How wonderful is this

This was in the Associated Press a couple days ago China opens registrations to adopt quake orphans 2 days ago BEIJING (AP) — Eighty-eight children who were orphaned after a massive earthquake struck central China earlier this year have been made eligible for adoption, state media reported. The orphans have been deemed eligible for adoption from Sichuan province, the China News Service said. Chinese authorities began processing registrations Monday. The children are among the survivors of China's worst natural disaster in a generation — the May 12 earthquake that killed 70,000 people and left 5 million homeless. There were 532 children left unaccompanied after the quake, according to an official count, the report said. The eligible orphans are 14 or younger, with some suffering from physical or other disabilities, the report said. It did not say if the disabilities resulted from the quake. Calls to the Sichuan government's office for adoptions were not answered Monday. The news agency said the children were deemed eligible for expedited adoption because both of their parents are known to have died, and because they have expressed a wish to be adopted. Other children whose parents are missing must wait a period of two years for the parents to be declared dead before they can be adopted, the report said. Adoption applications are not open to foreigners, including residents of the Chinese territories of Hong Kong and Macau and Taiwanese citizens, the report said. Applicants must be at least 30 years old, childless, and must prove they can support a child's education and provide emotional comfort. Successful applicants will be notified in about a week's time, the report said. The Civil Affairs Ministry said earlier this year that people nationwide had shown a huge interest in adopting quake orphans, with 10,000 families registering for adoption in one province alone. An official indicated the ministry could give priority to parents who lost children in the quake.