% since 1998.
In Africa, babies have become a rapidly growing export. The number of Ethiopian children adopted between 2001 and 2004 more than doubled to 1,535. Madagascar, Mali and Burkina Faso are also proving popular.
Haddush Halefom, head of Ethiopia’s child adoption unit, said his country faced a dilemma: “It is a difficult choice. Who are we to deny them the chance of education and a better life? Who are we to send them away?”
It is a dilemma that rises to the fore when celebrities such as Angelina Jolie and Madonna become involved.
This weekend in Malawi opposition appeared to be building against Madonna taking David to Britain. One local charity — the Eye of the Child — was reported to have applied for an injunction preventing the process going ahead on the grounds that proper procedures had not been followed.
An uncle of the child was also questioning the move. Pofera Banda, 22, the brother of David’s father, said: “If the child is going with Madonna we want our brother Yohame to go with Madonna and see where our child is staying.
“People have taken advantage of my brother because he has little education. I am saying this because in our family I am the only one who can read and write.
“What I want is to know that if this child is taken — as we’ve been told — when will our child be visiting us? When will we visit him?”
Additional reporting: Christopher Thompson, Reuters in Lilongwe<< |
