内容摘要：Kenneth Barthel, who was adopted by a single parent in Hawaii at 6 years old, is hugged by his wife, Napela, at the Sisters of Mary in Busan, South Korea, May 17, 2024. In the foreground, Sister Bulkeia, left, and Paek Kyeong-mi from Global Overseas Adoptees’ Link discuss a flyer designed to uncover the details of Barthel’s early life and find his birth family. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Kenneth Barthel, who was adopted by a single parent in Hawaii at 6 years old, is hugged by his wife, Napela, at the Sisters of Mary in Busan, South Korea, May 17, 2024. In the foreground, Sister Bulkeia, left, and Paek Kyeong-mi from Global Overseas Adoptees’ Link discuss a flyer designed to uncover the details of Barthel’s early life and find his birth family. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

One of the penitentiaries the AP visited was Tacumbú, the largest prison in Paraguay, which authorities raided nine months ago in an effort to regain control from the Rotela clan — a gang that has extended its presence onto Paraguay’s streets and into some of its prisons.The police operation ended with a dozen people dead, several injured and the relocation of 700 inmates to other lockups.

Inside the prison, cells designed to hold five inmates hold more than 15. Prisoners often sleep on thin mattresses on the floor and hang towels in an attempt at privacy. They look for ways to spend their time.The facilities the AP visited were minimum-security prisons, so inmates interact more freely. But for those who break the rules, there are cells in an isolated area where they are held without visitors.Inside “El Buen Pastor,” or Good Shepherd, female prison, things look cleaner and less crowded than in the men’s facilities.

Security guards work at a checkpoint inside the Buen Pastor women’s prison in Asuncion, Paraguay, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)Security guards work at a checkpoint inside the Buen Pastor women’s prison in Asuncion, Paraguay, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

Any given day, in prisons like Tacumbú, there are stretching sessions in open areas or religious ceremonies. Some inmates play soccer while others prefer bingo. Some try to earn money and shine the guards shoes for 30 cents.

There are no dining areas, so inmates eat in their cells or in hallways. On cold days, prisoners are allowed to make a fire in the patios to keep warm.The flag of South Korea is displayed at the Overseas Korean Adoptees Gathering in Seoul, South Korea, May 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

The flag of South Korea is displayed at the Overseas Korean Adoptees Gathering in Seoul, South Korea, May 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)Korean adoptees have organized, and now they help those coming along behind them. Non-profit groups conduct DNA testing. Sympathetic residents, police officers and city workers of the towns where they once lived often try to assist them. Sometimes adoption agencies are able to track down birth families.

Nearly four decades after her adoption to the U.S., Nicole Motta in May sat across the table from a 70-year-old man her adoption agency had identified as her birth father. She typed “thanks for meeting me today” into a translation program on her phone to show him. A social worker placed hair samples into plastic bags for DNA testing.But the moment they hugged, Motta, adopted to the United States in 1985, didn’t need the results — she knew she’d come from this man.