Petition for Justice and Reform: Stand with Overseas Adopted Koreans

To the Governments of South Korea and the United States (U.S.) -  

한국어 번역

For decades, the international adoption system has hidden the truth from thousands of Korean adoptees. Recent investigations[1] confirm what many adoptees have long suspected: records used to send children abroad were often falsified, erasing birth families and creating “paper orphans” out of children who were never truly abandoned. This system - created by both the South Korean and US governments – was driven by demand and exploitation, severing adoptees from their families, culture, and identities. These practices violate adoptees' human rights as codified in The Hague Adoption Convention (Hague Convention) and United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children (UNCRC) – treaties that one or both countries have signed[2].

This petition is a call for immediate, concrete action from both the South Korean and U.S. governments to deliver the justice and support adoptee adults deserve.

Key Demands:  

1. Honor the Hague Adoption Convention Information Preservation and Access Provision

  • Grant Full, Unredacted Access to Records:  In keeping with the spirit of UNCRC and The Hague Convention right to know principles, give adoptees access to their adoption, birth, immigration, and medical records. Consider making those records available online so adoptees have access without having to travel to Korea which is a financial hardship for many adoptees.
  • Reform Privacy Laws in South Korea: Update outdated privacy laws to grant adoptees access to vital government databases, including immigration, resident registrations, and death registries.
  • Provide Record Navigation Support:  Assist adoptees access, interpret, and navigate records and connect with families across borders.

2. Create and Expand Resources to Reunite Adoptees with Birth Families

  • Expand DNA eligibility: Allow DNA submissions from South Korean grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and U.S. children of adoptees to significantly improve the reunion opportunities.
  • Raise Public Awareness: Launch outreach campaigns in South Korea – especially in rural areas -- to inform birth families of their options to participate in DNA matching and reduce the stigma of having relinquished their children.
  • Consider Partnering with commercial DNA providers:  Collaborate with commercial DNA partners like AncestryDNA, FTDNA, 23andMe, and MyHeritage to help reunite South Korean families with those who have been adopted overseas.

3. Reform the National Center for Rights of Children (NCRC) to Serve Adoptees, Not Agencies

  • Improve Funding and Training: Address the severe understaffing of the NCRC, which currently supports over 200,000 internationally adopted individuals with fewer than four staff members. Equip staff with trauma-informed training to meet adoptees' and birth families' needs compassionately.
  • Articulate and communicate the record consolidation process to be implemented this July: There is significant confusion and lack of awareness of how the process of transferring adoptee records from adoption agencies to the National Center for Children's Rights (NCRC) will be implemented.
  • Ensure Adoptee-Centered Leadership: Appoint leaders who advocate for adoptees and birth families, not adoption agencies that have historically profited from child exportation.
  • Include Adoptee Representation: Ensure adoptees have representation on the NCRC oversight committee, with transparent, public reporting on the committee's goals and progress.
  • Audit Digital Records: Conduct an independent audit of NCRC's digitized records to address mismanagement and inaccuracies. Engage data forensics experts and adoptees in the process to restore trust in record integrity.

4. Specific to U.S. Government: Resolve Citizenship Gap and Advocate for Reform

  • Grant Citizenship to All International Adoptees: Address the gap in the Children's Citizenship Act that excluded thousands of Korean adoptees, ensuring they and all international adoptees receive citizenship. Congress must pass comprehensive legislation to retroactively include adoptees excluded from past reforms, protecting their legal rights and security in the U.S. and providing pathways for the return of previously deported adoptees. 
  • Advocate for Reform Through Diplomacy: U.S. diplomats and U.S. State Department's Office of Children Issues should actively champion the rights of Korean adoptees by advocating for reforms to the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare. This includes ensuring adoptee representation on oversight committees, granting adoptees full and unredacted access to records, and improving management of adoptee services. These reforms are critical for South Korea to become compliant with the Hague Adoption Convention, which they signed in 2013.

5. Support Deported Adoptees 

  • Reject Deportations of Adoptees: The South Korean government should refuse to accept adoptees deported from the U.S., as deportation contradicts the principles of international adoption and adoptees' fundamental human rights.
  • Provide Support for Deported Adoptees: Establish comprehensive care systems in South Korea to assist deported adoptees, including housing, language training, mental health services, and job placement programs to help them rebuild their lives.

Add Your Voice to This Petition

This petition is about dignity, family, and justice. It seeks to help adult adoptees reclaim their identities and ensure they are supported through compassionate policies and meaningful reforms. Join us in urging the U.S. and South Korean governments to expand resources, enhance transparency, and strengthen programs that honor the commitments made to adoptees and their families.

Sign today and help overseas adopted Koreans find their families and reclaim their stories.

[1] For an excellent overview of the issues, please watch the Associated Press/Frontline documentary, South Korea's Adoption Reckoning

[2] South Korea has signed both the UNCRC and the Hague Convention but only ratified the UNCRC. The U.S. has signed and ratified The Hague Convention. It did not sign the UNCRC.

Contact Information / 연락처 정보

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Why does this petition matter?

For decades, Korean adoptees have faced unnecessary barriers accessing their origin information, birth families, and citizenship rights. Many were given falsified records, denied access to their own histories, or left without citizenship due to bureaucratic failures. Some have even been deported. This petition calls on the South Korean and U.S. governments to take practical and overdue steps to remove these barriers.

