Adoption agencies that knowingly bring in children of suspect origin will be taken to task: Goh Pei Ming

SINGAPORE – Adoption agencies have to do due diligence on the children that they bring into Singapore, and those that knowingly bring in children of suspicious origin will be dealt with, said Minister of State for Social and Family Development Goh Pei Ming in Parliament on Jan 14.

He was responding to recent reports about an alleged Indonesian trafficking ring which sent babies to Singapore.

Mr Goh said adoption agencies here operate on a commercial basis, but the Government has guidelines on what constitutes their due diligence.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) said on Jan 9 that the Singapore and Indonesian governments are working together to review allegations surrounding the trafficking ring.

The affected adoptive parents have faced some delays in the processing of citizenship applications for the children due to the ongoing investigations, and MSF and the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority have been engaging them, said the ministries.

“If we do uncover that agencies are aware that the children they’re bringing in are of unknown and suspicious origin, and despite so bring them in, they will be taken to task,” said Mr Goh, who is also Minister of State for Home Affairs.

Workers’ Party MP Sylvia Lim (Aljunied GRC) had asked how many approved adoptions are under further review, and how MSF is helping affected families obtain clarity and resolution quickly.

Asking for an indication of the timeline of investigations, she said she has constituents affected by this situation.

“They have already been caring for these babies for more than a year, and this uncertainty is a torture to them,” she added.

She asked if MSF officers or its partners could have discovered suspicious circumstances before adoption orders were given.

Mr Goh said MSF cannot comment on the number of adoption cases currently under review or the investigation timeline. But the ministry is trying to “proceed as expeditiously as possible” given that it involves not just Singapore but also the Indonesian authorities.

Mr Goh said there are processes to make sure agencies abide by procedures ensuring the babies are of “the correct origin (and) appropriate sources”.

He noted that all adoption agencies operate on a commercial basis. “Therefore the onus is on adoptive parents to try their best and ensure that children are identified, matched and placed in accordance with the prevailing laws of both Singapore as well as the child’s origin country.”

To this, Ms Lim asked if Mr Goh meant there is nothing more the agencies can do to prevent such cases from re-occurring, and what more adoptive parents can do.

In response, Mr Goh said the authorities will take action against agencies which knowingly bring in children of suspect origin.

There may also be cases where the agencies did not know what had happened in the child’s country of origin, he added.

Ms Lim asked if child-raising expenses for affected families can be calculated on a Singaporean child basis, as their children’s citizenship applications are on hold due to the investigations.

Mr Goh said adoption and citizenship processes are governed by different legal frameworks and policy considerations. “The granting of citizenship is not automatic following the adoption order, and we also inform them that the citizenship process can take up to 12 months,” he added.

MHA and MSF had previously said that they are “keenly aware of the anxiety that the situation has caused to the adoptive parents”, and that families who require financial support in the interim period can approach a social service office for assistance.

Reports of the alleged trafficking ring surfaced in July 2025, after the West Java police arrested 13 people suspected of trafficking dozens of newborn babies to Singapore through an illegal adoption network.

The West Java police in July reportedly identified 22 suspects accused of trafficking at least 25 babies, with 15 allegedly sent to Singapore under the guise of adoption. Investigations by the West Java police found that each infant was sold for about $20,000 – an amount that covered delivery costs, infant care and profit.