Mr. Speaker, although birth is a joyful occasion, it can also be a painful experience.
Usually adoption relieves the pain, but when Arnold Hinke and Catherine Locke of Nelson, B.C., decided to adopt a baby girl from Nepal they had no idea of the real pain they would have to endure: months spent in Nepal dealing with rigid regulations; tens of thousands of dollars in expenses and lost wages; completion of the adoption last December, only to have their new daughter kidnapped as Mr. Hinke prepared to leave for Canada; recovery of their daughter, only to have the adoption derailed by police rulings without involving the court or government; and a high risk that the baby may be turned over to her kidnapper who claimed without proof to be the birth mother who abandoned her at birth and did not attempt to reclaim her.
The situation was looking more and more hopeless, but justice eventually prevailed and Mr. Hinke was finally allowed to bring his new daughter home. In fact he is arriving home today.
I want to thank my colleague from Red Deer, the Department of Foreign Affairs, and Michelle Cadieux and her staff at the Canadian Co-operation Office in Katmandu for all their help.
I welcome Robyn Marie Locke-Hinke to her new home in Canada. She is one very lucky little girl.