Baby boxes have opened in two Canadians hospitals, bringing to three the number of places where mothers can anonymously drop off unwanted infants. The first baby box was set up in the western city of Vancouver in 2010. Three months later, a two-day old baby was left accompanied by a paper listing the date of birth, ethnicity and family history. No other child has been left there since.
Two “angel cradles” have since been created in the western city of Edmonton. Half-sized doors at waist level open from the outside to reveal a bassinet with a blanket and teddy bear. An alarm goes off 30 seconds after the door opens giving a person time to leave and to be guaranteed anonymity.
Those in favour of baby boxes think they can prevent infanticide or dangerous abandonment of infants. Those against think they deprive a child of its right to know its biological parents’ identities.
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child called for a ban on baby boxes in 2012.
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