There is no reliable data on the number of children who have been or are being adopted as a result of being sold, trafficked or subjected to other illegal acts and illicit practices. Firstly, reliable figures are difficult to establish owing to the illicit and clandestine nature of those activities. Secondly, illegal adoptions can appear legal since many of the children concerned receive, at some point in the process, "official" adoption papers.
Legal status
Non-negotiated soft law
Body
Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, including child prostitution, child pornography and other child sexual abuse material