Jolie enters debate on Madonna's adoption

Actors Angelina Jolie, left, and Brad Pitt arrive at the premiere of 'God Grew Tired of Us' in West Hollywood, Calif., on Monday, Jan. 8, 2007. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)

PARIS: Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie has said she was shocked by attacks on Madonna over her adoption of a Malawian boy, but said she would only take a child from a country where the rules on adoption are clearly defined.

Madonna's adoption of the boy last year led some right groups in Malawi to question whether the American pop star had used her celebrity to bypass laws governing the adoption of Malawians by foreigners – an argument denied by her lawyers.

"I was horrified by the attacks against her," Jolie, who has two adopted children herself, told French magazine Gala.

But Jolie added that she would have steered clear of adoption from a country like Malawi.

"Madonna knew the situation in Malawi ... In this country, there is not really a legal framework for adopting. Personally, I prefer staying on the right side of the law. I would never bring back a child from a country where adoption is illegal."

Jolie and actor Brad Pitt have formed one of Hollywood's most glamorous families with baby daughter Shiloh, adopted Ethiopian daughter Zahara and adopted Cambodian son Maddox.

Madonna signed interim adoption papers for one-year old David Banda when she and her husband, film director Guy Ritchie, visited Malawi in October on what they said was a humanitarian mission to help orphans in the southern African nation.

David Banda, whose mother had died, was living in an orphanage and his father – who initially voiced some questions about the process – later said he supported it.

Under the interim order, David Banda was to stay with Madonna for 18 months during which time his progress would be monitored by Malawian officials before deciding whether final approval may be given for him to remain with her family.