SINGAPORE: Singapore adoptive parents Sarah and Adam were in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, waiting nervously at a fast-food restaurant to meet a baby they were looking to adopt when a woman walked in with the newborn in her arms.After a brief conversation, the woman told the couple to “take now … bring this baby back now”.The couple was shocked – their adoption agent did not turn up, there was no paperwork and almost no information about the child.They left without taking the baby.
That was in July last year. They then learnt that the circumstances of their case bore similarities to a baby-trafficking case spanning Indonesia and Singapore.Eighteen women and one man are currently on trial in Indonesia for their alleged roles in a baby-trafficking syndicate that has links to adoption “agents” in Singapore.CNA reported earlier this month that the court in Indonesia was told that at least four people in Singapore were allegedly involved in the trafficking of about a dozen babies, under the guise of adoption.According to court records seen by CNA, Lie Siu Luan, also known as Lily, 70, confessed in a May 26 trial session to trafficking babies to Singapore and receiving anywhere between S$17,000 (US$13,200) and S$21,600 per child.
