Dutch gay couples
may be allowed to adopt children abroad

The Dutch government has announced it will draft legislation to allow same-sex couples to adopt children abroad. When the Netherlands became the first country to legalize same-sex marriage in 2001, the legislation allowed same-sex couples to coparent the biological children of either partner and to adopt children born in the country. However, it expressly forbade foreign adoptions in an effort to avoid an international storm over the marriage law. But on Wednesday, justice minister Piet Hein Donner said that the restriction treated many same-sex couples unfairly because a number of countries now permit gay couples to adopt and the Netherlands has only a small number of children available for adoption. Donner also noted that many gay and lesbian couples already are adopting abroad, using a loophole in Dutch law that allows single people to adopt. The legislation must be approved by the Dutch parliament. No date for a vote has been set. (Sirius OutQ News)