15/10/2021
The government at Westminster and the Scottish Government are both to hold formal enquiries into one of the most explosive scandals ever to involve the NHS, the nursing profession and social workers – namely, the forced adoption of thousands of babies who were born to unmarried women during the period between 1948 and 1975. BBC Radio Four reports that ministers believe that the scandal may have involved tens of thousands of young women, whose only crime was to have a child out of wedlock. The outrageous practice of forcing these women to give up their own flesh and blood for adoption involved the coercive apparatus of the state in all its viciousness. One woman told the BBC how she was left wounded, with no pain relief or stitches after delivery, whilst the NHS staff went about taking her child away for adoption. Refusal of pain medication appears to have been a common tactic to compel women to agree to the state's wishes. Committee chair Harriet Harman says it is a matter that affects the human rights of thousands of women, as well as their children.