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Madonna wins bid to adopt Mercy from Malawi
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Madonna visits a local village in Malawi. (Getty Images)
Malawi's highest court ruled Friday that Madonna may adopt 4-year-old Chifundo "Mercy" James. In April, a lower court had denied the adoption request on grounds that Madonna had not established residence in the country, a law that is intended to keep Malawian orphans in Malawi.
James Kambewa, a Malawian man who claims to be Mercy's biological father, told CBS news last month:
I'm crying. I need my baby. I don't know where I can find any help."
But he did not appear in court to try to stop the adoption.
Chief Justice Lovemore Munlo said Friday that the lower court's ruling had applied the residency law too narrowly:
... In this global village a man can have more than one place at which he resides. The matter of residence should be determined at the time of application of the adoption. In this case, Madonna was in Malawi not by chance but by intention. She is looking after several orphans whose welfare depends on her. She can therefore not be described as a sojourner."
Shortly after the ruling, Madonna's Malawian lawyer Alan Chinula said:
My client has been awake all night waiting for this. She was ecstatic when I broke the news to her. She said, ‘Thank heavens.' "
Madonna said in a statement Friday morning:
I am extremely grateful for the Supreme Court's ruling on my application to adopt Mercy James. I am ecstatic. ... My family and I look forward to sharing our lives with her."
We wish the entire family well.
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