MOWA court news //encouragement for PAP's

I just want to take a post to encourage all of you waiting PAP's out there. I have watched the program in Ethiopia for three years now. We brought home our two sons in 2008. There have been numerous changes and statements issued and all sorts of new things put into place in that time. Each time there was 1. a statement (which is a more formal level but comes after a lot of talking and informal statements in country, so, not out of the blue as it seems to us), 2. a panic by all sorts of invested parties, including much action and waiting 3. a discussion within country as well as with those invested parties, 4. an alteration and a more formal statement of new practice, 5. and things settled back into a good balance and adoptions continued. Changed, but still moving. Slower and slower, but safeguards are good to ensure the continuation of the program.
I know that this is similar. Maybe a bit more drastic change will come but really, I think it will not be as drastic as it is being made out to be right now. Drastic things have been proposed before and a more moderate version has taken effect. Ethiopia recognizes the need for adoption and that there are not many good options for the children in country. They know the extent of the issue and they are willing and wanting to continue adoptions. They are working hard, very hard, to maintain the program and to make it ethical. It is really hard to do this and they are working at it.
I am not saying this won't slow things down or change things. I am saying it may not be as bad as it looks right now. Things will settle. If you are in limbo to commit. Wait to see what comes of this. Maybe a few weeks. Then decide if you are willing to go for it. If you are waiting for a referral this will slow things down some. No agency can tell you how much right now. We will all know more in a few weeks. If you have a referral and are waiting court. The thing that will be slowed down is the letter from MOWA. I *suspect* that if a child is waiting to pass court after having not passed they will continue to try to work those out a bit quicker. I am also guessing that a special needs child (however they choose to define that) will move a bit quicker too. If you have passed court, this should not effect you at all.

So, IF things go as they have for the last three years we should know more about how this is really going to actually play out some time in early April. I am just guessing, but it is based on the last three years. So, lets all pray hard, sign the petitions, send our letters and wait.