Tamuna Museridze, a Georgian journalist, spent eight years searching for her birth parents after discovering she was adopted. She set up a Facebook page to not only find her own birth family but also help other adopted children reunite with theirs. Through her search, she uncovered a baby trafficking scandal in Georgia that had affected thousands of families. For over thirty years, parents were told that their babies had died at birth when, in reality, they had been trafficked on the black market. Tamuna’s Facebook group helped reunite several families, but she struggled to find her own.
After discovering a birth certificate with her name but a different birth date while clearing her mother’s house after her death, Tamuna suspected she was adopted. A message on Facebook this summer suggested she may have been born to a woman who concealed her pregnancy and gave birth around the same time Tamuna was born. However, when Tamuna tried to contact her birth mother, the woman denied ever having a child. Through a Facebook appeal, she discovered that a woman who claimed to be her aunt was actually her mother. A DNA test confirmed their relationship, and Tamuna learned the name of her father, Gurgen Korava.
Despite initially struggling to make contact with her biological mother, Tamuna eventually met her father, Gurgen, who had been following her story and trying to find her for three years. Upon meeting, Gurgen immediately recognized Tamuna as his daughter, and they discovered they had many similar interests. Tamuna learned that her parents had a brief relationship, and he was unaware of her existence until they reunited. She also got to know her new family, including half-siblings, aunts, and uncles. A private meeting set up by a Police TV company allowed Tamuna to finally meet her birth mother, who revealed that Tamuna was not a victim of the baby trafficking scandal.
Tamuna’s birth mother had traveled to Tblisi under the guise of a surgery to give birth to her and stayed in the city until the adoption was arranged. She asked Tamuna to lie and claim they were both victims of the trafficking scandal, but Tamuna refused, feeling it would be unfair to the parents of the stolen babies. This led to a rift between them, and they have not spoken since. Despite the emotional turmoil, Tamuna was able to reunite with her birth family and learn more about her origins. She also gained closure by meeting her birth mother, even though their relationship remains strained.
Through her own search for her birth family, Tamuna helped uncover a baby trafficking scandal in Georgia that had been ongoing for decades. Despite facing challenges and emotional turmoil, she was able to reunite with her biological parents and discover more about her past. While her birth mother had originally asked her to lie and claim they were both victims of the trafficking scandal, Tamuna chose to stand up for the truth and not deceive the families who had actually been affected. This experience has allowed her to connect with her new family, including her father, and come to terms with her identity as an adopted child.
