Annual Report on International Parental Child Abduction (IPCA)

90 Pages·2016·1.68 MB·English

Annual Report on International Parental Child
Abduction (IPCA)

U.S. Department of State
Bureau of Consular Affairs
2016
Contents
Message from the Secretary of State ......................................................................................... 3
Introduction to Annual Report ................................................................................................... 4
What’s New in This Year’s Report .............................................................................................. 4
Department’s Efforts to Combat International Parental Child Abduction, Including Efforts with
Regard to non-Convention Countries ......................................................................................... 5
Activities Concerning Non-Convention Countries ...................................................................... 7
Use of Airlines in Abductions ..................................................................................................... 8
Actions of the Interagency Prevention Working Group .............................................................. 9
Actions by the U.S. Central Authority to Train Domestic Judges in the Application of the Hague
Abduction Convention ............................................................................................................. 10
Actions by the U.S. Central Authority to Train U.S. Armed Forces Legal Assistance Personnel,
Military Chaplains, and Military Family Support ...................................................................... 11
Public Statement by Secretary Kerry ........................................................................................ 12
Children Returned to the United States and Cases Resolved without the Return of Children to
the United States ..................................................................................................................... 13
Legend for Country Data Pages ................................................................................................ 14
Convention Countries That Have Demonstrated a Pattern of Noncompliance ........................ 16
Convention Countries That Have Failed to Comply with One or More of Their Obligations under
the Hague Abduction Convention ............................................................................................ 30
Non-Convention Countries That Have Demonstrated a Pattern of Noncompliance ................. 33
Convention Countries with Five or More Abduction Cases in 2015 .......................................... 42
Non-Convention Countries and Areas with Five or More Abduction Cases in 2015 ................. 67
Countries and areas in which in 2015 there were one or more abduction cases relating to a
child whose habitual residence is the United States ................................................................ 88
Travel Issues Meriting Special Consideration ........................................................................... 90

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Message from the Secretary of State

Dear Reader:

The protection of our citizens abroad is one of the oldest and most important roles of the U.S. Department
of State (Department). We place a special emphasis on the welfare of children, who are among our most
vulnerable citizens. I am pleased to submit the 2016 Annual Report on International Parental Child
Abduction under the Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act
(the Act).

The wrongful taking or retention of children outside their country of habitual residence may be harmful to
their well-being. Over the past year, the Department increased its efforts to prevent abductions from
occurring or, if they do occur, to obtain the prompt return of the children to their places of habitual
residence.

We improved our efforts to prevent abductions through increased work with law enforcement agencies,
airlines and others to stop abductions in progress. We conducted more outreach to raise awareness of
the issue and to provide parents with information on the steps they can take to protect their children.

We increased our diplomatic efforts to get other countries to cooperate with us on resolving cases of
children abducted by a parent. The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child
Abduction (Convention) is in force between the United States and 74 other countries. The Convention
provides, among other things, that abducted children should be returned promptly to their country of
habitual residence. We have seen success in encouraging countries to become party to the Convention
and in getting others to improve their compliance with the Convention. For countries that have not
become party to the Convention, we have worked to improve cooperation and sought to establish bilateral
or other arrangements where possible.

We still have much work to do. This report cites 21 countries that either demonstrated a pattern of
noncompliance as defined in the Act or otherwise failed to comply with any of their obligations under the
Convention. Over the next year, the Department will continue to press for these countries to take more
effective measures to promptly return children to their country of habitual residence and to provide access
to left-behind parents.

I hope this report will be a valuable tool both to highlight the Department’s efforts to curb international
parental child abduction and to outline the problems some families may face in resolving these tragic
cases.

Sincerely,

John F. Kerry
Secretary of State
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Introduction to Annual Report

The U.S. Department of State’s Office of Children’s Issues serves as the U.S. Central Authority under the
1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (Hague Abduction
Convention or Convention). Pursuant to the Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction
Prevention and Return Act, 22 U.S.C. §9111, et seq. (the Act), the Department submits this report on
international parental child abduction. The reporting period for the 2016 Annual Report is the calendar
year from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015, and in this report when we mention a year we mean the
2015 calendar year. The terms used in the report are defined in 22 U.S.C. §9101.

