[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 7]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 9408]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



      URGING COMPLIANCE WITH HAGUE CONVENTION ON CIVIL ASPECTS OF 
                     INTERNATIONAL CHILD ABDUCTION

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. TILLIE K. FOWLER

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 23, 2000

  Mrs. FOWLER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Con. Res. 
293, which urges all parties to the Hague Convention on the Civil 
Aspects of International Child Abduction to comply with this important 
treaty.
  Too many countries that have signed this compact fail to live up to 
its principles. Whether by design or passivity, these countries act as 
obstacles to reuniting parents with their kidnapped children. This not 
only occurs with rogue nations that ignore basic human rights; but even 
some of our closest allies.
  I first became acquainted with this issue several years ago when a 
constituent of mine lost his only daughter to his German ex-wife. She 
was only 15-months old. For the next four years, he followed the Hague 
Convention to the letter, going to court in the United States and 
Germany to seek custody and visitation with his little girl and paying 
child support. Though a German court eventually awarded him visitation 
rights, his wife refused to comply and the German courts failed to 
enforce their own orders.
  I was shocked at the impudence of the German government in its 
application of the Hague Convention. But, I was even more outraged at 
the failure of our own government to act as an aggressive advocate on 
behalf of American parents. The U.S. State Department left him to fend 
for himself, which his ex-wife appeared to have all of Germany fighting 
for her. I wrote to Secretary Albright, our Ambassador to Germany, and 
others seeking assistance, but my efforts were rebuffed as well. This 
happens to thousands of American parents every year, with similar 
responses.
  Today's resolution says with firm resolve that the U.S. Congress will 
stand with these left-behind parents and fight for their children. When 
we unite with these parents in even a simple ``sense of Congress'' 
resolution, things can change and these nations will take notice.
  Because of all the publicity that has been generated by this 
resolution and this issue, my constituent's ex-wife finally complied 
with the court-ordered visitation. He saw his little girl for the very 
first time in nearly four years last week. As he puts it, ``I can't see 
her very often, she doesn't speak English, and hardly knows who I am, 
but I feel like I just won the lotto.''
  That is what this is all about. I urge all of my colleagues to 
support H. Con. Res. 293.

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