[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 14]
[House]
[Page 19706]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                     INTERNATIONAL CHILD ABDUCTION

  (Mr. LAMPSON asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LAMPSON. Mr. Speaker, today I continue in my effort to bring to 
this House's attention my deepest concern for American families 
destroyed by cases of international child abduction. Since February I 
have been coming to the floor to tell the stories of the over 10,000 
American children who have been abducted abroad.
  Today I will tell the story of Ms. Ildiko Gerbatsch and her two 
daughters, Naomi, who is 13, and her younger sister, Isabelle, who is 
now 10.
  In the summer of 1977, Naomi and Isabelle visited their father in 
Germany. The parents had divorced in 1994, and Ms. Gerbatsch had 
complied with the California Superior Court's decision allowing the 
father visitation rights. At the end of the children's visiting time, 
the father failed to return the children to their mother in the United 
States.
  To this date and after 3 years of legal disputes costing close to 
$100,000 in legal fees, the mother now has full custody of both 
children, but only on paper. Ms. Gerbatsch has only been allowed to 
visit with Naomi and Isabelle on three occasions. She has been 
mistreated by the German courts, who have failed to comply with the 
Hague Treaty.
  Mr. Speaker, I come back to the floor for these daily one minutes 
because I care about families and reuniting children and parents. Let 
us make it our duty to place pressure on the countries that are the 
Hague signatories and who choose not to abide by the Hague Treaty.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in spreading the message and taking a 
responsible role in bringing our children home.

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