What’s New in This Year’s Report

This Annual Report covers international parental child abduction cases relating to children whose habitual
residence we believe to be the United States. This report reflects the number of cases reported to our
office, and how the Department’s Office of Children’s Issues and counterparts in foreign countries process
them.

However, each abduction case is unique. To reflect these complexities, this year we include narratives in
our report that give context to the statistics on international parental child abduction throughout the world.
We also include supplemental data in order to give additional context to the statistics that the Act requires.

Information Reported by Country: Our report provides statistical information about each country for
which there were five or more pending abduction cases reported during 2015. It also provides
information about our bilateral relationship on abduction matters, recommendations for improved
work to resolve abductions, and comments on compliance with the Convention if applicable. We
intend this format to give readers a convenient reference about abduction and access proceedings
in each of these countries.

Presentation of Data: In the data pages we include statistics beyond those required by the Act
when they add context that we believe may be useful for the reader. For example, we provide the
number of abductions and access requests reported to the Department, reflecting the overall
caseload in our office regardless of whether the case meets the definition of an abduction under
the Convention or under the Act. We calculate percentages of Resolved and Unresolved Cases
based on the number of cases for which applications were submitted to the Foreign Central
Authority during 2015.

Description of our Work: Throughout the report, we discuss topics that relate to our work on
international parental child abduction cases. For example, we explain the International Visitor
Leadership Program, one of our methods for showing foreign officials how the United States
addresses child abduction cases.
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Department’s Efforts to Combat International Parental Child Abduction, Including Efforts with
Regard to non-Convention Countries

In 2015, more than 600 children were reportedly abducted by a parent from the United States to another
country. The Department of State, as the United States Central Authority for the Hague Abduction
Convention, takes the lead in attempting to prevent and aid in the resolution of international abductions.

Strategically, we focus on preventing abductions. The Department maintains a Prevention Office in the
Office of Children’s Issues to act on and provide information to thwart attempted abductions. In 2015 the
Department enrolled 4,064 children in the Children’s Passport Issuance Alert Program (CPIAP), one of the
Department of State’s most important tools for preventing international parental child abduction. If a
passport application is submitted for a child who is enrolled in the CPIAP, the program allows the
Department’s Office of Children’s Issues to attempt to contact the parent(s) who enrolled the child to help
verify whether the parental consent requirement for minors has been met. We also helped enroll 127
children in the Department of Homeland Security’s program aimed at preventing international abduction.
The Department of State works with U.S. and foreign law enforcement agencies, airlines and others to
prevent children from being unlawfully removed from the United States. Our broad public affairs campaign
and our vigilant duty officer program let parents contact us for information that can help avoid an
abduction before it happens. We fielded 1,560 inquiries in 2015 from parents, attorneys, support
organizations and foreign governments seeking prevention information.

The Department also undertakes long-term efforts to elicit cooperation from foreign governments on
abduction cases. We actively encourage countries to become party to the Hague Abduction Convention,
which is the best means of ensuring other countries abide by the same standards we do when addressing
abduction and access cases.

We work with parents, with counterparts in foreign governments, and with other U.S. government
agencies to help resolve individual international parental abduction cases. Each abduction is unique and
each country has its own distinct judicial system, law enforcement entities, and cultural and family
traditions. The Department must tailor its strategy to deploy the most effective approach towards
resolving each abduction case, including securing a child’s return to the place of habitual residence or
parental access to children.

Much of the day-to-day diplomatic engagement on abduction matters is handled by the Country Officers in
the Office of Children’s Issues. Our team of experts, based in Washington, is consistently in direct touch
with counterparts in foreign government central authorities. On a regular basis, they also work with
foreign governments through foreign embassies in Washington and our U.S. diplomatic missions
overseas.

