Zimbabwe Boy

I am extremely concerned for the life of the 9-year-old boy who has been beaten unmercifully in New York City by his father, a member of the Zimbabwe delegation to the United Nations.

The child was hung by metal wires that cut into his body. Later the father severed the wires while he was still hanging and the boy fell to the floor and smashed his face. His forehead also showed bruises where he was beaten with a belt buckle.

The United States State Department, bowing to political pressure from Zimbabwe, is attempting to have the boy returned to his parents. Additionally, I suppose the U.S. Supreme Court was only following the letter of the law when it ruled that the child must be returned to his tormentor (Part I, Jan. 16).

I urge everyone to please join us in a letter writing campaign to help prevent this boy from being further brutalized or murdered. This boy does not want to go back to his parents. In attempts to return this boy to his family, he has tried to jump from a moving auto and escaped from a second-story window. In saving this child’s life we will also show ourselves and the world that the people of our country mean what they say about the value of human life.

Tell your congressman, senators, and U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz that Terrence Karamba must not be returned to his parents. If America betrays this child in the name of diplomacy, our nation jeopardizes its right to speak for human dignity.

MRS. FRANK SINATRA

President

Barbara Sinatra Children’s Center

Rancho Mirage