The inquiry was appointed in the fall of 2021 by the then government after reports of deficiencies in international adoption activities. This concerned, among other things, investigations in Chile that showed that children had been taken from their parents and that economic interests had been governing, which was highlighted in the media.
"We can, however, establish that, despite great efforts to secure the system, irregularities in international adoptions still occur,” it says in a draft of the inquiry that Expressen has taken part of. It is also stated that "strong governance and control of the activities are required".
Other options
But chairperson Anna Singer denies that the commission has locked itself to a proposal for a ban.
This is an internal working material that we have presented to our expert group for discussion, to inventory arguments against and for a solution where organized adoption mediation is discontinued, she says to TT.
She says that many comments have come in from experts that need to be taken into account.
We will also investigate other options for organizing adoption activities, and there are different possibilities. We are not finished yet, says Singer.
The question is whether it is possible to find a system to carry out international adoptions in a legally secure manner, she notes.
I am looking for a system that makes it possible to actually ensure that it is really clear that the child is available for adoption, and that the subsidiarity principle has also been followed, where one first tries to find solutions in the child's home country.
Kristersson does not comment
Do the leaked information risk damaging the commission's work?
No, I don't think so. But it does make it more difficult since we then get a debate that we may not need to have, says Singer.
The commission's report is to be submitted to the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs no later than March 1 next year. Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) does not want to comment on how he views a potential ban.
The inquiry has been appointed to get to the bottom of the question of whether irregularities have occurred as reported from other countries. The inquiry is not finished yet, so I don't think I'll comment on the inquiry until a proposal has been presented, he says.
Adoptions may only be carried out if they are in the best interests of the child and never with a profit motive.
The Authority for Family Law and Parental Support (MFOF) has been tasked with authorizing adoption activities and ensuring that adoptions of children to Sweden take place in accordance with the law and in an ethically acceptable manner, both in Sweden and in the countries of origin.
In Sweden, there are currently two authorized organizations that are allowed to mediate international adoptions, the Adoption Centre and Children First and Foremost.
Source: MFOF
