WASHINGTON — Tom Sylvester has almost exhausted his options for reuniting with the daughter his ex-wife took to Austria in 1995.

        He has pursued the case through the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, appealed to members of Congress and the administration for help, and spent about $300,000 on legal fees and expenses. He has even considered hiring someone to travel to Austria to “rescue” his daughter, Carina, from his ex-wife.

Tom Sylvester holds a picture of his daughter, Carina, in this photo taken in September, 2000. (Gannett News Service photo) | ZOOM |

        On Thursday, Mr. Sylvester met with Secretary of State Colin Powell to detail his crusade to win back his daughter.

        His story, which he related to then-Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in September 2000, always ends the same way, with Carina in Austria and with Mr. Sylvester able to see his daughter only through infrequent, heavily supervised visits.

        His former wife, Monika Rossmann, who took the child from the couple's Michigan home, successfully has appealed court orders directing her to return the girl to her father.

        “It's extortion,” said Mr. Sylvester. “It's a hostage-like situation.”

        Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, who arranged Thursday's meeting and the previous talk with Ms. Albright, said the case has been discussed at the highest diplomatic levels in both the United States and Austria. The congressman said Mr. Powell promised to raise the issue with the Austrian foreign minister.

        “He said he would take a personal interest in this case,” Mr. Chabot said of Mr. Powell. “I felt that he was being very sincere in his commitment.”

        It is difficult, even with the help of a congressman, to get an audience with the secretary of state, but Mr. Sylvester, of Blue Ash, has been persistent.

        The State Department, citing Mr. Sylvester's case, has criticized Austria for failing to comply with the Hague convention. In a report to Congress in March 2001, the department described Austria's judiciary as either uninformed about the convention or indifferent to it. In most cases, the convention requires that children be returned to the country of their birth for custody hearings.

        An Austrian court ruled Carina should be returned to her father, but her mother defied the order and fled. When Ms. Rossmann appealed the ruling, the court decided that Carina had been assimilated into Austrian culture and that it was in her best interests to stay.

        Mr. Sylvester has tried to obtain permission for Carina to visit him in the United States, but her mother has resisted, partly because she is subject to arrest if she returns to this country and partly because her ex-husband has been awarded custody of Carina.

        “The issue of what the child needs is always the good argument,” said Christoph Meran, director of the Austrian Press and Information Service at the Embassy of Austria. “I hope it's over soon.”

        Mr. Sylvester, a former automotive executive, said he has made 12 trips to Austria while fighting for his daughter's return. He has seen Carina 27 times over the past seven years in visits supervised by his ex-wife and Carina's maternal grandparents.

        He last saw his daughter earlier this month. He continues to cherish her through photographs, including one that shows Carina wearing a Cincinnati Reds cap he gave her.

        But he worries that his influence in her life is waning. She'll turn 8 in September. The toddler he remembers so fondly now speaks German.

35,000 braved storm at stadium
Excerpts from the Rev. Billy Graham's sermon
Graham's message to Cincinnati: Love each other, dark or light
Message on race: Love each other
Moment with Graham has inspired woman for decades
Munoz now tackling 'godly legacy'
Visitors have God, others in mind
Major insurance companies sued
Supreme Court upholds Cleveland voucher plan
Voucher possibility raises hopes
Voucher ruling narrowed church-state divide
Abducted child's father appeals to Powell for help
Budget cuts put squeeze on libraries
Project aims to beautify the Ohio
Hundreds expected to ply waters at Ohio River Run
Ind. casinos weigh new rules
Lawyer mum on missing girl
Obituary: William J. Schrimpf was doctor, artist
Tristate A.M. Report
BRONSON: Bigotry exists
SMITH AMOS: Meningitis study
Liberty Twp. woos Levee developer
Teen to be tried as adult in rape
Two boards divided on hospital site
Some wary of candid candidates
Emberton elevated to top appellate spot
Judge to rule on sealing abuse documents
Kentucky News Briefs
KSU may hire an interim chief
Newspaper workers fined in name dispute
'Vette museum, coupe mark golden jubilee