Madonna [ tickets ]'s attempted adoption of four-year-old orphan Chifundo "Mercy" James was denied by the presiding judge in a Malawian court Friday (4/3), according to published reports.

Judge Esmie Chondo ruled in the closed-door hearing in the country's capital of Lilongwe that allowing the adoption could expose the nation's children to the threat of human traffickers, according to an AFP report. The pop icon reportedly was not present at the hearing, and her attorney made no comments as he left the courthouse.

"By removing the very safeguard that is supposed to protect our children, the courts by the pronouncements could actually facilitate trafficking of children by some unscrupulous individuals," Judge Chondo explained in a statement.

The rules for adoption in Malawi call for the applicant to be a resident of the country for a minimum of 18 months, a requirement which was waived for Madonna's 2006 adoption of now three-year-old Malawian David Banda.

The refusal came as a pleasant surprise to some 85 organizations that lobbied against the celebrity adoption, including the child rights group Eye of the Child.

"If Madonna is concerned with the plight of orphans, she must demonstrate that by investing in more projects that would care for the children in their own environment," Maxwell Matewere, the organization's head, told AFP.

To that end, The Material Girl reportedly already has set up a charity called Raising Malawi, which provides support for the nation's vulnerable orphans. In Mphandula village, about 30 miles from the nation's capital, Madonna also funded the building of a multi-purpose community center, which looks after more than 8,000 orphans.

The American pop star, who reportedly flew into the African country last Sunday (3/29) with daughter Lourdes and adopted son David Banda, has not yet commented on whether she plans to appeal the ruling.