Child Removal Cases - is it a hoax?

[duckfish]

I heard there were many cases of children being removed from their families by social services, but I mostly read about them on website with different topics including alien abductions, 9/11 conspiration theories, and others. I did not find much about such cases in standard wide-spread media, and I ran into only a few reports with solid sources. So the question for folks in Finland is, how serious is this? Is it a hoax to scare foreigners to the level they will not come, or is it quite common that children are being taken and "sold" to foster families?

[jahasjahas]

There are a few people with a Putinist agenda that claim that Finnish social workers routinely "steal" children from Russian immigrant mothers. This is obviously nonsense.

The most famous and saddest recent case related to your question is actually the exact opposite. A little girl was asphyxiated to death by her father and stepmother after years of abuse. Child protection services had failed to take her away from them despite numerous reports and warnings. The heavy criticism they received might make some workers think "better safe than sorry" in some cases.

I guess it would be fair to say that all officials make some bad decisions now and then, but there are no obvious signs of systematic wrongdoing.

[Upphew]

So the question for folks in Finland is, how serious is this? Is it a hoax to scare foreigners to the level they will not come, or is it quite common that children are being taken and "sold" to foster families?

http://www.thl.fi/en/web/thlfi-en/stati ... ildwelfare

[Upphew]

I guess it would be fair to say that all officials make some bad decisions now and then, but there are no obvious signs of systematic wrongdoing.

It might be problematic when people come from culture where physical correction is norm, not crime.

[onkko]

I heard there were many cases of children being removed from their families by social services

2012 there were 10 675 "removed childens" whom 3 944 were urgent cases. Source, finnish goverment.

If you cant take care of your child (provide healthy enviroment), physically or mentally harm him/her or let him/her harm him/herself and "open help" isnt enough then social services, by law, have to take children away.
Its all about childrens right to healthy life. Childrens right overrides parents wishes.

[duckfish]

Thanks for your comments, they were helpful.