Madonna with her children

Madonna, who had applied to Malawian court for a second adoption from the economy starved  African nation, has lost her bid to take home Mercy James. In the closed-door hearing held on Friday, judge Esmie Chondo stated his decision which denied the 50-year-old pop queen the adoption of Mercy James from the same orphanage where she found her first adopted child David. Afterwards, the judge made his ruling public saying ”I must decline to grant the application for the adoption of the infant.“

Madonna had flown to Malawi on Sunday, but she did not appear in court to hear the ruling. Her lawyer said that she will soon lodge an appeal. Madonna´s application was rejected over residency rules. Malawian law requires a foreign adopter to live in the country for 18 to 24 months before applying for adoption. However, the law was overlooked in 2006 when Madonna was allowed to take David to London with her much before the adoption was finalized in 2008. If Mercy James had been given to Madonna, she would have been sister to the diva´s first adopted child David and her biological children Lourdes and Rocco,

After the ruling was declared, the judge said outside the court ”By removing the very safeguard that is supposed to protect our children, the courts by their pronouncements could actually facilitate trafficking of children by some unscrupulous individuals.”  She also added that Mercy (whose real name is Chifundo) is one of the best orphanages in Malawi, and doesn not have to endure the poverty she was in immediately after her birth.

In the court papers just released, Madonna has stated that she was “able and willing to securely provide for Chifundo James and make her a permanent and established member of my family…To deny Chifundo James the opportunity to be adopted by me could expose her to hardship and emotional trauma which is otherwise avoidable.¨