Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Maura Harty met with the First Lady of Guatemala, Wendy de Berger, on March 15 to discuss adoption reform in Guatemala.  They agreed that reform, which implements the Hague Intercountry Adoption Convention, is urgently needed in Guatemala.  Assistant Secretary Harty expressed appreciation to the First Lady for her leadership regarding the publication of the Manual of Good Practices based on existing Guatemalan laws for the protection of children.  Assistant Secretary Harty and the First Lady agreed that additional resources will be necessary to fund the principal agencies responsible for the oversight of intercountry adoptions.

Assistant Secretary Harty reassured First Lady de Berger that the U.S. Government will continue to work closely with the Government of Guatemala on reform efforts.  She also noted that the U.S. Government is using greater scrutiny in its processing of individual adoption cases. 

Assistant Secretary Harty also took the opportunity to assure First Lady de Berger that the U.S. Government would ratify the Hague Convention by the end of 2007.  They then reaffirmed their mutual understanding that the U.S. Government will not be able to continue adoptions in Guatemala once the treaty is in effect in the United States if the Guatemalan Government does not take the steps necessary to implement the Hague Convention.