Home > Child Abduction
There has been a constant increase in the number of mixed-culture relationships and marriage in society. Multicultural relationships tend to get even more complicated when they disintegrate. Consequently, parental child abduction has become a rather important issue.
International child abductions are frequently referred to as parental child abductions since in 98 % of the cases the abductor is one of the parents. Many of those who have moved to the country of their partner may feel rather lonely when their relationship ends. Insufficient language knowledge often limits their ability to deal with the authorities and courts. They also do not know the law and it is rather difficult for them to estimate how to act in a different cultural setting. To be in a lack of friends or a feeling that foreign authorities do not defend their rights properly, it is common that one feels excluded, without support and being discriminated. Aside of common differences, a relationship may be disrupted by pathological problems such as alcohol or drug abuse by one of the partners, domestic violence, intense religious belief etc. There are no easy solutions to such problems even if local authorities or non-profit organizations can offer their help.
It is necessary to keep in mind that every child has two parents, both of which have equal right to raise him/her. On the other hand, children are not their parents' property. They have right to keep contact with both parents, to be raised by both of them, and to learn from them about their culture, language and traditions of their countries of origin.
More information about this issue can be also found in the leaflet "International family in crisi" in 
Czech (2.4 MB, Adobe Acrobat document) and in English (6.8 MB, Adobe Acrobat document).
