Senator Sam Brownback, Chairman
Rep. Christopher H. Smith, Co-Chairman
For Immediate Release

www.csce.gov
September 8, 2005

HELSINKI COMMISSION TO EXAMINE IMPACT OF ROMANIA'S ADOPTIONS POLICY

(Washington) - Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS), Chairman of the United States Helsinki Commission, announced that the Commission will hold a hearing on the impact of Romania’s newly implemented ban on inter-country adoptions:

IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE CHILDREN?

ROMANIA’S BAN ON INTER-COUNTRY ADOPTION

10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

2237 Rayburn House Office Building

The featured panelists will be:

Panel I

Maura Harty
Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs, U.S. Department of State

Panel II

Sorin Ducaru

Ambassador of Romania to the United States

Panel III

Thomas Atwood

President & CEO, National Council for Adoption

Debra Murphy-Scheumann

President of the Board of Directors, Joint Council on International Children’s Services

Dr. Dana Johnson

Director of the International Adoption Clinic, University of Minnesota

Elliot Forsyth

Waiting to adopt Romanian child

The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission, is a U.S. Government agency that monitors progress in the implementation of the provisions of the 1975 Helsinki Accords. The Commission consists of nine members from the United States Senate, nine from the House of Representatives, and one member each from the Departments of State, Defense and Commerce.

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Media Contact: James E. Geoffrey, II
202.225.1901

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