Celina (14) and Stephanie (almost 11) Yavelow are both native-born American citizens who have spent more than half their lives in the United States. They desperately want to return to their home country, the United States, to go to American schools and churches and to speak English (their native language) with their American friends. Their father, Christopher Yavelow, is also an American citizen. Their mother is Swiss. No one in the family is Dutch.
Against the children's wishes and without giving them a chance to be heard, the Dutch courts have removed all of Christopher Yavelow's parental rights. From the beginning of this case in January of 1999, Christopher Yavelow has asserted that he would provide unlimited access of the children to their mother by whatever means desired, phone, email, personal visits, etc. The children want this and they know that they will only have access to both parents if they are living with their father. They are very unhappy in the present situation.
VIOLATIONS (BY THE NETHERLANDS): The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
The Netherlands is violating articles 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, and 19 of The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child concerning the Yavelow children.
Article 8 states: "States Parties undertake to respect the right of the child to preserve his or her identity, including nationality..."
With the assistance of the Dutch government, Monique Fasel has attempted, once successfully, to erase the children's US citizenship and country of origin from all Dutch data-banks. Yavelow corrected it once. Now she is trying to do it again. She refuses to let them associate with any of their American friends or to attend their English-speaking church.
Article 9 states: "1) States Parties shall ensure that a child shall not be separated from his or her parents against their will... 2) In any proceedings pursuant to paragraph 1 of the present article, all interested parties shall be given an opportunity to participate in the proceedings and make their views known. 3) States Parties shall respect the right of the child who is separated from one or both parents to maintain personal relations and direct contact with both parents on a regular basis..."
Celina and Stephanie Yavelow stated to all officials the following "We are American citizens and we want to stay in America! At an October hearing to decide their fate they were not allowed to make their views known. They are being held incommunicado by a cult in the Netherlands and have absolutely no contact with their father for days.
Article 10 states: "1) ... applications by a child or his or her parents to enter or leave a State Party for the purpose of family reunification shall be dealt with by States Parties in a positive, humane and expeditious manner. States Parties shall further ensure that the submission of such a request shall entail no adverse consequences for the applicants and for the members of their family. 2) A child whose parents reside in different States shall have the right to maintain on a regular basis, save in exceptional circumstances personal relations and direct contacts with both parents."
Celina and Stephanie Yavelow are being held incommunicado by a cult in the Netherlands and have absolutely no contact with their father for days.
Article 11 states: "States Parties shall take measures to combat the illicit transfer and non-return of children abroad."
Celina and Stephanie Yavelow were brought back to the Netherlands in violation of a Maryland court ruling ordering that their passports be turned over to the court and that they and Monique Fasel stay in Maryland to attend a hearing.
Article 13 states: "The child shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of the child's choice."
Celina and Stephanie Yavelow have no rights to communicate with their father. They are not being allowed to use their email accounts to read email from their father.
Article 14: states "States Parties shall respect the right of the child to freedom of thought, conscience and religion."
The Dutch courts have increasing attempted to make it impossible for Celina and Stephanie Yavelow to attend the Christian church of their choice. The court's latest decision allows Monique Fasel to forbid my children to go to church. Celina and Stephanie Yavelow are members of the Leidschendam English-speaking Trinity Baptist International church.
Article 15 states: " States Parties recognize the rights of the child to freedom of association..."
The Dutch courts have increasing attempted to make it impossible for Celina and Stephanie Yavelow to associate with their American friends. The court's latest decision allows Monique Fasel, who is a member of three dangerous cults, to refuse to let the Yavelow children associate with any of their American or Christian friends.
Article 16 states: "No child shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his or her privacy, family, home or correspondence..."
The Dutch courts have increasing attempted to make it impossible for Celina and Stephanie Yavelow to correspond with their father. The court's latest decision allows Monique Fasel to forbid the Yavelow children access to their email accounts or to access their home page (where their father has letters to the children as well).
Article 18 states: " States Parties shall use their best efforts to ensure recognition of the principle that both parents have common responsibilities for the upbringing and development of the child."
The Dutch courts removed all of Christopher Yavelow's parental rights at a hearing at which neither he nor his children were present. Celina and Stephanie Yavelow had written seven letters to the courts expressing that they wanted to live with their father or at the very least live with their father half the time and these letters were ignored.
Article 19 states: "States Parties shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse..."
The Dutch courts are well aware of the fact that Monique Fasel sexually abuses Yavelow's older daughter. It's what caused the breakup of the marriage. Yet they ignore this fact even though their older daughter wrote a letter to the judge begging to discuss this with him.
These are serious matters.
VIOLATIONS (BY THE NETHERLANDS): The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction
First and foremost, in violation of a Maryland court order, Monique Fasel, took Celina and Stephanie Yavelow from their home country the United States of America without the required Hague Convention hearing. Because she had started a Hague Convention procedure, a Hague Convention hearing was required before she could remove Celina and Stephanie Yavelow from their home country. In fact a hearing was ordered by the Maryland court order. The Yavelow children and Christopher Yavelow had prepared a well-documented article 13b and 20 defense. The Dutch government facilitated Monique Fasel's deception through mw mr. S. A. M. Oostvogels of the Ministrie van Justitie in the Hague.
Article 13b states: "...requested State is not bound to order the return of the child if the person, institution or other body which opposes its return establishes that -... b) there is a grave risk that his or her return would expose the child to physical or psychological harm or otherwise place the child in an intolerable situation."
Monique Fasel abuses Celina and Stephanie Yavelow sexually, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Christopher Yavelow has documented this with physical evidence, photographs, and testimony. This constitutes both physical and psychological harm as defined by the Hague Convention. The children are willing to testify about this. Both the Raad voor de Kinderbescherming and the Haarlem court refused to consider any of these facts. They are government organizations who have aided in violating the Hague Convention. Because the Haarlem courts have removed all of Yavelow's parental rights, they have removed him from the lives of his children. This is also considered to be psychologically harmful to children. Therefore Celina, Stephanie, and Christopher Yavelow invoke the article 13b clause twice for psychological damage and once for physical damage to the children.
Article 20 states: "The return of the child under the provision of Article 12 may be refused if this would not be permitted by the fundamental principles of the requested State relating to the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms."
The right for a fair trial with due process of law is taken for granted in the country of the Yavelow's citizenship (the United States). Christopher Yavelow and his daughters are not getting such a trial in the Netherlands and thus their human rights are being violated. Furthermore, the judge's ruling of July 22, 1999, and again on November 2, 1999, effectively sets up a situation in which Celina and Stephanie Yavelow may no longer practice their chosen religion of Christianity. This sort of religious persecution has not been tolerated in the Yavelow's own country, the United States of America, for over 200 years! This is a fundamental freedom in their home country, Therefore Celina, Stephanie, and Christopher Yavelow invoke Article 20 of the Hague Convention once for the violation of human rights of the daughters and once for the violation of fundamental freedoms of the daughters.
These are serious matters.