France is the last European country to ban DNA testing for genealogical purposes. This obstacle did not discourage François who wanted to know more about his origins. He tells us about his discovery.
In France, DNA tests are very regulated. An individual does not have the right to freely purchase a genetic test kit to discover their origins or verify paternity, as we see in other European countries. However, in reality, many people order DNA tests online to find out more about their genealogical history. This is the case of François Baduel d’Oustrac whom we met. And carrying out his DNA test gave him quite a discovery…
François Baduel d’Oustrac was born in Paris in 1974 at the works of Belleville, to an anonymous mother and father. He is adopted by a loving and caring family, who does not hide the truth from him. “I always knew I was adopted. It was when my adoptive father died in 2016 that I asked myself why I wouldn’t try to find out more about my birth family.” François Baduel d’Oustrac then requests his file. Little information about her biological mother appears there, apart from her age, a brief physical description and the fact that she studied to be a childcare worker. The idea of doing an online DNA test is emerging.
It is very simple to do because it is very well explained. It is enough to take two saliva samples. Once sent, the results are communicated after approximately one month. “I had no particular concerns. Before taking the test, I prepared myself for the best and the worst. I was ready to receive both positive and negative, while respecting the past decision of my natural mother.” The results are presented in the form of DNA matches in a database, with more or less strong accounts between 2 people in the database.
“My family told me that I had physical traits from Eastern countries”
The summary is quite difficult to decipher for an average person. To avoid missing anything, François Baduel d’Oustrac called on a genealogist found on the Geneanet.org site. “I had small correspondences with people, some of whom lived in the United States or Poland. Besides, I discovered that I was 50% Polish! wondered François Baduel d’Oustrac. For a very long time, many people in my family told me that I had physical features from Eastern countries, and eventually this assumption turned out to be true. One thing led to another, in about a year, I found my natural father, who died in 2016, like my adoptive father…” Coincidence or chance.
Thanks to classic genealogical research, François identifies his biological father’s family circle and suggests that one of its members carry out a DNA test to confirm their relationship. “It turned out that this person was none other than my first cousin! I also discovered that I had another first cousin as well as an aunt, the sister-in-law of my natural father. The first meeting was extraordinary, I couldn’t have asked for better. We saw each other several times. They showed me photos of my natural father and we noticed that we had common physical characteristics. Through the discussions, I always learned more, as does that he was never cold, like me.”
“They also found out who my natural mother was”
François’ cousins and aunt do not know his natural mother. However, “A month ago, the CNAOP in Paris informed me that they had found her, not thanks to DNA tests, but with the help of a careful investigation and a team with whom I have been working for several years. I know that she lives in France. I have no right to know her identity or to meet her. It is the CNAOP which plays the intermediary between her and me. Perhaps she will never want to meet me. I will respect her choice, because I prepare for it from the start. What matters to me, if I have the chance to meet her one day, is to thank her for giving me my life.
François was able to complete this journey, punctuated by long research and waiting, thanks to the support and encouragement of his family and his future wife, Angélique. It is also on the occasion of their solemn union that his adoptive family will meet his cousins and his aunt. “No one has ever hidden anything from me, I have a very beautiful family history because our relationship has been true from the beginning, without lies.”
Our witness has only one regret: “I would like the French State to change its vision in order to give people like me the chance to have access to a supervised test so that they know their backgrounds and their origins, the very essence of personal identity. For people who want to embark on the adventure, I would like to emphasize the importance of being supported, surrounded and patient. I will tell them not to disrupt their lives, to continue on their path without making promises, to let things evolve, then to react if a discovery surprises them…”
Thanks to François Baduel d’Oustrac for giving us his testimony.
