Some governments want their children well - others encourage their fathers to go to ...

Just as I thought the Latin American authorities had the most weird view of fathers and their potential role in the childhood of a young citizen, they are surpassed with light years by the government policies in my home country.

After having been harassed for almost 4 years with cute letters announcing that I was entitled to 450 days of paid parental leave, to take an active part in the childhood and education of my daughter, I decided this summer that it was time to act. Even I did get the message in the daily debate in the news that I was a bad father that have not even used a single one of my parental days to date. After all 15 months with full salary without any work obligations is money even for single fathers with their children abroad.

Said and done, contacts initiated with the same authorities that send out the cute letters. Phone calls in June, as expected not anyone of the first three ones could give me an answer an they all ended the conversations with the convincing - "Don't call us we call you". Got sort of tired and started to send e-mails instead, one a week for the last three weeks without any response. Apparently the organization resides outside of the reach of the Internet, the 1.1billion fixed phone lines and the 3.3billion mobile ones, but today I was stunned by suprise when someone of the Ghostbusters apparently had sneaked out the coffea room and found a phone booth from which they could give a call and explain that I am an outlaw without any rights whatsover to any kind of financial support in supporting my childs growth.

So what have my daughter and I done wrong
1. We are both citizens of the same country
2. I have been working full time and paid taxes in that country, my home country, since she was born. Tax, VAT, Congestiontaxes etc.
3. The authorities do on paper encourage fathers to use parts of the parental days,and are in the process of mandating fathers to carry their share of the responsibilities.
4. My daugthers mother and I have decided to split apart - and have shared custody of our daughter. A decisions to signal that we both care, even though we are an atlantic ocean apart.
5. My daughter is living in another country, that do not allow fathers to take their children abroad for the first 9 years of their life.
6. My daughter has been given the opportunity to attend an english speaking day care center, paid for solely by her father. Schools to follow.

So now to the fundamental question why do the two of us have to be considered as outlaws, with all rights revoked, and revoked forcefully at both ends. The top-line end where paid parental leave and paid child allowance has been turned into zero. The bottom line where the possibilities for tax breaks for education abroad has been turned into zero. The whole world is full of fathers that do not want to take an active role in their childrens life, but why do we have to make it so difficult for the ones that care.

Well you might think I am jealous as:
1. Foreign children that come to my home country and are given the opportunity to study in special classes with half the amount of students the first three years, so they can pick up the new language. Free of charge.
2. Foreign citizens are entitled to all the benefits in my home country wrt parental leave and child allowance.
3. The authorities have no problem of providing a nuclear family going to a beach for 3 months with all the benefits without questions asked.
4. The authorities are happy to gradefully extend the 450 days with a Value Added Benefits (VAB) package to be used whenever a cough could destroy the bio climate at the day care center.

Not really, all of the above is in place for good reasons, and I am doing my best to support the implementation through a handsome contribution to the worldleading Tax and VAT tariffs. I soon celebrate 204 straight working months without a single hour in sick leave! I have just paid off my loans for my studies, without a single penny missing!! I work for the company whose success is fundmental to moct pension funds in my home country. And I have 104 days in my vacation bank and can still fly 18 hours to reach my daughter.

So authorities come one!!! Of course you can raise the bar of harrasment a bit further, or get back to the drawing board with a sharp pencil and get some basics in place !!!