More than 4000 Venezuelan children will not be able to be adopted in Colombia

Law 1997 of 2019 states:

This same rule has a paragraph that determines that Colombian is who was born within the limits of the national territory, or in those places abroad assimilated to Colombia. Children of Colombian parents, born abroad, have access to the principle of dual nationality.

There is a paragraph there, in which it states that Venezuelans in immigration status, (regular, irregular or asylum seekers), whose children have been born in Colombian territory since January 1, 2015 and up to two years after the enactment of the law, will be able to access residence and/or stay in the country.

Although it sounds contradictory, babies born in Colombia, to Venezuelan parents, after the deadline set, are not considered Colombian. This leaves out the thousands of boys and girls who have already been recognized as Venezuelans, but, who are in Colombia. Although, due to their situation of vulnerability, they meet the conditions for acceptance into an adoption program.

The figures presented by the Colombian Institute for Family Welfare, ICBF, report that in Colombia there are more than 4,000 minors who are ready to be adopted, although the figure may be much higher, since Venezuelan migrant minors are not considered who, due to impediments in current regulations, are not considered even opt for adoption.

Specifically, the problem lies in the fact that these children do not have a Civil Registry, or Colombian nationality, mainly because the law does not dictate how to deal with these cases. In addition, the ICBF assures that it is impossible to search for its biological family because of diplomatic problems with Venezuela.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs argues that it is impossible to grant a Colombian nationality to someone who already has a nationality. In fact, the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare, has the obligation to contact relatives, if it does not find anyone, it is considered that no one can take care of them, so they enter the institute.

The issue returns to the public light due to a guardianship promoted by a lawyer representing a Venezuelan boy who was abandoned in Colombia. The case came to debate in the Constitutional Court. The boy was allegedly abandoned in a house in November 2019 when he was just three years old. The woman who stayed in her charge told ICBF, that her mother had left it in her care, but she never returned. In addition, he said that he did not know what his current whereabouts were or that of any other family member.

The minor is in the custody of the ICBF, but it is not known what to do to restore their rights, it is not possible to repatriate them, reintegrate them into their family or declare them for adoption. As there is no diplomatic channel between Colombia and Venezuela, it is not possible to search for their relatives, therefore, they cannot be declared adoptable.

The Constitutional Court could rule and define how the rights of that group of children could be guaranteed and, if necessary, order the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to take measures to protect them and give them a family.

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