A Prayer on the Wind: Goodbye Nepal, Hello America! At least for some of us!

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Goodbye Nepal, Hello America! At least for some of us!

Four out of eight of us in this photo are now gone... Home to America!!! The four on the right (minus my little Pukar), Emma and Sujan, DeeDee and Bina are either home, or well on their way. A dream come true, a great holiday gift and excellent way to begin the New Year. Sharon and I both have our RFE's in and are awaiting a response at about the same time. If we are lucky, we should hear from USCIS next week.

It is a happy occasion, but we will miss each other a lot. Having this circle of women has been a life raft for us. To lean on, cry with, laugh, and share our fears. We have been here for one another, and now we will be scattered across the US, with stories that only one another can truly understand.

Amazing, powerful women and moms.

Keep your prayers on the wind, and your face to the sun! Namaste.

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THE US GOVT WAS WRONG TO SHUT DOWN ADOPTIONS. HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?

There were 55 families stuck in the Nepal Pipeline because the US Government had 'suspicions' of 'fraud' and 'serious irregularites' based on a poorly conducted 82-day investigation of 62 orphan cases. That's 1 1/2 days per case. Their findings are rampant with errors, cultural insensitivities and blatant incompetence.

IN THE END, EVERY CHILD WAS ABLE TO GO HOME WITH THEIR FAMILY BECAUSE NOT A SINGLE SHRED OF FRAUD WAS FOUND. NOTHING. ZERO.

THE US WAS WRONG.

Children spent an average of 200 extra days languishing in orphanages, and cost families an average of 25K extra dollars for no good reason.

Both Ends Burning, a non-profit international adoption advocacy group has published an investigative report based on a the findings in an extensive review of the 55 investigations US parents were forced to make to prove the orphan status of their children. They studied over 3,000 pages that were compiled by lawyers and private investigators. Their discoveries are shocking. See the full report by cutting a pasting this link: https://bothendsburning.org/help-out/current-initiatives/re-open-nepal/

On June 6, 2014 we travelled to Washington DC along with many other families and Both Ends Burning to meet with our Senators and Congressman and women. Help us keep the momentum by signing our petition: http://www.petition2congress.com/15574/lift-suspension-adoptions-from-nepal/

We are asking our Senators and Representatives to follow-up with these actions:

1. Sponsor a Congressional Resolution to open re-open Nepal for international adoptions

2. Call for a Congressional Hearing to Investigate the closure of Nepal

3. Enter a floor speech on behalf of us and our children to correct the record

Read the blog notes dated June 13, 2014 to see all the videos, news coverage and links to the report. There is also links to the news below in "Jenni in the News".

ABOUT NEPAL:

The status of women is low in the Nepali society, contributing to frequent abuse and abandonment of wives and children. More complicated reasons for abandonment of children include being unwed, the caste system, poverty, the lack of a social system, unequal access to education, and religion. There are no social services and the per capita income of the average household is less than $350 a year.

With adoptions halted, and orphanages either closed or full to capacity, there is nowhere for these abandoned children to go. Some live on the street, many others die.

I have travelled extensively all over the world but never been to a country where the need is so great. With a total population of 28 million people, Nepal is home to approximately one million orphans.