Angelina Jolie Had No Special Treatment, Agency Insists  3/18/07

Angelina Jolie was not given preferential treatment for her adoption of three-year-old Vietnamese boy Pax Thien, the agency who handled it has vowed.

Jolie and partner Brad Pitt began proceedings in Vietnam last summer (06), US-based agency Adoptions From The Heart has revealed.

The average adoption in Vietnam takes sixth months or longer to go through.

A statement from the agency's Vietnam coordinator Heidi Gonzalez reads:

"Throughout Ms Jolie's adoption process, she received no preferential treatment from the Vietnamese government or Adoptions From The Heart."

Gonzalez also hit out at claims by Vietnam's senior adoption official Vu Doc Long that the adoption was fast-tracked because of Jolie's celebrity status.

She says, "Contrary to earlier reports, her application was not fast-tracked."

And Gonzalez insists Jolie has made no financial commitment to the Ho Chi Minh orphanage Pax was adopted from: "She has neither made, nor promised to make any financial contributions."

Jolie's adoption of Pax will become final once US officials in Hanoi approve paperwork to allow him to travel to America.