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Moderator
on adoptions in Guatemala.
Guatemala - Transition Cases
Joint Council is pleased to confirm that the Hague Permanent Bureau
has now joined with Joint Council, the U.S. Department of State and
others in agreeing that transition cases should be allowed to proceed
to completion without interruption. It is our understanding that the
HPB has now conveyed their revised position to both the Berger
administration and Guatemalan Congress.
Guatemala - 3217 Process
Based on a number of postings and questions regarding the passage of
3217, Joint Council again confirms the passage of bill 3217 by the
Guatemalan Congress on October 3 2007.
Legislative Process
It is our understanding that the majority of bills passed by Congress
require two (2) initial readings into the Congressional record
followed by a third reading, review and vote. In the case of 3217, the
third and final reading was separated into a third reading and vote on
October 3 2007 and a final review and vote on or after November 4
2007.
Amendments
At the time of the final review, each article and amendment separately
will be reviewed/voted upon. In the event that more than 35% of the
articles are amended, the bill would normally be sent back to the
committee for review and approval. However, the committee has already
approved over 60 amendments to 3217. Given that all amendments have
been "pre-approved" by the committee, the number of amendments added
will not impact the status of the bill or the ability of Congress to
vote. The only exception to this would be if the amendments that are
not pre-approved by the committee, exceed 35% of the total number of
articles in 3217.
Joint Council is in the process of obtaining translated versions of
3217 and proposed amendments. Upon our receipt, we will provide an
assessment of 3217 and the proposed amendments. Please know that this
is not a speedy process and may take a number of days to complete.
Joint Council will attempt to post our assessment as soon as is
possible.