ADOPTIONS: AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH MPS

UNCLAS BISHKEK 001126 SIPDIS DEPT FOR CA/OCS: MBOND CA/OCS/CI: WBISTRANKSY, GFULLER, MSAINTVICTOR CA/VO/F/P: MURBANCIC, MEARL SCA/CEN: JGORKOWSKI ALMATY FOR CBEARD FRANKFURT FOR RCO KBROUGHAM E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: CASC CVIS KFRD KOCI PREL KG SUBJECT: ADOPTIONS: AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH MPS ¶1. SUMMARY: Ambassador met with Members of Parliament Gulnara Derbisheva and Damira Niiazalieva on October 13 to discuss proposed revisions to the Kyrgyz Family code which would lead to the lifting of the country's moratorium on international adoptions. The MPs suggested that a new draft law could be submitted to Parliament for consideration as soon as next week and urged continued support from the Embassy. The Ambassador pressed very hard for a resolution for the 65 families already matched with children as soon as possible and certainly no later than the end of this year. End summary. ¶2. On October 13, Ambassador met with Members of Parliament Gulnara Derbisheva and Damira Niiazalieva to discuss proposed revisions to the Kyrgyz Family code. The revisions -- which, they say, will likely be submitted to Parliament next week -- would remove the current regulation which requires bilateral agreements to be in force with the destination country and lead to a lifting of the moratorium. The revisions have strong support from First Vice Speaker Kubanychbek Isabekov, though the head of the government faction in Parliament, Ak-Zhol Party leader Ulugbek Ormonov, is opposed to the idea of international adoptions and appears to be in no hurry to enable the moratorium to be lifted. ¶3. Ambassador pressed the MPs on the importance of lifting the moratorium without further delay and finding a quick resolution for the 65 families whose pending adoption applications have been put on indefinite hold. She further stressed the importance to move as quickly as possible to help the children -- many with special needs -- by the end of the year, mentioning that at least one family has already given up on adopting a very sick child in Kyrgyzstan. ¶4. Derbisheva and Niiazalieva co-authored the draft law on amendments to the Family Code in consultation with the Prime Minister's office and have been advocating for the rights of adoptive families and orphans. They told Ambassador that they maintain contact with U.S. adoptive parents after their return from an International Visitors Program trip to the U.S. in May. Derbisheva and Niiazalieva also presented a letter to the Prime Minister urging timely completion of the 65 pending cases after their trip. They had planned to also send the letter to the President, but no other MPs agreed to sign the document. ¶5. COMMENT: Over 65 U.S. families await the lifting of the moratorium in order to complete the adoptions they began under the previous legal order. It remains unclear whether their cases can be 'grandfathered' under the new legislation when and if it does pass. Several Parliamentarians are steadfastly against international adoptions, and may view the issue as purely an American issue, though there are more than thirty cases involving parents from other Western countries. Gfoeller