By Vestnik Kavkaza
The prohibition on adoption of Russian orphans by American families is one of the most exciting topics for the society today. Children who have already met potential American parents appeared in the most difficult situation.
Natalya Shaginyan-Nidaem, a doctor
The law was adopted on January 1st and the children who have already met their parents appeared in the most difficult situation. We understand that every country has a right for prohibiting international adoption. However, in this case it is important to pay attention to the human factor, the humanity factor. These children have already seen their future parents, and they have a chance to gain a family. They have been abandoned once by their biological parents. Then they were presented to Russian adopters who refused from them either. Many of these children have various medical problems. Some of them need treatment today, and all of them need a family. It is wrong to ruin the contacts. Let them unite and then we will think about preparation of Russian families for adoption. Don’t ruin the formed contacts and don’t forget about the human factor when parents and their children are together.
Lia Akhedzhakova, People’s Artist of Russia
I don’t know who to ask for. It seems we have no power higher than Putin. Vladimir Vladimirovich, I beg you on my knees! This “orphan law” hit many people. There are parents who preceded all these courts before December 31st and you allow them to take 40 children to America. But there are about 70 families who couldn’t do it before New Year, but they know their children and children know them. Please let them go! For goodness’ sake! Let these moms take these disabled children, and probably the world will become better.
Yugeny Mironov, People’s Artist of Russia
I know about problems of disabled children firsthand. It is a big problem. Our charity fund “Artist” has supported and helped many children, including the use of prosthetics. Thanks to the American doctors who did it for free, we only paid for tickets, rehabilitation and adaptation of children, it was done. These are very expensive surgeries. Moreover, children are growing fast and it should be done regularly. I am grateful to these wonderful people in the hospital who helped us. The head of the hospital is a disabled person as well, and he has prosthesics. I tell this because we have to understand that whatever laws are adopted in favor of our state and our society, all people are different. There are people who deserve punishment, and there are people in any country who are patriots of humanity, patriots of heart who help other people. I know that now about 100 children found themselves in a difficult situation. American parts have already come to them. These are disabled children, children with a complicated life story whose mothers are drug-abused and so on. And American parents are able to help them, they were processing documents. But their cases were not considered in the court, and then the law was adopted. Vladimir Vladimirovich, I ask you please meet the parents and children halfway for not ruining the relations with these parents who are no very close to them. Believe me! I am sure these children will come back to Russia because they will know that their country thinks of them and does only good for them and do not deceive them because they have already met these American women who are ready to come and take their children
Lesley Phillips, an American mother
My name is Lesley Phillips. My husband and I have been in the process of adoption of our daughter Irina for three years. In November we were invited to meet her. The Ministry of Education of Russia gave us a chance to spend five days with her. It was amazing. We met our girl and our dreams, our expectations came true. Excuse me. You see your child at last, you were waiting for her for three years, and then suddenly someone takes her from you.
Bess Hettinger, an American mother
My husband and I have been undergoing the adoption process for three years. In September the Ministry of Education of Russia invited us to meet the little boy. We met and fell in love with him. All our dreams began to come true. We began to imagine our future with the boy, how we will celebrate his birthdays, holidays. Thanks to him our lives would change. I dreamed how I would dance at his wedding. We spent a week with him either and fell in love with him more every day. I held him on my knees and my husband played with him. He began to imagine he was a father either. Unfortunately, we didn’t get into the list of the 46 people who received the court’s decision on adoption before New Year. Now the law is taking away our dream. We beg Mr. Putin to allow the families who have already met the children to adopt them. Please!
Chulpan Khamatova, People's Artist of the Russian Federation
I do not know whom I should ask - society, president?.. There are some things that cannot, in my opinion, even be discussed. When a child, even if he is very small, is waiting for his mother, who must come and get him, and she does not come, and then when he grows up, he will hear: "When you were a kid, there was a case..." - I think he will hate this country. I was in such a situation. Generally, the people who have once, at least once, visited a baby house, but not in Moscow but in other cities, and have seen these chambers in large houses, where many of the children are inflated with drugs only because they can be given to foreigners, and it is said they are disabled just because they can be more profitable to be sold. This is a problem of our adults who have taken on this responsibility and cannot cope with it.
Sergei Yurski, People's Artist of Russia
We now have perhaps a tragic misunderstanding, perhaps cruelty and selfishness - individual and governmental selfishness, which in our eyes completely breaks destinies. We are now witnesses, thanks to television, to a strange story correlated with the present day: this is the story of a Turkish mother, a woman, an old woman who picked up a sick stranger of Russian origin. Nobody can figure out who he is. And she loves him - we saw it on the screen. Changing public relations can make us say: do you have the right to love our citizens, even though they cannot say their names? You have no rights. Now it is happening close to us. But we have a relationship with Turkey with no conflict points. But as for the U.S., there is the fact that more than 70 people, caught in the tragic circumstances, can be crushed by this machine. What could happen now? This machine is already on - we all know how this is done. Following the rule of law, "dura lex, sed lex", they will say: "You know, these children already have other parents of Russian origin. Everything will be fine!" This will be done rapidly. Instead of three years of preparing, instead of existing relationships that are real, something terrible will happen. This will simply be broken - there will be broken lives of these small people who already understand everything. These are reasonable people, we know, when they are four years old, or five, or seven. That would be the worst. I would call it an act of humanitarian vandalism. We turn to the only person who can stop all those on whom it depends not by order but by his own doubts, - Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin.
Andrei Makarevich, musician, composer, Honored Artist of Russia
Let us remember that we are, above all, people. People have humanity - this must be so. The parents of these poor children abandoned them. They already know that they have mother and father. Many of them are sick. They expect them to come now. I know that now they will be given to our foster parents for money, a lump sum of 100 thousand rubles. Parental love cannot be bought for money, but everyone wants to take the money. This is a very dangerous story. The fates of these people are now on those who have to make the right decision. And if the wrong decision is made, you will carry this burden for life. I beg you to address this issue humanly.
Alexander Borisov, Archpriest
I would like to recall the famous words to the people on which it depends: all of us, of course, make mistakes. Mistake in the language of faith - the same Greek word - is called "sin," and we all inevitably commit sins. "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." Let us, when we have to make some important decisions, think about it - that each of us needs mercy, and someone who will show it will be happy and will be pardoned.
