III
Calendar No. 528
112th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 543
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
August 2, 2012
Mrs. Boxer (for herself, Mr. Lautenberg, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Lugar, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Cardin, Ms. Mikulski, Mrs. Feinstein, Mrs. Gillibrand, Ms. Landrieu, Mr. Merkley, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Kirk, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Casey, Mr. Moran, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Blumenthal, Mrs. Hutchison, Mr. Blunt, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Durbin, and Mr. Reed) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
September 19, 2012
Reported by Mr. Kerry, with an amendment and an amendment to the preamble
Strike out all after the resolving clause and insert the part printed in italic
Strike the preamble and insert the part printed in italic
RESOLUTION
To express the sense of the Senate on international parental child abduction.
Whereas international parental child abduction is a tragic and common occurrence;
Whereas the abduction of a child by one parent is a heartbreaking loss for the left-behind parent and deprives the child of a relationship with 2 loving parents;
Whereas, according to the Report
on Compliance with the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International
Child Abduction of the United States Department of State from April 2010,
research shows that abducted children are at risk of significant short- and
long-term problems, including anxiety, eating problems, nightmares, mood
swings, sleep disturbances, [and] aggressive behavior
;
Whereas, according to that report,
left-behind parents may also experience substantial psychological and emotional
issues, including feelings of betrayal, sadness over the loss of their
children or the end of their marriage, anger toward the other parent, anxiety,
sleeplessness, and severe depression
, as well as financial strain while
fighting for the return of a child;
Whereas, since 1988, the United
States, which has a treaty relationship under the Convention on the Civil
Aspects of International Child Abduction, done at The Hague October 25, 1980
(TIAS 11670) (referred to in this preamble as the Hague Abduction
Convention
) with 69 other countries, has agreed with its treaty
partners to follow the terms of the Hague Abduction Convention;
Whereas the Hague Abduction Convention provides a legal framework for securing the prompt return of wrongfully removed or retained children to the countries of their habitual residence where competent courts can make decisions on issues of custody and the best interests of the children;
Whereas, according to the United States Department of State, the number of new cases of international child abduction from the United States increased from 579 in 2006 to 941 in 2011;
Whereas, in 2011, those 941 cases involved 1,367 children who were reported abducted from the United States by a parent and taken to a foreign country;
Whereas, in 2011, more than 660 children who were abducted from the United States and taken to a foreign country were returned to the United States;
Whereas 7 of the top 10 countries to which children from the United States were most frequently abducted in 2011 are parties to the Hague Abduction Convention, including Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Ecuador, Brazil, and Colombia;
Whereas Japan, India, and Egypt are not parties to the Hague Abduction Convention and were also among the top 10 countries to which children in the United States were most frequently abducted in 2011;
Whereas, in many countries, such as Japan and India, international parental child abduction is not considered a crime, and custody rulings made by courts in the United States are not typically recognized by courts in those countries; and
Whereas Japan is the only member of the Group of 7 major industrialized countries that has not ratified the Hague Abduction Convention: Now, therefore, be it
Whereas international parental child abduction is a tragic and common occurrence;
Whereas the abduction of a child by one parent is a heartbreaking loss for the left-behind parent and deprives the child of a relationship with 2 loving parents;
Whereas,
according to the Report on Compliance with the Hague Convention on the Civil
Aspects of International Child Abduction of the United States Department of
State from April 2010, research shows that abducted children are at risk of
significant short- and long-term problems, including anxiety, eating
problems, nightmares, mood swings, sleep disturbances, [and] aggressive
behavior
;
Whereas,
according to that report, left-behind parents may also experience substantial
psychological and emotional issues, including feelings of betrayal,
sadness over the loss of their children or the end of their marriage, anger
toward the other parent, anxiety, sleeplessness, and severe depression
,
as well as financial strain while fighting for the return of a child;
Whereas,
since 1988, the United States, which has a treaty relationship under the
Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, done at The
Hague October 25, 1980 (TIAS 11670) (referred to in this preamble as the
Hague Abduction Convention
) with 69 other countries, has agreed
with its treaty partners to follow the terms of the Hague Abduction
Convention;
Whereas the Hague Abduction Convention provides a legal framework for securing the prompt return of wrongfully removed or retained children to the countries of their habitual residence where competent courts can make decisions on issues of custody and the best interests of the children;
Whereas, according to the United States Department of State, the number of new cases of international child abduction from the United States increased from 579 in 2006 to 941 in 2011;
Whereas, in 2011, those 941 cases involved 1,367 children who were reported abducted from the United States by a parent and taken to a foreign country;
Whereas, in 2011, more than 660 children who were abducted from the United States and taken to a foreign country were returned to the United States;
Whereas 7 of the top 10 countries to which children from the United States were most frequently abducted in 2011 are parties to the Hague Abduction Convention, including Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Ecuador, Brazil, and Colombia;
