By Victoria Tulad, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism Facebook pages selling Filipino babies continue to proliferate despite efforts to stop the illegal trade online, an investigation by the Philippine Center […]
Facebook pages selling Filipino babies continue to proliferate despite efforts to stop the illegal trade online, an investigation by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism showed.
Seventeen-year-old Paula, not her real name, was facilitating the adoption of her baby even before giving birth. Instead of getting excited, she felt despair as her due date neared. In 2021, it said it had monitored, tracked down, and reported 48 fake Facebook accounts involved in the illegal activity.Undersecretary Janella Estrada, executive director of the National Authority for Child Care , said she was alarmed over adoptions being facilitated through Facebook and assured the public of prompt action.
Two of those who were eager to adopt were Luis and Nancy . The couple have been married for years but were unable to conceive. After a year of waiting, Luis and Nancy decided to look for other options on the internet. Nancy did a Google search about baby adoption and discovered various Facebook groups. The two knew it was illegal, but they were willing to take the risk.
The desperation is shared by many on Facebook. Several netizens also complained about the numerous adoption requirements and the tedious process that drove them to Facebook adoption groups.Necessary precautions Dr. Antonia Siy, a member of the Child Placement Committee of NACC, said it is possible to adopt a child in less than nine months if a person is serious about the adoption, possesses all the documents needed, and is not picky.
Court proceedings can cause delays in the process, too. “If you happen to be in a small municipality, a city where there are not as many family courts… the adoptions have to be done by special courts where the judges are really familiar, so if you don’t get a schedule, that can also delay,” Siy explained.
“They are being assessed or evaluated for their preparedness,” Siy said. “Children who come to adoption come from basically tragic circumstances and they have to be ready to help the child kind of heal from that.”Paula, Luis, and Nancy warn of scams on Facebook. There are victims on both ends of transactions made on the social media platform, they said. A couple of people had messaged Paula saying they were interested in adopting her baby.
“She asked for money a couple of times,” Nancy recalled. “She said she lost some blood, and then she needed vitamins. We sent her money. And then on the week she was due, she didn’t contact us at all.” The couple thanked the social worker and said they were no longer interested. They had adopted a baby from an acquaintance in April that year.
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