The United States wants India to sign a multilateral treaty on child abduction that will help tackle cases where parents' non-compatibility leads to child trauma.
NEW DELHI: The United States wants India to sign a multilateral treaty on child abduction that will help tackle cases where parents' non-compatibility leads to child trauma and forcible separation from one of his or her parent - at times across continents.
Citing about 45 instances in which children were allegedly forcibly brought to India from the US, American Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Maura Harty, drew the attention of Indian law ministry officials to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction during her recent visit here.
Harty told that she tried to put across the point that governments could come together to do a lot to ensure that children were treated well and cases involving 'abduction' by parents could be resolved expeditiously.
Harty, who is understood to have voiced concerns of American citizens - predominantly of Indian origin - who seek consular help for keeping in touch with their separated children brought to India, said "I simply come here to urge the Indian government authorities to consider becoming Hague signatories."
The Americans are insisting on India signing the Treaty as it states that in case of a child custody dispute, the case should be heard in a court with jurisdiction over the habitual residence of child. This, in most of the 45 cases - which involve a total of 55 children - cited by American officials, would mean a court in the US.
"The Hague convention does not decide which parent gets the child but it decides which court has jurisdiction over the issue," said Harty, in a bid to dispel doubts that a court abroad may be unsympathetic to an India-based parent's request for possession of the child.
Asked about the outcome of the talks with Indian official during her current visit, she said "I have heard promising remarks backwards...I don't know where the question itself stands within the government of India."
She said the meeting with Indian officials was to explore possibilities for doing "anything that we together can do to make sure children are treated well...(so that) cases like these are not in limbo and we are able to see cases little bit expeditiously through the system".
According to officials of the US Embassy here, there have been several cases in the past in which American citizens had sent requests to the consulates here to enquire and reportabout the state and well-being of a child, a US citizen in a bulk of the cases.
Recalling a peculiar case of child trauma, an official said a parent in India once denied consular access to a child, who was a US citizen, and prevented officials to repare a report on the child's health and living condition.
The consul had tried to meet the child on a request from one of his parent based in the US. The official added they had also received a case where a child from India was forcibly taken to the US by one of his parent.
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