Senior U.S. officials often engage with their foreign counterparts to press for a prompt resolution to
abduction cases. In this report, you will find Secretary Kerry’s statement emphasizing the U.S.
commitment to combating international parental child abduction.

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The Department presses U.S. interests in parental child abductions at all levels. A few other examples of
the types of engagement in 2015:

 Ambassador Michele Thoren Bond, Assistant
Secretary for Consular Affairs, regularly
presses foreign governments on abduction
International Visitor Leadership Program
issues both in Washington and abroad.

During 2015, she made public statements,
The International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) is
delivered protests to foreign ambassadors, the Department of State’s premier professional
and held meetings in foreign capitals to voice exchange program. Through the IVLP, the Office of
U.S. concerns over international parental child Children’s Issues engages with foreign nations’ child
abduction authorities, including lawyers, judges, child
abduction.
welfare experts, and government officials.
 Ambassador Susan Jacobs, the Secretary’s

Special Advisor on Children’s Issues, visited
In a typical visit, a group of international visitors travels
more than 15 countries and attended to the United States, beginning in Washington. They
multilateral conferences to discuss abduction meet with the Office of Children’s Issues to learn about
and establish ties with the State Department. They
issues. She promoted accession to or
then travel to other cities, where they meet local
ratification of the Hague Abduction
judges, social welfare workers, or others who reflect
Convention, when appropriate, as well as
the United States’ work in this field. At the program’s
other arrangements to promote the return of
end, the visitors will have had the chance to discuss
and access to abducted children. technical and legal topics, and to establish ties with
Ambassador Jacobs also encouraged persons working on these issues in the United States.

countries for which the Convention is already
This diplomatic cultural engagement allows decision-
in force with respect to the United States, also
makers in other countries to understand the need to
known as “partner” countries, to improve their
implement effective systems to address international
treaty implementation.
parental child abduction. It is a vital component of our
 Our embassies and consulates around the engagement with foreign governments on international
world play an important role in the parental child abduction.

Department’s campaign to address
international parental child abduction. U.S.
Ambassadors raise concerns to host
governments. U.S. consular and political
officers regularly work on abduction matters,
through liaising with local officials and by
providing consular services, such as checking
on the welfare of children who were abducted
abroad.
 The International Visitor Leadership Program
gives decision-makers and practitioners in other countries a first-hand view of how we resolve
parental child abduction cases. In 2015, judicial, administrative, and other leaders from more than
15 nations participated in this program. Our visitors return to their home countries after seeing
first-hand how we process international abduction cases under the Convention.

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Activities Concerning Non-Convention Countries

Throughout 2015, we continued our diplomatic engagement with countries that have become Party to the
Convention but for whom the Convention is not yet in force with respect to the United States. As a result
of those efforts, we look forward to welcoming Thailand as our 74th partner under the Convention in 2016.

We made substantial gains toward identifying countries that can become viable partners with the United
States under the Hague Abduction Convention. In 2015 we held discussions with several countries aimed
at moving toward establishing a partnership. The U.S. Central Authority is conducting a detailed review of
these and other countries to determine whether partnership is appropriate at this time. During 2015, no
countries became Convention countries with respect to the United States.

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Use of Airlines in Abductions

Many international parental child abductions take place via international airline flights, although the
Department has no specific data on this issue. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) thoroughly
reviewed commercial airline practices to prevent international parental child abduction in June 2011. 1 The
GAO re-port addressed the policies and measures airlines currently have in place, possible solutions, and
the appropriate role of commercial airliners in preventing international parental child abductions.

In addition to the recommendations of the GAO report, the Department also recommends the following
best practices for airlines to aid in preventing abductions:

1. Support and Cooperate with Law Enforcement Efforts: Federal and state law enforcement entities
have a prominent role in preventing abductions and airlines should work to support law enforcement
agencies in this role. As private sector entities, airlines in the United States do not have the authority
to enforce custody orders.2 Commercial airlines’ main role related to the prevention of abductions is
cooperating, upon request, with law enforcement officials. Airlines are encouraged to contact the
Department’s Office of Children’s Issues if they encounter a child who is at risk for international
parental child abduction.

