ABSTRACT

Fundamentally, intercountry adoption is political when it comes to systems critique and reform. The response by politicians during times of crisis is not unlike the stereotypical “baby kissing” of political campaigns; there is arguably not a higher-profile opportunity for a politician to underscore his or her commitment to family life intersecting with poverty and doing the right thing as per the popular notion of what is “right” in terms of intervention. Adoption is exceptionally popular where notions of child rescue are the narrative, whereas adoption can be quite controversial in some countries such as South Korea, as we have already illustrated.