Historical wrong: When 60,000 unmarried mothers were forced to give babies up for adoption

Scottish women who were pushed into giving up their children are calling for an official apology from their government. 

Between the 1950s and 1980s, an estimated 60,000 mothers in Scotland were forced to put their babies up for adoption because they were unmarried. 

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When they became pregnant, many of the ladies were unmarried teenagers who gave birth in church-run "mother and baby homes" in the United Kingdom. 

Some of the women have said that they have been persuaded to feel shame and guilt in recent years. 

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In the postwar years, religious groups in the UK managed 150 mother-and-baby shelters before the major responsibility for arranging adoptions was transferred from voluntary organisations to local government in 1976. 

A petition for a public investigation was denied by the Scottish government in 2017, citing "insufficient justification." 

Monica Lennon, a Scottish politician, has called on the Scottish government to apologise to all people who have been affected.

"60,000 mothers who were victims of forced adoption in Scotland over the course of three decades should get a formal apology to help them heal from the "cruel injustice," said Scottish politician. 

(With inputs from agencies)