"Joint Council has confirmed that the Guatemalan Congress passed the first reading of the reaffirmation of the Hague Convention and corresponding amendments on Tuesday, May 8th. On May 9th the Guatemalan Congress passed the second reading , with the third and final passage expected Tuesday, May 15th."

This announcement has adopting parents sweating bullets! What this means to adoptions in progress is unknown at this time, and even Susana Luarca at ADA has yet to make any announcements. But let me remind you that according to Susana:

“If Congress disregards the ruling of the Constitutional Court and approves the Hague Convention, they would be seriously jeopardizing the State of Law in Guatemala. Whether they like it or not, the President of Guatemala cannot commit the country by an international treaty through accession”

Rumors are flying left and right. Some agencies are encouraging parents to fly down and sign POA’s immediately; others are saying that parents need to calm down, that nothing is final yet.

Adopting parents should expect their agencies to keep on top of any changes affecting the parents without terrifying and alarming them. They should also respond to phone calls and emails immediately.

One could say that agencies should have closed adoptions when the DOS issued a statement discouraging further adoptions from Guatemala. There may be some wisdom in that suggestion, but the fact is that most adopting parents I’ve met are a brave crew and willing to take their chances.

When we began Ella’s adoption there was talk of the Ortega Law being voted into effect. Had I heeded warnings then about not adopting from Guatemala, Ella would not be here today. The Guatemalan program director at our agency was calm and informed at the time, and I took his advice and sat tight.

I truly hope that anyone who is in process for a Guatemalan adoption, even in the most preliminary stages is grandfathered in regardless of any decisions made in the future.

For those of you who are considering adoption from Guatemala but haven’t taken any concrete steps, it might be wise to take the “wait and see” approach until we know the outcome of the May 15th vote in the Guatemalan congress and its ramifications.

Good luck to all; I’ll keep you updated.

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