2. Know How to Report: Commercial airline employees should be made aware of the Office of Children’s
Issues’ contact information and potential child abduction indicators, so that abduction cases reported
to the airlines, either by parents, attorneys, courts, law enforcement officials, or other stakeholders
may be appropriately referred for immediate assistance. The Department provides brochures that
contain the Department’s contact information and information on potential child abduction indicators to
port authorities, airline employees, and the general public. The Department will continue its outreach
activities to these stakeholders.

For information related to abduction prevention, please visit:
http://www.travel.state.gov/content/childabduction/english/preventing.html.

1 United States Government Accountability Office, Report to Subcommittee on Aviation Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, House of

Representatives. Commercial Aviation, Program Aimed at High Risk Parent Abductors Could Aid in Preventing Abductions. (June 2011)
2 Id.
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Actions of the Interagency Prevention Working Group

In April and October of 2015, the U.S. Central Authority hosted Prevention of International Parental Child
Abduction Interagency Working Group meetings to discuss strategies to enhance child abduction
prevention measures. Special Advisor for Children’s Issues Susan Jacobs chaired both meetings; officials
from the U.S. Central Authority, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the
Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Defense participated. Participants discussed
ways to enhance current interagency abduction prevention strategies. At the October meeting, the U.S.
Central Authority provided English and Spanish language Preventing International Parental Child
Abduction brochures to all participants to distribute within their agencies. The working group will continue
to meet regularly to streamline and improve interagency cooperation when working to prevent child
abduction cases originating from the United States.

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Actions by the U.S. Central Authority to Train Domestic Judges in the Application of the Hague
Abduction Convention

The Department of State, in its role as the U.S. Central Authority,
educates judges in the United States about the Convention in a The Judges Network

variety of ways. Any judge can access information on our
The Judges Network is one of the
website via a webpage tailored to the needs of judges hearing
United States’ most important tools
international parental child abduction cases. The webpage
for judicial education on the
contains important resources about the Convention, as well as
Convention. The Judges Network
abduction prevention tools and information, and can be found was formed by the Hague
online at: http://www.travel.state.gov/content/childabduction/english/legal/for- Conference on Private International
judges.html. Law and consists of a group of
approximately 100 judges from more
than 65 countries, who are identified
When the Department is informed that a judge in the United
as experts in the Convention and
States is hearing a case under the Convention, the Department
other international family law issues.
sends a letter directly to the judge emphasizing important articles
One of the roles of a Network Judge
of the Convention, including the article requiring a Convention is to serve as a domestic resource on
case to be handled as expeditiously as possible, and the articles the Convention for his/her judicial
that clarify that a decision under the Convention is not a decision colleagues.

about custody. The letter also explains the Department’s role as
The United States currently has four
the U.S. Central Authority, and provides additional resources
U.S. judges serving on the Network,
such as the Convention’s implementing legislation in the United
three state court judges and one
States, the International Child Abduction Remedies Act. The federal court judge. Each year, the
Department also informs judges hearing Convention cases in the Department facilitates numerous
United States that they may contact the Department to speak with requests from domestic judges to
speak with one of the U.S. Hague
one of the four U.S. Network Judges who participate in the
Network Judges with questions
International Hague Network of Judges (Judges Network).
ranging from Convention

interpretation to procedural issues.
In addition to their help on individual
Convention cases, the U.S. Network
Judges participate in trainings and
symposiums on international family
law, where they explain their role as
judges in Convention cases.

The Department of State is grateful
for the service of the U.S Hague
Network Judges, who have helped
facilitate the resolution of many
Convention cases in the United
States by communicating and
sharing Convention best practices
with U.S. and foreign judges.

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