The United Nations(UN) is interested in cases where adoption fraud and abuse were inflicted on vulnerable parents to coerce them to surrender their children. Even if your doctor or social worker or government said such practices were "legal"!

Example: Was your baby taken away from you at birth or withheld from you BEFORE you signed surrender papers, i.e. while you were still his/her LEGAL MOTHER?

Example: Was government financial assistance inadequate to allow you to keep your baby? Was information about financial assistance withheld from you?

Example: Were you encouraged to develop a relationship with adopters PRIOR TO your baby's birth or accept financial aid from them, making it difficult to make a decision about adoption after your baby's birth without feeling obligated towards them?

Example: Were you lead to believe that "open adoption" agreements were binding on adoptive parents, and such an agreement was later broken?

Example: Were you otherwise pressured or coerced - physically, emotionally, or psychologically - to surrender your baby?

(See the Coercion Checklist for more information about abuses commonly perpetrated on new and expectant mothers in order to obtain babies for adoption)

The UN will be publishing a report about Adoption Fraud next year. If you feel you were denied your legal rights, then it amounts to adoption fraud. If you feel your human rights were violated, then the UN is for you.

Your complaint will go straight to the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights for the UN in Geneva, Switzerland. They look at it and take it to the Canadian Federal government.

Remember that you and your child, from the moment of birth, are a FAMILY, and as such as deserving of protection under many national and international laws and treaties. See the Coercion Checklist for more details on the abuses perpetrated on new mothers in order to obtain their babies for brokering. And see the preliminary report of the UN for their concerns regarding selling babies, which fuels the modern adoption industry.

In 1948, Canada and the United States signed the The Universal Declaration of Human Rights which states:

" ARTICLE 25:
" (1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living ADEQUATE FOR THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING of himself and of his FAMILY, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
" (2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection."

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) protec

" Article 9 - 1. States Parties shall ensure that a child shall not be separated from his or her parents against their will, except when competent authorities subject to judicial review determine, in accordance with applicable law and procedures, that such separation is necessary for the best interests of the child."

The right of children not to be traded as marketable commodities is outlined in the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, signed in 1959:

"Principle 9 The child shall be protected against all forms of neglect, cruelty and exploitation. He shall not be the subject of traffic, in any form."

Why? Because there was money to be made in it, providing parenthood to infertile couples and keeping mothers from requiring welfare! Then there was the added bonus of expressing societal disapproval for unwed motherhood.

"To the Province generally the great advantage and economy of the Adoption Act can be realized when it is stated that many of the children before their adoption were costing five and six dollars a week for maintenance." - 35th Report of the Superintendent of Neglected and Dependent Children (Ontario, 1928)

"... the tendency growing out of the demand for babies is to regard unmarried mothers as breeding machines...(by people intent) upon securing babies for quick adoptions." - - National Association of Social Workers.

"Because there are many more married couples wanting to adopt newborn white babies than there are babies, it may almost be said that they rather than out of wedlock babies are a social problem. (Sometimes social workers in adoption agencies have facetiously suggested setting up social provisions for more 'babybreeding'.)" - National Association of Social Workers.

". . . babies born out of wedlock [are] no longer considered a social problem . . . white, physically healthy babies are considered by many to be a social boon . . . " (i.e. a valuable commodity..). - National Association of Social Workers.

". . . society has seemed more interested in punishing the unwed mother and her illegitimate child than in understanding the social, economic, and psychological forces which have placed them in a deviant social position." The Unwed Mother, by Robert W. Roberts.

The UN (United Nations) is an independent international body with various offices around the world monitoring human rights (the Geneva office) as well as for other things such as a neutral place for countries to discuss various matters (that is the New York office). It is financed by most countries in the world. It has no boundaries as such.

You may have complained to everyone in Canada - but that does not mean you have complained to the UN. The UN has a special office in Geneva, Switzerland just for Human Rights which they monitor and report back to the International community. They bring the violations of humans to the country's notice, demand they do something and report world-wide about it. It is useful for embarrassing government into action. The UN reports as to whether action has been taken or not to the world-wide community. Although the UN cannot make a government do anything, they do have the authority to report on them and demand action.

Canada wants people to believe that it is in the forefront of human rights. It is part of the Canadian psyche to think that. Anything that challenges that is an embarrassment to the government which they cannot sweep away.

The UN's business is human rights. Any abuse of those rights is their business. If you were denied your legal rights (ie denied a lawyer) or abused (physically or verbally), then your rights were violated. It is the UN's business to report these violations both to the country where they occurred and to the international community who will put pressure on that government to sort out their house.

Because no-one else here in Canada or the United States has listened to us!

First of all, the UN listens.

"That, for me, was the best thing ever. Someone BELIEVED me! It was the acknowledgement that our treatment was criminal and that we did not deserve to be treated in this manner." - Catherine H.

Secondly, the UN is FREE!! That is a big bonus for anyone.

Thirdly, the UN moves much faster than the Canadian justice system.

"They responded to my complaint within 8 hours of receiving it."

Fourthly, the UN publishes their reports internationally and by committee. Their reports go to every country in the world. Even the Canadian media can't do that (but they do pick up on the reports that do come out - just look at the latest one).

Fifthly, the UN MAKES the government listen. The government might be able to ignore a few of us - but it is more difficult when the UN tells the world that they have ignored thousands, even millions. No government wants this sort of embarrassment - especially the Canadian one that wants to promote the idea that Canada cares about human rights. A report about violence to women by the state is the last thing they want.

How Do I File a Complaint?

You can report your own case, as a parent who was defrauded and lost a child to adoption (not necessarily to black market adoption), or as the child who was unjustifiably taken for adoption (whether or not money changed hands, but do indicate amounts paid if known), or any other case you know of.

Whether you lost your child last year or in 1948, the U.N. will still take a look at your case.

• You can either use the the UN form to send in the complaint, or you can just write out your own complaint using the guidelines below. Don't worry if you cannot remember everything - just write down as much as you can.
• Please also include any copies of any documents that support your case. That will help.
• If you are sending your complaint by e-mail, please send it in Word Format as an attachment - or it will not be accepted.
• Hard copies sent by snail mail are also acceptable.Make sure you keep a copy for yourself.

If you don't wish to use the form from the UN, here is a guide to the details that they wish to know about:

FAQ About the U.N. Complaint Process:

Question: The adoption was private through a lawyer, not through a government agency. Can i still file a complaint?

Answer: It does not matter who handled the adoption or where it took place. ALL adoption complaints are covered by the UN - whether they are provincial OR international.

THE UNITED NATIONS IS LISTENING!!