Whereas Japan, India, and Egypt are not parties to the Hague Abduction Convention and were also among the top 10 countries to which children in the United States were most frequently abducted in 2011;
Whereas, in many countries, such as Japan and India, international parental child abduction is not considered a crime, and custody rulings made by courts in the United States are not typically recognized by courts in those countries; and
Whereas Japan is the only member of the Group of 7 major industrialized countries that has not yet become a party to the Hague Abduction Convention: Now, therefore, be it
That—
the Senate—
condemns the unlawful international abduction of all children;
urges countries
identified by the United States Department of State as noncompliant or
demonstrating patterns of noncompliance with the Convention on the Civil
Aspects of International Child Abduction, done at The Hague October 25, 1980
(TIAS 11670) (referred to in this resolution as the Hague Abduction
Convention
) to fulfill their commitment under international law to
expeditiously implement the provisions of the Hague Abduction
Convention;
calls on all countries to accede to or ratify the Hague Abduction Convention and to promptly institute measures to equitably and transparently address cases of international parental child abduction; and
calls on all countries that have not acceded to or ratified the Hague Abduction Convention to develop a mechanism for the resolution of current and future cases of international parental child abduction that occur before those countries accede to or ratify the Hague Abduction Convention in order to facilitate the prompt return of children abducted to those countries to the children's countries of habitual residence; and
it is the sense of the Senate that the United States should—
aggressively pursue the return of each child abducted by a parent from the United States to another country through all appropriate means, consistent with the Hague Abduction Convention, and through extradition, when appropriate, and facilitate access by the left-behind parent if the child is not returned;
take all appropriate measures to ensure that a child abducted to a country that is a party to the Hague Abduction Convention is returned to the country of habitual residence of the child in compliance with the provisions of the Hague Abduction Convention;
continue to use diplomacy to encourage other countries to accede to or ratify the Hague Abduction Convention and to take the necessary steps to effectively fulfill their responsibilities under the Hague Abduction Convention;
use diplomacy to encourage countries that have not acceded to or ratified the Hague Abduction Convention to develop an institutionalized mechanism to transparently and expeditiously resolve current and future cases of international child abduction that occur before those countries accede to or ratify the Hague Abduction Convention; and
review the advisory services made available to United States citizens by the United States Department of State, the United States Department of Justice, and other United States Government agencies—
to improve the prevention of international parental child abduction from the United States; and
to ensure that effective and timely assistance is provided to United States citizens who are parents of children abducted from the United States and taken to foreign countries.
That—
the Senate—
condemns the international abduction of all children;
urges countries
identified by the United States Department of State as noncompliant or
demonstrating patterns of noncompliance with the Convention on the Civil
Aspects of International Child Abduction, done at The Hague October 25, 1980
(TIAS 11670) (referred to in this resolution as the Hague Abduction
Convention
) to fulfill their commitment under international law to
expeditiously implement the provisions of the Hague Abduction
Convention;
calls on all countries to become a party to the Hague Abduction Convention and to promptly institute measures to equitably and transparently address cases of international parental child abduction; and
calls on all countries that have not become a party to the Hague Abduction Convention to develop a mechanism for the resolution of current and future cases of international parental child abduction that occur before those countries become a party to the Hague Abduction Convention in order to facilitate the prompt return of children abducted to those countries to the children’s countries of habitual residence; and
it is the sense of the Senate that the United States should—
vigorously pursue the return of each child abducted by a parent from the United States to another country through all appropriate means, facilitate access by the left-behind parent if the child is not returned, and, where appropriate, seek the extradition of the parent that abducted the child;
take all appropriate measures to ensure that a child abducted to a country that is a party to the Hague Abduction Convention is returned to the country of habitual residence of the child in compliance with the provisions of the Hague Abduction Convention;
continue to use diplomacy to encourage other countries to become a party to the Hague Abduction Convention and to take the necessary steps to effectively fulfill their responsibilities under the Hague Abduction Convention;
use diplomacy to encourage countries that have not become a party to the Hague Abduction Convention to develop an institutionalized mechanism to transparently and expeditiously resolve current and future cases of international child abduction that occur before those countries become a party to the Hague Abduction Convention; and
review the advisory services made available to United States citizens by the United States Department of State, the United States Department of Justice, and other United States Government agencies—
to improve the prevention of international parental child abduction from the United States; and
to ensure that effective and timely assistance is provided to United States citizens who are parents of children abducted from the United States and taken to foreign countries.
September 19, 2012
Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the preamble
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