Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)

On the last occasion when we were speaking about this I acknowledged the work the Department has been doing on inter-country adoption. As I stated, normally there is a temptation to focus on the developing world when discussing this issue. We know from anecdotal evidence of persons who present at such places as constituency offices and clinics that families and prospective parents encounter difficulties not only with developing countries, but with countries that one might refer to as the more developed. In my discussions with the Minister and her Department, and while I am aware there are resource issues in the Department and there is a finite amount of staff who, in fairness, together with the adoption board, do a good job, I have made the point, directly and indirectly, that the issue of inter-country adoptions, especially with Belarus, be put back on the agenda. There was a successful relationship between Ireland and Belarus, due in no small part to the work done by host families who were bringing in children on a regular basis in the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster. At a recent meeting with the ambassador from that country, I sensed that there would be an openness and willingness to open dialogue with the Government of Ireland on this issue. From speak with officials, both in Ireland and abroad, I am aware that this is something into which one cannot rush, which takes a great deal of personal dedication and which takes an amount of time and effort. Based on the history, there are families who could potentially be interested in Belarus as a possible country for inter-country adoption. Based on the amount of families that have taken in children for short stays, recuperation, etc., there is potential for us to look at that. I would implore the Minister, whose resources are finite and who has done much good work with Ethiopia and Vietnam in the recent past. There is a willingness in Belarus. The bilateral relationship that was entered into between Belarus and Italy shows that Belarus is a country that is open to looking at this as a subject matter in the future. The unfortunate aspect about it, for the families that may be interested or may be trying to pursue an inter-country adoption from Belarus at present, is that they look back at the historical numbers. There was always a steady flow of children who were fortunate enough to find a family that was able to raise them here in Ireland.

In the broader scheme of things, the children's referendum is something that will be confronted by this Dáil. It behoves all public representatives at national level to do everything they can to ensure that the Articles inserted into the Constitution whenever that comes around reflect the Ireland of 2012 rather than of 1937, and that we give children a voice for the first time in the Constitution. Whether those children are born in Ireland or are born abroad and adopted by Irish parents, it behoves us, for the first time, through the Minister's offices, to give children a voice through the Constitution that they have not had up to now and remove that cloud of scandal, reporting and everything else that happened in the recent past in terms of the drip-feed of bad news when it came to children who were put into care and where the State failed them. We will, finally, give children the legal and constitutional protection that they deserve. I again implore the Minister to look at Belarus in the context of the inter-country adoption issue.

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