The latest news on the ongoing Madonna adoption saga is that, according to more than one news agency, the singer's staff were seen at Malawi airport, boarding a small private plane with the baby she's hoping to adopt. Madonna and husband Guy Ritchie, as previously reported, left the country on Friday after being granted an interim order to allow them to take custody of the child, David Banda.
Meanwhile, Madonna's people have at last released a statement confirming the interim order, and explaining that for the course of the next eighteen months, she and Ritchie "will be evaluated by the courts of Malawi per the tribal customs of the country" before a permanent adoption is finalised. The statement adds that David has now been issued with a visa and passport and that "it is expected that the family will be reunited within the next few days".
As previously reported, Malawian human rights groups had intended to go to court yesterday to seek an injunction to halt the process, but have deferred the move for the present time, pending further investigation into the case - chair of the Human Rights Consultative Committee Justin Dzodzi said his organisation was sending personnel to the village where David had lived to "get a feel of what the villagers and relatives feel about the adoption", and added "part of our legal action is dependent on getting some disgruntled people to swear affidavits."
Malawian law, of course, disallows adoption by non-residents, but Madonna has been granted an exemption from this rule. The aforementioned human rights groups had claimed that the government had ignored the laws and basically used shortcuts to speed up the adoption, accusations which officials refute. On the singer's appearance in court last week, Penston Kilembe, of the Ministry Of Gender, Child Welfare and Community Services, said "The process did not start today - Madonna's people have been pushing the papers for some time and her coming was just to sign the papers to conclude the process."