International Child Abductions Involving Military Parents On The Rise

By Christina Rentz

Published on October 11, 2005

Marriages between U.S. military personnel living overseas and non-U.S. citizens are commonplace in today's world of mass international communication and travel. However, child abductions involving the non-U.S. parent taking the child to live in a foreign country without the other parent's consent or knowledge are also on the rise.

According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in Washington, D.C., there are thousands of international child abduction cases involving military personnel stationed overseas each year. When these abductions occur, getting the child back or securing a relationship with the absent child is complex and difficult. In addition to the numerous international and local legal procedures that must be traversed, the custody battle may be complicated by the fact that the child has dual citizenship and never resided in the United States.

If the country to which the parent and child absconded signed the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction, then securing the return of an abducted child is much easier. This pact streamlines the return process by establishes clearly defined abduction laws. However, South Korea, the Philippines, and Japan are not part of the pact.

Because instances of parents successfully securing the return of an abducted child through litigation in foreign family courts are rare, the military has embarked on an on-going campaign to educate soldiers about international child abductions. By teaching soldiers about the problems that may arise from an international marriage and measures that may be taken to prevent international child abductions, military officials hope to reduce the occurrence of these abductions.

Comment on this article →