VERHEUGEN RESPONSE TO DEPUTY SECRETARY ON ROMANIAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRUSSELS 002496

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/10/2014
TAGS: PREL CASC CVIS RO EUN USEU BRUSSELS
SUBJECT: VERHEUGEN RESPONSE TO DEPUTY SECRETARY ON ROMANIAN
ADOPTIONS


Classified By: Rick Holtzapple, PolOff, Reason 1.4 B/D


1. (U) The cabinet of Enlargement Commissioner Gunter
Verheugen has faxed us a letter from the Commissioner to
Deputy Secretary Armitage, replying to the Deputy Secretary's
letter of May 4 on the issue of Romanian adoptions. The full
text of the letter is in para 3 below, and a copy of the
original fax with signature has been faxed to EUR/ERA and
Embassy Bucharest.


2. (C) The letter confirms what we already know from the copy
of the report from the Commission to the GoR on the issue
that was provided to Embassy Bucharest. The Commission's
legal experts have told the Romanian government that the
"proposed approach to pursue on the policy of intercountry
adoptions with a very limited exception" is seen as
"essentially in line" with the EU's demands.


3. (U) Beginning of Text:

Dear Mr. Secretary of State,

Thank you for your letter of 4 May 2004 on the issue of
intercountry adoptions from Romania.

I would like to clarify that the European Commission is not
against intercountry adoption as such. However, the UN
Convention on the Rights of the Child foresees that
inter-country adoption may be considered only if the child
cannot be placed in a foster or an adoptive family or cannot
in any suitable manner be cared for in the child's country of
origin. This "last resort" provision is consonant with the
provision in the UN convention that refers to the
"desirability of continuity in a child's upbringing and to
the child's ethnic, religious, cultural and linguistic
background."

All Member States of the EU have ratified the UN Convention
on the Rights of the Child and therefore should respect the
above mentioned principles. Therefore the Commission
considers that the moratorium on intercountry adoptions is
necessary as long as no legislation is in force that fully
complies with this convention, and as long as no
administrative capacity exists to implement this legislation.

Following Prime Minister Nastase's request for legal advice
on children's rights and adoption, the Commission set up an
Independent Panel of EU Member State experts on family law.
In its latest report, which I have forwarded to Prime
Minister Nastase, the Panel noted the fundamental change made
by Romania on the issue of intercountry adoption. The
proposed approach to pursue on the policy of intercountry
adoptions with a very limited exception was considered
essentially in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of
the Child.

Our primordial focus must be on getting the system of child
care in Romania right so that we get tot he usual situation
in the Member States of the EU where international adoptions
are the exception. Therefore, the EU has supported Romania
in its efforts to improve the quality of public care for
children. This meant that large residential establishments
were closed down and replaced with a selection of child
protection alternatives ranging from smaller homes and foster
care to day-care centres. Of course there remains work to be
done, but Romania surely has come a long way in resolving the
issue of children in public care.

I have been informed that recently a videoconference on this
issue was held between the Washington State Department and my
services, and that it was considered useful to have both
sides express their respective positions.

Yours sincerely,

/S/
Gunter Verheugen