THE BABY who was in the midst of a controversy for weeks have finally been reconciled with his biological mother Roberta Browne after Child Care and Protection Agency (CHA) Head, Ann Green asked the woman who was in possession of the child, to hand him over yesterday.The 22-year-old mother was extremely happy and smiling with her baby in her own hands when Guyana Chronicle caught up with her at the West Bank Demerara Bus Park in Georgetown yesterday. The baby was handed over around 15:00 hrs.

She and her aunts Suzette Browne and Doreen Chilcott were the ones who travelled to Georgetown to meet with Green at her office, where the baby was handed over to his cried-out mother, whose eyes were puffy and red from crying.
With laughter and smiles, the woman said, “I feel great. I feel happy”. She said though her last son had been away from her about 14 days, she plans to breastfeed him since she believes it is the better choice.
Yesterday she registered the child with the name Anthony Browne, and plans to visit her local health clinic today for a clinic date to ensure he is vaccinated with his BCG.
Caroline Marcus, the woman who had custody of the baby, was ordered to hand over the infant to his own mother, but Browne’s aunt Suzette Browne is now tasked with overseeing that the young mother cares all three of her children.
NO ALTERNATIVE
Suzette Browne told Chronicle that Green told Marcus, “By right the child deserve his own biological mother. She had no alternative but to give back the baby to his mother. They give her custody but they put me to make sure that she take care of the child and make sure that we support her,” she added.
Meanwhile, Green told the Chronicle that the agency had completed its investigations into the matter and was pleased to find out that the child had not been sold or trafficked, and based on its findings it had been able to conclude that the mother was the rightful custodian.
“We have done our investigation. I just want people to understand that we had to investigate because we had to find out if the baby was sold or what. Persons don’t just give away a baby! You can give away your phone or your shoes or whatever, but you can’t give away a baby!” Green said.
She said after receiving complaints that a baby was involved in such controversy, her agency was responsible for investigating to see if the child had been sold or if there was a case of trafficking.
“We had to look to see if there was any exploitation! So we had to intervene and find out really what was going on with the baby,” she explained.
She said her officers did ground work while she herself had two counselling sessions with the family.
SUPPORT
Green said her agency understood that the young mother had some issues and had pledged to work with her, ensuring that she got the help she needed.
“The relatives are coming and they’re prepared now to give her the support. Yes, we gave the mother the child, but an aunt is taking the responsibility. She has given us an undertaking here that she will support the mother to help to ensure that the baby is safe .…We will also be working with the mother and the family … but in the end we think that was the better way.”
She said no party was left without understanding the child’s right as the woman who had possession of the baby also understood “that people can’t just give away a baby. There is a procedure. If a woman feels that she cannot care for her child she could contact us and it can be done in a right way. We will see what could be done. We will keep the baby in foster care for six months (and) give you a chance. That wasn’t the right way! So she understands.”
She said the mother of the child could have been experiencing post-partum depression when she handed the child over and as such she also needs mental support.
“In this case this child needs the opportunity to be with his biological family and we are here to provide the support. We will be keeping a lookout for this child because it was brought to our attention, so we will be following to ensure that this child is well looked-after and there’s no way that he’s gonna be any part of any scheme or anything or being exploited.”

By Shauna Jemmott