2. Why focus on both South Korea and the U.S.?

Both governments played key roles in the intercountry adoption system. South Korea facilitated adoptions that, in many cases, involved altered records and limited oversight, while the U.S. accepted adoptees without ensuring proper safeguards, including guarantees of citizenship. Because both governments were responsible for shaping these adoption systems, both must take steps to address the unintended negative impacts on adoptees.

3. Who is leading this petition?

This petition is being supported by adoptee advocates and a coalition of adoptee-led groups, including:

Advocates

  • Anne Mai Bertelsen
  • Alice Stephens
  • A.D. Herzel
  • Jolene Olsen
  • Zhen E Remmelsberg

Organizations

  • Adoptees For Justice
  • Adoptee Hub
  • International Korean Adoptee Assoc. (IKAA)
  • Inclusion Initiative
  • Paperslip

Adoption Records and Family Reunification

4. Why is full access to adoption records so important?

For many adoptees, adoption records are the only link to their origins—to knowing their real date, time, and place of birth; their names at birth; and their family name. However, adult adoptees have encountered incomplete or falsified records or have been told their files are sealed or inaccessible. In reality, many records do exist but remain out of reach due to lack of staffing, interest, inconsistent policies, or bureaucratic restrictions.

South Korea and the U.S. must ensure that adoptees have full, unredacted access to their own histories. This aligns with international standards, including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and The Hague Adoption Convention, both of which affirm the right of adoptees to know their origins.

5. Why is DNA testing critical for family reunification?

When adoption records are inaccurate or missing, DNA testing is often the only reliable tool for identifying biological family connections. However, South Korean government-run DNA databases are currently too limited, restricting the ability of adoptees and birth families to find one another.

To improve reunification efforts, South Korea could:

  • Expand DNA eligibility to include grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and the U.S.-born children of adoptees.
  • Launch a public awareness campaign to inform birth families—especially those in rural areas—that DNA matching is an option.
  • Partner with commercial DNA providers (such as AncestryDNA, 23andMe, MyHeritage, and FTDNA), which many adoptees already use to search for relatives.

These steps would provide adoptees with the same resources and opportunities as any other person searching for their family.

Reforming the National Center for Rights of Children (NCRC)

6. What is the concern about the record transfer to the NCRC?

Beginning in July 2025, South Korea's adoption agencies will transfer their records to the National Center for Rights of Children (NCRC). However, there has been little public communication about how adoptees will be able to access these records after the transfer. Many adoptees fear they could face even greater barriers than they do today.

Additionally, existing digital records at the NCRC have already been found to contain errors, omissions, and inconsistencies. Without an independent audit and clear oversight, there is no guarantee that adoptees will receive accurate or complete information when requesting their records.

Ensuring transparency and accountability during this transition is critical to rebuilding trust with adoptees.

U.S. Government Responsibilities

7. What is the Children's Citizenship Act gap, and why does it matter?

Many people assume that all international adoptees automatically became U.S. citizens, but this is not the case. Thousands of Korean adoptees were excluded from the Children's Citizenship Act of 2000 because they were over the age of 18 when the law was passed.

This has left thousands of adoptees without legal status in the U.S. Some have:

  • Been deported to Korea, a country they left as infants and may not even remember.
  • Lost access to jobs, healthcare, and other basic rights due to their lack of citizenship.
  • Lived under constant uncertainty, unable to vote, travel, or fully participate in society.

Congress must act to close this gap and provide retroactive citizenship for all international adoptees, ensuring they are recognized as Americans because they were adopted by American parents.

Deported Adoptees

8. Why should South Korea refuse to accept deported adoptees?

Intercountry adoption was built on the premise that these children were placed in permanent families. Deporting adoptees back to Korea contradicts this fundamental assumption—especially when the lack of citizenship was due to failures in the adoption system, not the adoptees themselves.

South Korea should:

  • Reject deportations of adoptees and call on the U.S. to take responsibility.
  • Ensure that deported adoptees are not treated as undocumented foreigners but rather as individuals who were originally sent abroad through legal adoption.

Taking Action

9. What happens after the petition is signed, and what impact will it have?

This petition is not just about signatures—it is about advocating for meaningful improvements to the practices and procedures that have denied adoptees access to their histories, families, and legal rights. Once the petition is submitted, it will be:

  • Presented to officials in South Korea and the U.S. to encourage direct action.
  • Used in discussions with lawmakers, diplomatic representatives, and relevant agencies to ensure adoptees' concerns are acknowledged and addressed.
  • Amplified through media and public engagement to keep attention on these issues and encourage transparency and accountability.

Beyond these immediate steps, the petition seeks to:

  • Raise public awareness about the systemic challenges adoptees face.
  • Encourage both governments to take responsibility for past adoption practices and implement improvements that prioritize adoptees' needs.
  • Ensure that long-term support systems are in place for adoptees, particularly those facing deportation or legal uncertainty.
  • Advance truth and reconciliation efforts by ensuring adoptees have a voice in shaping the decisions that affect their lives.

This is an opportunity for both governments to demonstrate a commitment to transparency, justice, and the well-being of adoptees.

10. How can I help?

  • Sign the petition—the more support, the harder it is to ignore. Ask your friends and family members over the age of 18 to sign it.
  • Share it widely—adoptee issues have been silenced for too long.
  • Contact your lawmakers in South Korea and the U.S. to demand action.
  • Support adoptee-led organizations—they are the ones leading the fight for justice. 
 

Please email questions to Anne Bertelsen - annemai@outlook.com

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