Bishop urges careful study before changing adoption laws

The Bishop of Gozo, Mgr Mario Grech, said it was important that any amendments made to adoption laws, which currently protected the interests of the adopted child, were properly studied before being carried out.

Mgr Grech, who was leading a celebration to mark the Feast of the Family organised by the Cana Movement in Gozo on Friday, said that, unfortunately, not all children are born within a family. Today's moral laxity, sometimes encouraged even through the use of public funds, was leading to an increase in the number of children born out of wedlock. While some unmarried parents or mothers accepted to bring up the child, in some cases the baby was given up for adoption.

"It is important that a serious independent authority is set up to ensure that adoption would truly be for the good of the adopted child. At the same time, while one has to ascertain that the adopted child is given the best treatment by the adoptive family, these cases should be treated with the utmost ­discretion."

Sometimes, he said, women resorted to other options, possibly an abortion, in order to avoid having their identities revealed in the course of adoption procedures.

He expressed the hope that the right to adoption would continue to rest with married couples, men and women. In cases where the adopted children or biological parents expressed the desire to meet, perhaps it ought to be up to an independent authority to make such decisions, in the best interest of the adopted child, he added.

The best way to protect children and their rights was to have laws that truly protected families founded on marriage, he said.

He also stressed that institutions helping families in the formation and care of children, such as schools, must safeguard and promote children's rights.

"It is alarming that today one hears of allegations that in certain institutions such as in some families and schools, there still exists physical and moral violence against children. Such incidents should be reported to the authorities," he said.