Fed: Any children in adoption racket may have to be returned: Nelson

AAP General News (Australia)
08-23-2008
Fed: Any children in adoption racket may have to be returned: Nelson

CANBERRA, Aug 23 AAP - Any children kidnapped in an overseas adoption racket will likely
have to be returned to their families, federal Opposition Leader Brendan Nelson says.

At least 30 children adopted in Australia may have been stolen from their parents by
a child trafficking ring operating in India between 1998 and 1999, The Weekend Australian
reported today.

The Queensland government and Indian investigators will soon begin working together
to investigate the claims.

"Let us hope that the inquiry, in fact, does not find that children have been effectively
kidnapped," Dr Nelson told reporters in Adelaide today.

"But if they have, then we will have a moral responsibility to do the right thing.

"And the right thing, we would expect in most cases, will be to look at returning them
to their rightful families."

Dr Nelson rejected suggestions Canberra should wrest control of adoption legislation
from the states.

"I don't think that we should have knee-jerk responses that suggest that the commonwealth
should automatically take it over.

"So let's just wait until we get the outcome of the inquiry before people start to
say: `Well, if the commonwealth takes it over that will solve all the problems'.

"Generally speaking, government is the problem, not the solution."

AAP pv/goc/cjh/cdh

KEYWORD: ADOPTION NELSON

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