GREEK
LAW
NEW LAW FOR THE ADOPTION
After
the huge social turbulence that was caused in February 1995
and after the fluster for the plenty of the criminal actions
that were made and was discovered in adoptions, the Greek Ministry
of Justice and the Attorney General of that period decided to
operate a deep search. That was something that finally resulted
in the change of the anachronistic and obsolescent law of the
adoption in Greece.
Nobody, but nobody, in the Greek law area as well as in the
International can doubt the crucial contribution of S.E.A.S.Y.P
in the change and in the modernization of the old law that made
the adoptees, in reality, lifetime slaves by supporting the
position of the lifetime secrecy and discretion concerning the
adoptions.
Through out tens of t.v programs, news broadcasts, all the
mass media, as well as tens of protests at the Greek Ministry
of Justice, the adoptees managed to activate the justice authority
and to accomplice what was a dream of a lifetime. And that was
to change the unfair law.
The 2447/96 law gave the right to every Greek adoptee to search,
after his coming of age, in order to find his roots. Our effort
was not useless and all of them, who accuse us and still fight
against us, must at least be aware of this big truth. With our
fights and with our big revolution we succeeded a big profit
with time value. A big help towards all the adoptees that can
from now on without big hardships, right after theirs coming
out of age, can find their lost identity.
It is a need to adduce here a publication of "Ta Nea"
(translation: "The News") newspaper at 20/4/96 from
the records of our association:
"The
Ministry of Justice asked the attorney authorities to do checking
at the institutions that are involved in cases of adoptions,
whereas in the following days in the Parliament will be promoted
the draft with which the Institution of the adoption is been
modernized. After the latest discoveries concerning the illegal
adoptions of Greek children from American families, mostly in
the decade of 50's, the Attorney General Mr. Venizelos with
a deed of his towards the district attorney of Supreme Court
Mr. Sioula, stimulates the necessity to investigate the accusations
that come on publicity and to check up all the institutions
that are involved in cases of adoptions as for their legality
and the way of their function.
In the same time from the Ministry of Justice's side will be
promoted without any delay at the Parliament the known draft
that had been established from a special commission, under the
presidency of the Professor of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Mr. Deligianni, and with which the code of the family rights
is reformed and radical changes concerning the Institution of
the adoptions are coming.
The draft is expected to be submitted until the end of next
week at the Ministry of Justice, whereas the basic arrangement
that had been already examined by the co-competent Ministry
of Health and Provision, that has the responsibility for the
operation of the relevant institutions and organizations. According
to the proposed plan, every adoption will from now on be made
with guarantee judicial procedure, whereas pure private adoptions
will be made only in case of relatively relation between the
child and the family that adopts it.
The adoptions of adults are forbidden, whereas an adoptee can
not be prevented from getting to know his biological parents,
after the competition of the 18th year of his life.
As Mr. Venizelos said yesterday, in the draft will be included
an interim provision with which will definitely be acknowledged
the right of informing and searching of the roots of the persons
that were given for adoptions under the until now regime. "Ta
Nea" ("The News") 20/4/96.
It
is true that a lot of our proposals were not included in the
legislative project of the law preparatory commission of that
period which worked with the readjustment of the obsolescent
and anachronistic law 610/70 and 193/73. The legal authorities,
unfortunately, did not understand neither the volume nor the
size of the illegalities that were made in the past and which
made the Holy Institution of the adoption, in many cases, a
cruel action of inhuman transaction.
We believe that until today the adoption in Greece is not totally
protected and that more transparency, clarity and protection
are needed. Every kind of confidential is what in the past covered
the black rackets of the transactions and compose a danger for
the future of the adoptions, as well as for their legality.
The safety valve lids were not found so as to protect in the
future the next victims, children and biological parents.
S.E.A.S.Y.P. association will not stop working and insisting
on the proposals that once lodged for more transparency and
clarity. In the next actions of S.E.A.S.Y.P will be the introductions
of the new proposals towards the Greek Ministry of Justice with
which we ask for the legislative adjustment for all the old
cases of the adoptions that were made during the black period
in our Country.
The issue of the right of searching of the biological parents
that without reason lost their children should be reexamined.
