Reuters AlertNet Full site
Homepage | Newsdesk | NGO Latest | Crisis briefings | Country profiles | MediaWatch | Jobs | Alerting | Login

NEWSDESK

Madonna seeks delay in Malawi adoption case-lawyer
19 Apr 2008 07:16:04 GMT
 Source: Reuters
BLANTYRE, April 19 (Reuters) - U.S. pop star Madonna has asked a Malawian court to delay a hearing to finalise her adoption of a boy from the southern African nation, a lawyer close to the case said.

The singer's law firm in Malawi filed an application requesting the High Court in Lilongwe to hear her adoption of David Banda on May 15 instead of April 22, as originally scheduled, the lawyer said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Madonna's need to travel to the United States for business reasons was cited as the reason for the delay, the lawyer said.

Court officials refused to confirm the application.

"Adoption is a confidential matter and we separate adoption files from the regular case files," Thomson Ligowe, assistant registrar in the High Court, told Reuters.

Malawi's government recommended earlier this month that the court approve the adoption of Banda.

The pop diva met the boy in an orphanage in 2006 and began adoption proceedings soon after. He has been living with Madonna and her film director husband Guy Ritchie in London since shortly after the adoption process began.

The adoption has been controversial, with critics accusing the government of skirting laws that ban non-residents from adopting children in Malawi, one of the countries in Africa hardest hit by AIDS.

The epidemic has left an estimated one million orphans in the country. (Reporting by Frank Phiri; Editing by Paul Simao and Caroline Drees)


AlertNet news is provided by
Email this article       Send comments

NGO latest

•  NRC launches report: turning the blind eye on Western Sahara
NRC - Norway

•  Direct Relief International Recognizes World TB Day 2008
DRI - USA

•  New funding opportunities for civil society to tackle HIV
International HIV/AIDS Alliance - UK

MORE >>

Latest news

•  Madonna seeks delay in Malawi adoption case-lawyer

•  INTERVIEW-Moroccan activist, 72, expects to return to jail

•  Arab world sees U.S. in poor light, poll shows

•  Mideast can avert impending water crisis-World Bank

•  Mauritania forces battle Islamists,escapee said dead

MORE >>

AlertNet news is provided by

Related articles

Breaking stories
Madonna seeks delay in Malawi adoption case-lawyer (1 minute ago)

INTERVIEW-Moroccan activist, 72, expects to return to jail (1 minute ago)

AlertNet insight
MEDIAWATCH: Women's Day, a time to grieve, a time to be inspired (1 minute ago)

Aid agency news feed
NRC launches report: turning the blind eye on Western Sahara (1 minute ago)

Blogs
Seven security barriers you might want to know about (1 minute ago)

Maps
MAP: Global flood locations week ending March 4 ,2008 (1 minute ago)


Country information

Facts & figures
Morocco

Del.icio.us Del.icio.us  |   Digg Digg  |   NewsVine NewsVine  |   Reddit Reddit   
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-04-15T010629Z_01_RFM08_RTRIDSP_2_SPAIN-MOROCCO-SMUGGLING_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/RFM08.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-04-15T010613Z_01_RFM06_RTRIDSP_2_SPAIN-MOROCCO-SMUGGLING_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/RFM06.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-04-15T010603Z_01_RFM05_RTRIDSP_2_SPAIN-MOROCCO-SMUGGLING_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/RFM05.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-04-15T010548Z_01_RFM07_RTRIDSP_2_SPAIN-MOROCCO-SMUGGLING_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/RFM07.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-04-15T010539Z_01_RFM02_RTRIDSP_2_SPAIN-MOROCCO-SMUGGLING_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/RFM02.htm

Moroccan men wait at the border between Spain and Morocco in Ceuta January 31, 2008. Illegal migrants see Spain's enclaves in Morocco as gateways to a better life in Europe, but ...


More pictures | Galleries
Disclaimers |  Copyright |  Privacy |  Contact Us |  Feedback |  About Us |  RSS XML

Last updated:Sat Apr 19 07:13:30 2008