Peter Baneti, the uncle of three-year-old Mercy James, said the child's Malawian relations were deeply unhappy that the orphan would now miss out on a life of luxury and privilege as part of the 50-year-old singer's extended family.
"We don't understand the judge's reasoning," Mr Baneti, 41, told The Sunday Telegraph in Lilongwe, Malawi's capital.
"We as a family discussed this and agreed that it is in the best interests of Mercy to have her adopted, so why should the judge stop this if the family is OK with it?"
Mr Baneti said Judge Esmie Chombo, who threw out Madonna's adoption application on Friday, had denied his niece the chance of a new life away from the Kondanani orphanage where she is now living.
He was scathing about the judge, who had said she would not bend strict residency rules even for a wealthy foreign celebrity.
"Does she know what it means to be poor? Does she know life in an orphanage? How can she say Mercy is better off at Kondanani?" Mr Baneti said.
"We are very disappointed. We hope that the Supreme Court will overturn her ruling."
Madonna's lawyer Alan Chinula immediately lodged an appeal against Mrs Justice Chombo's decision, which is likely to be heard later this week.
On Saturday night the star was still staying at the luxury Kumbali Lodge outside Lilongwe with her two children, Lourdes, 12, and Rocco, eight, and David Banda, the three-year-old Malawian boy she adopted in 2006.
All 13 rooms at the hotel, including nine thatched chalets, had been booked for her 15-strong entourage of assistants, nannies – including one for Mercy – and even a child psychologist.
The singer reacted with astonishment when she was told of the decision by her lawyer and stormed out of the hotel room where her lawyer informed her. Mercy, whose Malawian name is Chifundo, had been staying with Madonna at the hotel for the last week and had already been introduced to her children while the judge considered her ruling.
Yesterday she was hosting a small party in the lodge's forested grounds. Government officials, staff from her Raising Malawi charity, and other visitors were seen arriving during the afternoon.
Malawians, who have followed the case intently, have been divided about the judge's decision. Human rights groups had argued that allowing Madonna to adopt the child would encourage trafficking and perhaps even attract Western paedophiles.
But messages on social networking sites in Malawi were overwhelmingly in favour of Madonna.
"We have had hundreds of calls about this, and most of our listeners seem to be supporting the adoption," said Mary Innocencia Segula, a chat show host on Lilongwe's Capital Radio.
"There is a feeling that Chifundo would have had a very comfortable life with Madonna, and why should she be denied that just because some children's activists want to raise their own profile and get money?"
Grace Kamoto, 29, who sells fruit from a wooden stall on the road close to Madonna's luxury lodge, said: "We know that she is already giving a lot of money to this country's orphans.
"This would not stop if she was allowed to take the little girl away with her. It does not make sense that she was allowed to have David Banda and now she cannot take Mercy.
"We have been talking about this a lot. We can only pray that Madonna does not now become angry with Malawi and stop the money coming to help all the orphans."
Malawi's laws state that adoptive parents must be living in the country for at least 18 months, so that government child welfare officers can monitor them to confirm that they are suitable to adopt. There was disapproval in the deeply-religious country a recent divorcee adopting a child. Some Christian Malawians had been upset to learn that until a few weeks ago the star had been dating a 22-year-old male model called Jesus.
But Madonna is widely liked in Malawi for funding several orphanages and plans to build a school for more of Malawi's one million orphans, many of whose parents have died rom Aids-related illnesses. She first travelled there to film a documentary and afterwards spoke movingly of being inspired by the human spirit she encountered despite grinding poverty.
"Madonna should see this decision in a positive manner, not a negative one" said Mavuto Bamisa, director of the Human Rights Consultative Committee, one of the rights groups which had opposed the adoption.
"She has been doing tremendous work in Malawi supporting many children here, and perhaps she should continue with that model instead of taking just one or two children away. Her work here will help many more children.
"The best interest of the child, in our opinion, does not come about by taking her away from her own cultural, ethnic and religious environment, unless it is the absolute last resort."
Mr Bamisa said that Madonna's earlier adoption of David may now be investigated because the judge who approved it had waived the stipulation that a parent must be resident in Malawi in order to qualify to adopt.
"There was a waiver made in the David Banda case where Malawian government officials travelled to London to monitor David during the course of the interim adoption," he said. "This was an impromptu arrangement which the judge in this case did not want to see happen. We will be looking again at the David Banda case."
Mr Chinula, Madonna's lawyer said: "This won't affect David. Judge Andrew Nyirenda okayed David's adoption and this judgement cannot stop it."
He added: "We are appealing to the Supreme Court because we think Judge Chombo erred in basing her judgment on archaic laws from over 50 years ago.
"Laws must be dynamic. In any case this is not Malawi's first inter-country adoption. There have been plenty of others."
But child psychiatrist Dr. Stewart Chipendo blamed those human rights campaigners who were against Madonna's adoption of being motivated by politics.
"They want to feel good about themselves by saying 'We have frustrated a big star; we have stopped a big star from adopting. This is selfish," he said.
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LILONGWE, Malawi – Air traffic officials say Madonna has left Malawi after being rebuffed in her attempt to adopt a second child from the poor African nation.
The officials say the singer left on her private Gulfstream jet Sunday morning headed for London. Police roadblocks prevented reporters from approaching the airport but one police officer also says Madonna carried David, her adopted Malawian son, up the steps to the plane.
All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to journalists.
The singer's lawyer has said that she will appeal against a court ruling that she is not eligible to adopt a 3-year-old orphan girl because she has not lived in Malawi.
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