“When a family member goes missing, you can’t just go on,” remarks Arun Dohle, who met his birth mother after a search of 17 years, when asked about the urge to look for his biological roots.  Despite a reunion, it remains a tragic story at heart, says Dohle, who is the Founder-Director of Against Child Trafficking (ACT), a globally recognised non profit that works to prevent child trafficking for intercountry adoption, and Adoptee Rights Council (ARC), which helps other Indian adoptees trace their roots. Born in India in 1973 and adopted as an infant by a German couple, he started his search in India for his roots in 1993, finally being reunited with his mother in 2010, after a landmark Supreme Court case granted him access to the records. Here, he talks about how adoption can mask global child trafficking, his efforts in uncovering the facade of “saving children” at the highest levels along with whistleblower Roelie Post, and the conflict between privacy rights of the birth mother and an adoptee’s right to know. He also mentions the need for supporting single pregnant women institutionally as many, he says, are forced to give up the baby for adoption without consent.Listen in!Timestamps:01:17 Helping Natasha track her birth parents through Adoptee Rights Council05:24 Often no informed consent of mothers during adoption; crime against humanity10:30 Constitutional support for adoptees15:06 A wall of secrecy for adoptee records20:40 Adoption as “modern slavery”, losing their identity23:50 Growing up brown in a white household28:55 Being invited home by his birth mom and her husband33:00 An urge to find his genetic roots37:48 The mothers’ point of view40:30 The EU experience; uncovering the facade of “saving children” internationally01:00:00 The manifesto of Adoptee Rights Council (ARC) & Against Child Trafficking (ACT)01:07:29 Tracing the fathers01:09:35 Meeting extended family; not able to communicate in his mother's languageFollow Anuradha on LinkedIn | Twitter | InstagramEmail: [email protected]: Views and opinions expressed are personal. Listener discretion is advised.

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