Email from the Helsinki Commission 8/4/06

This is an excerpt from an email from the Helsinki Commission in regards to the meeting Rep. Chris Smith and Congressmen had with President Basescu and Ambassador Ducaru. Ambassador Taubman and other State Dept. officials were also at the meeting.

"Rep. Smith had made a rather impassioned plea in the Speaker's meeting but frankly was the ONLY Member to raise any substantive matter that was critical of the Romanians."

Comments from the source of the email.............

I think the statement above pretty much states our current problem as U.S. citizens. One politician cannot fight this battle on his own and will soon give up the fight if he doesn't have the support of other Representatives and Senators. If our Bucharest Embassy sees that our Congressmen aren't willing to press the Romanians too hard, they won't either. It's the domino effect...

I know that many of you contacted your Congressmen in regards to their support of the Resolutions. I'm now presuming that they feel they are willing to vote for a Resolution, but are unwilling to subsequently speak out and force the issue. Perhaps its because we didn't formally request them to do so, most likely it's because Romania is our ally in the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and all of the other key points that were included in the letter from Rep.'s Weldon and Ortiz, and they, like President Bush, are willing to hold their feet to the fire but not in it since they are our ally.

I'm now making a plea for each of you to contact your respective Congressmen and ask them to write a strong letter to Prime Minister Tariceanu and the head of the opposing party and former ruling party, Mircea Geoana http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mircea_Geoana. If we do not demand that they hold the Romanian government's feet to the fire on this issue, we don't stand a chance. And, if we don't do it now when they are all up for reelection and will listen to their constituents/voters concerns, we have let the most opportune time slip by.

Romania has lied repeatedly to our government and made promises they've reneged on, starting with former President Iliescu and former Prime Minister Nastase and now the current government. Keep in mind that Geoana, the former Foreign Minister, is now the head of the the PSD, so just because Nastase and Iliescu are somewhat out of the picture, it doesn't mean the former ruling government - and a key party in the current Romanian government (Basescu won by a slim majority) cannot be held accountable too. For those of you who are recent members, Romania - prior to joining NATO - publicly promised President Bush that the new child welfare legislation would allow for inter-country adoption. As an FYI, the Prime Minister is a member of the same political party as Baroness Nicholson. In the EU it's known as ALDE. Hence the reason his relationship with Nicholson is tight and unbending.