Madonna

Pop star Madonna, after learning that her bid to adopt a little girl from Malawi had been denied, yesterday announced that she would donate money to help victims of this week’s earthquake in Italy where more than 200 people died, and thousands lost their homes.

Madonna’s paternal grandparents lived in the village of Pacento in the city of L’Aquila, which is close to the 6.3 magnitude earthquake epicenter. Though the exact monetary figure is unknown, the donation is said to be in the range of £250,000, or $500,000 U.S.

Earlier in the week, the pop star’s request to adopt a child from the African nation of Malawi was denied on a legal technicality. The judge denied the petition due to Madonna’s not having lived in Malawi for 18 to 24 months ahead of the adoption. The judge also expressed concern that allowing Madonna to bypass the residency rule could have the unwanted effect of facilitating trafficking of children by wealthy but unscrupulous people.

Madonna’s lawyer, Alan Chinula, announced shortly thereafter that he had filed an appeal with the Malawi government to allow the adoption of 3-year-old Mercy James to continue. In 2006, Madonna and her husband Guy Ritchie, from whom she is now divorced, adopted David Banda who is now 3. At that time there was also some controversy that the rules were being bent to favor someone with wealth and celebrity status.