Nick Lampson: “I rise today on my continued effort to bring to the attention of this House my deepest concern for the American families…”

“I rise today on my continued effort to bring to the attention of this House my deepest concern for the American families destroyed by cases of international child abduction. Today I will share with my colleagues the story of Ms. Ildiko Gerbatsch and her two daughters, Naomi, 13, and Isabelle, 10. In the summer of 1997, Naomi and Isabelle visited their father in Germany. At the end of the children's visit, their father failed to return them to their mother in the United States. 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. Madam Speaker, I come to the floor for these daily 1-minutes because I care about families and reuniting children and parents. Let us make it our duty to place pressure on countries who are Hague signatories and who choose not to abide by that agreement. I urge my colleagues to join me in spreading the message and taking a responsible role in bringing our children home.”