Thank you for your letter of 17th August 1990 whose contents have been noted. Unfortunately the rules governing adoption in South Africa do not apply here in Zimbabwe and therefore your daughter cannot freely contact you. The system here is that both parties involved in the application for contact should be adults. (NOTE: The same applies to South Africa - see The Law and You)

Our officers would then present the wish by the applying party (the bmother) to the second party (the adoptee) who can accept it or refuse any contact. If the latter, the case has to be shelved and the applicant is advised accordingly. However, if willing, the necessary counselling is done on both parties who will have to put in writing their wish to contact each other for the Director of Social Welfare to finally endorse or reject the application.

Therefore in your case, this office will have to wait until your daughter turns 18 and then the proceedings will be initiated.(the bmother, in her original letter, clearly stated the child's date of birth but overestimated the mathematical powers of the authorities, and omitted to point out that the child was, at the time of writing the letter, 18 years of age.)

signed for DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL WELFARE

Letter dated 19 October 1990
Dear Mrs X

Thank you for your letter of 21 September 1990. Now that you have advised us that your adopted daughter is already an adult, our district office has been requested to initiate efforts to try and trace her and the adoptive parents. However, as you are aware of the changes that have taken place in Zimbabwe, and the long time which has lapsed since your daughter was adopted, the chances of being successful are 50-50

Meanwhile, although from your letter one is convinced that you are psychologically and emotionally ready for the reunion, the normall procedure in such applications has to be followed. We are therefore contacting International Social Services who will approach your country's Ministry of Health and Welfare to give us their relevant opinion and obtain an affadavit from you on your wish. (The bmother was subsequently contacted by a Social Worker in her residential area, interviewed, and signed an affadavit.)

Therefore we now both have to communicate through the International Social Services who are the link between your country's Ministry of Health and Welfare and ourselves.

Yours faithfully

for DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL WELFARE

Nothing further was heard from the Director despite several follow-up letters. The bmother then visited Zimbabwe and "camped" in the Social Welfare offices for most of the day until the files were finally found.

The bmother was advised that her daughter had indeed been contacted but did not wish to take the matter further.

Letter dated 17 May 1997
Dear Mrs X

re: Tracing of Natural Daughter by Natural Mother

While we appreciate your efforts to re-examine the view of contacting your daughter, we have not received your daughter's desire to contact you since you made your application for this in October 1991.

We shall however contact you as soon as she reconsiders her stand to establish contact with you as we have your current address

We hope your natural daugher will one day want to reunite with you and the rest of the members of the family (there are two siblings living with the bmother).

Yours sincerely
for DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL WELFARE

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