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Madonna doesn’t rule out second adoption
From Deborah Haynes
LONDON—Madonna
said she would not rule out adopting another child but first wanted to
spend time with her new baby, David Banda from Malawi in Africa.
The U.S. pop sensation also said she wanted the adoption laws in the
impoverished continent to be changed to help millions of other children
escape a life of suffering. Speaking to the BBC television in an
interview broadcast on Wednesday night, Madonna said she was stunned
that her decision to adopt 1-year-old David caused such a worldwide
uproar.
“It was quite shocking and there’s no way I could have prepared myself
for it,” the singer told Newsnight, the BBC’s nightly current affairs
program. Asked whether she would like to adopt another child, Madonna,
48, said: “I wouldn’t rule it out. I would like it to not be as
complicated in the future, but I would just like to experience David for
a while and see how that works out first.”
David shot to worldwide fame after he was plucked from an orphanage,
where he had been left by his father, and flown to Madonna’s London
mansion to live with her, her British film director husband Guy Ritchie
and her two children — daughter Lourdes, 10, and son Rocco, 6. The chart
topper said she and Ritchie, had talked about adopting for two years.
She became interested in Malawi, a southern African country hit hard by
AIDS, and decided to fund a documentary about the plight of children
there. Earlier this year, while watching footage for the film, Madonna
said she first spotted David and many other youngsters at the orphanage
and felt an instant connection.
The pop star insisted, however, that she did not use her celebrity
status to speed up the adoption process for the boy. “I can assure you
that I was not given any special treatment,” she said, stressing that
for now she had only been granted an interim adoption so was technically
a foster parent.
Malawian child rights groups, accusing the government of breaking the
law in granting the interim order to a non-resident, are challenging the
process in court. Final approval for the adoption order is expected in
18 months. Madonna said she would like to see better adoption
regulations in Africa to help orphans find new homes.
“I would like to get the adoption laws changed because I consider what
is going on in Africa a state of emergency,” she said. “When you have an
entire adult population wiped out and no one to look after these
children, you’ve got to address the laws and make adoption easier for
people.” |