Last week, a friend from Switzerland sent me an article she had read in a magazine. She was deeply upset and asked if I knew about it. I didn’t. But after everything we have learned in the past decade about so-called philanthropy, can I still be surprised?
Yes, I can.
Every time I learn something new about how people treat children, I’m shocked to my core. What kind of beings are we, that we can harm the offspring of our own species for profit? Even animals do not behave this way. They do not deliberately harm, abandon, trade, or exploit their young.
Humans, apparently, do.
This article outlines allegations involving the trafficking of children connected to the organisation Terre des Hommes. Children were reportedly brought to Switzerland and used as subjects for medical experimentation, including procedures designed to advance open-heart surgery techniques.
These children were treated as expendable—many without parents to protect them. Under the guise of rescue or adoption, they were transported and placed into quarantine before meeting adoptive families. During this period, medical testing was conducted.
In addition, children from war zones were brought to Switzerland without adoptive families waiting. Whether they required treatment remains unclear. What is clear is that some underwent invasive procedures, reportedly to allow doctors to practice surgical techniques. It raises a disturbing question: were children from less developed regions used where Western children were not?
The original article sits behind a paywall. However, given its publication, the contents have been translated and shared with credit to the original research. The world should know how it treats its children.
Published on April 1, 2026
“They will never know who their biological parents are. They don’t know if they have siblings. And what Swiss hospital doctors did to them as babies can no longer be found in any records.”
Béatrice, Anne, and Ilona are among nearly 2,000 children placed in Switzerland between 1964 and 1979. Adopted from Korea and India, they were meant to bring joy to childless families. Instead, allegations suggest they were subjected to medical interventions without transparency or consent.
Their identities were often altered. Names changed. Birth dates adjusted. Histories erased.
In her Korean adoption documents, Béatrice Aubert is called Kim Yung Hee. “My name is made up,” she said. Her biological parents remain unknown.
Anne d’Angelo does not know her exact birth date. Official records list a date chosen by her adoptive father.
Ilona Wyrsch’s age was altered in official records, and even before her departure, doctors had identified a heart abnormality.
A veil of uncertainty surrounds the first days these children spent in Switzerland. What is documented, however, is that they were taken directly from Geneva Airport to hospitals.
They were not met by adoptive parents. Instead, they were placed into quarantine.
All children arriving under Terre des Hommes were reportedly quarantined—regardless of their health. Authorities who would normally oversee such measures were reportedly not involved.
Béatrice Aubert, documented as healthy prior to travel, was nevertheless transferred directly to hospital care for seven days.
Anne d’Angelo recalls being taken immediately to Geneva Children’s Hospital. She does not know what treatments she received.
Ilona Wyrsch spent three weeks in hospital care across multiple facilities. Records confirm her admission, but not what occurred during that time.
Records indicate that at least ten hospitals across western Switzerland were involved in receiving these children.
However, patient files and medical records from this period are largely missing.
Hospitals contacted in later investigations often stated they no longer possessed records or could not locate archives. This leaves a significant gap in understanding what took place during quarantine periods.
Scientific studies conducted in recent years have uncovered troubling evidence.
A 2024 study analysing Indian adoptions revealed hospital discharge reports documenting extensive testing on children shortly after arrival. These included:
Researchers concluded that some of these procedures formed part of pharmacological testing programs.
Decades later, key questions remain:
Terre des Hommes has acknowledged the need for further historical review but has not provided definitive answers.
Some adoptees now speak openly:
“We weren’t rescued; it was human trafficking.”
“My parents bought me.”
We measure our humanity by how we treat our children—the children of the world.
On that measure, we still have a long way to go.
With love, as always,
Cyntha
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By Independent News Roundup