Childrens Rights and Adoption in Finland after 1948
- Slides: 8
Children’s Rights and Adoption in Finland after 1948 Ongoing Ph. D research Special Adviser Heikki Parviainen Global Social Policy Forum 5. 10. 2013
Children’s Rights and Adoption in Finland after 1948 Ongoing Ph. D dissertation study (Special Adviser Heikki Parviainen, SOSTE/ University of Helsinki, dep. of Finnish and Scandinavian history) - Comprehensive picture of Finnish adoptions after 1948 - Development of Finnish adoption legislation in international context/ in relation to societal changes - Principles of law and adoption - Whose Best Interest? Child’s, Parents, Agency’s, Participating Countries? permission to be published)
Finnish Adoptions - From ”sending” country into a ”receiving” country in the 1970’s - Decline in domestic adoptions – beginning of transnational adoptions - Rising standard of living, social policy, abortion legalized - Relatively minor phenomenon compared to other Scandinavian countries (several reasons)
Finnish Transnational adoptions 1970 -2010 350 308 289 300 250 192 181 200 144 150 100 246 238 218 198 149 218 187 176 157 127 94 88 78 56 50 103 85 45 40 34 18 13 10 1 12 8 9 11 5 5 9 4 102 54 60 55 22 Finnish children adopted abroad Children adopted to Finland 09 20 05 20 00 20 95 19 90 19 85 19 80 19 75 19 19 70 0
Adoptions confirmed in lower courts 19382010 1400 1200 1147 1000 857 800 712 Number of Adoptions 582 600 597 551 514 430 358 400 263 262 204 238 281 200 20 09 20 05 20 00 19 95 19 90 19 85 19 80 19 75 19 70 19 65 19 60 19 55 19 50 19 38 0
Children residing outside their own family ( institutions, family care etc. ) 1920 -2009 35000 30000 25000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0 1938 Institutions 1940 1945 Private care 1950 1955 Total (1935 -1987) Institutions and other Family Care Total (1935 -1987) Total (1991 -2009) 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1983 1987 1991 1995 2000 2005 2009 Total (1991 -2009)
Development of Legislation (Finland) - Major Legislative Changes in 1925, 1980, 1985, 2012 - Slow implementation of international treaties in national legislation until 1990’s - Strong role of government - NGO’s /municipalities domestic power struggle?
Law and adoption - Issues with children available for adoption Unofficial adoptions Open adoption Global/local inequality Whose Best Interest? Child’s, Parents, Agency’s, Participating Countries?