Home Foreign Countries

Foreign Countries

Mexico

Mexico

Considering the fact that Mexico is the only neighbor directly to the south of the United States, even for those who live in the upper half of America, it is a convenient vacation spot – a familiar destination for college-age people looking to have a good time during Spring Break. At its best, Mexico offers warm weather, a vibrant culture, and artifacts reflecting a rich history and proud people. Yet, at its worst, this nation is home to high rates of crime, often involving wanton acts of violence.
In fact, the U.S. Department of State, in its International Travel Information advisories, lists numerous areas within Mexico where instances of violent crime have been incurred and names petty theft, criminal assault, human trafficking, and extortion among the more common offenses of which visitors become victims. One crime of particular note, though, and shockingly frequent is that of child abduction. 

Africa

Africa

Concerning the Vietnam War as it involved the United States, part of its legacy in this country includes memories of the wartime draft that compelled young men of age to either serve for their country or be arrested and detained by authorities for refusing to comply with the fFderal mandate.
Of course, the draft itself was controversial, especially in its demand for the children of proud mothers and fathers to enlist with the Armed Forces even if they did not support American involvement in Communist Southeast Asia. The key here, though, is that these boys, again, were technically of age to serve in the military.
While young adults were forced to participate in the Vietnam War, there were no instances of illegally abducted children. In other parts of the world, meanwhile, where war and civil conflicts in some areas are ongoing struggles that result in daily acts of violence, children are not only unfortunate civilian casualties, but frequently are made to fight on the front lines with guns taller than they are. Missing persons statistics estimate that over a quarter of a million abducted children are used by rebel forces worldwide as child soldiers. 

What You Need To Know About The International Parental Abduction in Japan

What You Need To Know About The International Parental Abduction in Japan

Perhaps no country better exemplifies the “conflict” in conflict of laws – both private and  international – than Japan. The island nation is notable for strict laws and policies protecting its residents from foreign influence. In cases of extradition law, for example, Japan is almost uniformly against surrendering its nationals to the custody of a separate nation.
In cases of family law, meanwhile, gross disparities between Japanese courts and those of outside lands are also apparent. Of particular concern to many are instances of parental kidnapping where a person of Japanese heritage without custody or acknowledgment of the other parent takes off for Japan with his or her child to live permanently. Parental abduction is, in fact, a serious problem in Japan and the world today, and may seem strange to American students of family law.
It should also be noted that parental abduction of a minor, as it does in other countries, may occur completely within the boundaries of Japan. Parental kidnapping creates de facto custody of the child due to the reluctance of Japanese law enforcement and courts to intervene in cases of divorce and personal custody matters.
Moreover, there is not much binding international precedent to compel Japan to more strictly officiate against parental abduction, at least until the nation becomes a signatory to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. 

Brazil

Brazil

The 1980 Hague Convention deals expressly with repatriating children in the case of international child abduction by a parent, guardian or non-guardian, or wrongful removal and retention in a foreign country after a planned trip to a foreign country.
Granted, there are methods for appeal against prompts for/rulings of missing children cases decided by Hague protocol, but only in instances where there is a “preponderance of evidence” that the left-behind parent does not have custody rights, that the left-behind parent did, in fact, consent to the stay abroad under current terms, or that the return of a child to his or her country of origin would endanger his or her safety.
In addition, even when international child abduction is committed by a parent, Hague court findings do not rewrite custody orders, but rather decide the jurisdiction and forum in which custody battles should take place.
Brazilian courts, meanwhile, have been criticized for their non-compliance with Hague standards on the subject of missing children cases related to international child abduction. This conflict of laws came to a head recently in the custody battle and international tug-of-war surrounding Sean Goldman, a New Jersey native who was brought by his mother, Bruna, a Brazilian national, to Brazil to live permanently after she went on vacation with Sean, requested a divorce with David, his father, and informed David she was deciding to keep him (Sean) in Brazil.
Under the Hague Convention, Sean should have been returned to the United States, as Mr. Goldman did not assent to this retention across international borders. Nonetheless, the Brazilian court overseeing this case ruled otherwise and in spite of a lack of a requisite written authorization waiving custody on David Goldman’s behalf citing Sean’s being established and content in Brazil, and later, with the death of his mother, stressing the importance of his development by awarding custody to his new stepfather.
Much diplomatic tension existed between the two nations before the matter was legally resolved and Sean Goldman returned to America with his father.

Important Information About The Rise in UK Child Abduction

Important Information About The Rise in UK Child Abduction

At first, child abduction may seem like a problem that is relegated to lawless and underdeveloped countries and areas where war and strife are omnipresent. Of course, no matter what country abducted children are taken to, the U.K. Foreign and Commonwealth Office, immigration officials and others in the United Kingdom are bound to be concerned with the rate of kidnappings that has transpired in the past decade. Nonetheless, efforts are still made – and should be – to understand the root causes of these crimes against children.
Geographically and culturally, a reason why kidnapped children may be taken to the aforementioned countries is not impossible to understand. For instance, with regard to Spain and Ireland, missing children’s numbers are made explicable by the proximity of the countries to one another. With illegal transport to the United States, its political and economic freedoms as well as the obvious shared heredity and common use of the English language make this individual trend comprehensible.
In the high rate of international parental abduction to Pakistan, the highest rate of illegal removal to any foreign nation from the U.K., Britain’s occupation of India (prior to the Partition of India and formation of Pakistan) and the significant interplay between British and Pakistani populations, especially with regard to the latter’s influx to the United Kingdom. More than this, though, spikes in crimes against children of the United Kingdom have resulted based on familial and economic changes.
For one, more international marriages are happening in the U.K., and with that, more divorces and more chances that missing children’s rates could increase relative to cases of international parental abduction of children. Additionally, cheaper rates of travel are leading to more trips overseas, and in turn, more temptations for foreign-born parents without full custody to take matters into their hands.