Where ever there is no consent of the biological parents, but
there is hooking of the baby, whether with the method of the
fictitious deaths or with the method of the fictitious attributions,
the right of searching should be given by law by the public
prosecutor's offices.
And so as to be more specific, we ask the fair demand of the
biological parents who have death act of registration of their
child (which for many reasons they doubt) to be included. They
are not allowed in any way of access to search. And to be entered
that obvious right of them with a new legislative adjustment.
More over, we ask from the Ministry to enact by law the right
of searching even for those adoptees that because of prescription
they are not allowed to search so as to find their roots.
Finally, we ask the directions of the institutions, that in
influx contravention in many illegal adoptions were discovered,
not to be able to claim, hypocritically, that they do not give
information concerning others to the adoptees that search, because
those exact information led us to the real identity of many
of them.
The confidential of any case of procedure and laws to end from
the moment that contranentional actions are find out.
We
believe that we have so much more to do in order to help a big
group of people from whom unreasonably inviolable human rights
were deleted. We are still at the beginning. But we have will,
decisiveness and courage. We are for once more determined to
wake up the Greek Justice. The law 2447/96 is the first proof
of the justification of our fair fight.
S.E.A.S.Y.P. succeeded with its fights the recognition of the
18th year of age of the adoptee as the starting point of his
right to search for his lost identity.
S.E.A.S.Y.P. will constantly try to contribute with every legal
way in the reforming, the stepping up, the improvement and the
award of the Institution of the adoption, as well as the protection
of the adoptees forever, with the cooperation of the competent
conveyors. We will not stop asking for the help and the cooperation
of all of them who believe in our fair fight.
We set out now the articles of the new law that an adoptee
can invoke in the Greek Authorities and Services in order to
take all the confidential documents that concern him. Moreover,
for the bigger help and informing, we mention the specific articles
of the Greek Constitution that advocate and go together with
the spirit of 2447/96, as well as with the targets, the aims
and the ideology of S.E.A.S.Y.P.
- Respect
for the protection of human dignity constitutes the primary
obligation of the state.
- Each
person is entitled to develop his personality freely and to
participate in the social, economic and political life of
the country, provided that he does not encroach upon the rights
of others, the Constitution or the bona mores.
- The
institution of the family, being the foundation of the preservation
and improvement of the nation, as well as marriage, motherhood
and childhood, shall be protected by the state.
- With
the exception of the regulations that follow, the adoptions
that were made before the beginning of the validity of this
law are governed as to their validity and the legal results
from the until now law. But, the layouts of the articles 1569
until 1577 of the Civil Code are adjusted as well as to the
adoptions that were made under the previous legislative regime.
- Adoptions
of underage children that happened at offence of the second
paragraph of the article 2 in combination with the article
4 of the Legal Law 610/1970 are retrospective validated from
their performance, unless their invalidity has already been
pronounced with final court decision at the time of the beginning
of the validity of the present law.
- In
cases of underage adoptions that were made before the beginning
of the validity of the present, the adoptive parent has the
right to ask from the court, with a request of his that goes
on trial during the procedure of the voluntary jurisdiction,
the complete accession of the child into his family, according
to the articles 1561 until 1566 of the Civil Code. For the
change of that, must as well acquiesce the child that has
completed the 12th year of his life and in any case must,
according to his maturity, be heard his opinion. For the acquiescence
or the hearing of the adoptive child the procedure of the
second paragraph of the article 800 of the Politics Legal
Procedure Code is kept.
- Cases
about adoptions that outstand at first degree are judged according
to the arrangements of that law.
- In
cases of underage adoptions, that were made before the beginning
of the validity of the present under circumstances that secure
their secrecy, according to the conditions of the law which
validated during the time of their performance, the adoptive
child has after his coming of age the right to be totally
informed about the records of his biological parents according
to the third paragraph of the article 1559 of the Civil Code.
The civil servants of the local government, the district attorney
and the organs of the qualified social service or institutions
have the obligation to provide their contribution to the concerned
during the performance of their above right.
- The
adoptive child has, after his coming of age, the right to
be totally informed from his adoptive parents and from every
qualified authority about the records of his biological parents.
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