Legislation of INTERPOL member states on missing Children

In 1999, 60 360 children were reported missing in Canada.

Non family abductions are very rare in Canada. In 1999, Canada reported a total of 52 stranger abductions. Studies indicates that nonfamily abductor tend to look for children between the ages of 0-10 (baby snatchers) and the age of 14-15 (female prostitution).

In 1999, Canada reported a total of 358 parental abductions. Of these reported cases, 184 of these children were abducted by a parent or guardian who did not have custody order whereas 174 children were abducted by a parent who had a custody order. Frequencies of parental abductions follows a seasonal trend : they peak at the end of summer, Christmas and Easter vacations.

Runaway child.

Out of the 60 360 reported missing children in Canada in 1999, 47 585 were runaways (78 %). British Columbia had the highest number of runaways, with 14 999 cases, followed by Ontario with 12 290.

Youth runaway for many reasons, including to rebel, assert their independence or to flee an environment of abuse. The Webster dictionary defines runaway as to leave quickly to avoid or escape something. Most of the time, youth believe running away is the best solution to a seemingly unbearable situation. According to many experts, running away is not part of an adolescent's normal development.

A definition of runaway is given by the Missing Children's Registry :

A runaway is a person under the age of 18 who flees home for an indefinite time. Generally speaking, the child leaves voluntarily without the permission of the parent or guardian.

Running away is never considered as a crime

The profile of a runaway is : 14-15 years, mostly female, from all ethnic groups and all social classes, often come from dysfunctional families, depressive and tend to have problems in school.

National legislations.

" Every person commits an offence who kidnaps a person with intent

1. to cause the person to be confined or imprisoned against the person's will
2. to cause the person to be unlawfully sent or transported out of Canada against the person's will ;or
3. to hold the person for ransom or to service against the person's will. "

" Every one takes a person hostage who

1. confines, imprisons, forcibly seizes or detains that person, and
2. in any matter utters, conveys or causes any person to receive athreat that the death of, or bodily harm to, the hostagewill be caused or that the confinement, imprisonment or detention of the hostage will be continued with intent to induce any person, other than the hostage, or any group of persons or any state or international or intergovernmental organization to commit or cause to be committed any act or omission under the condition, whether expressed or implied, of the release of the hostage. "

" Every one who, without lawful authority, takes or causes to be taken an unmarried person under the age of sixteen years out of the possession of and against the will of the parent or guardian of that person or of any other person having the lawful care or charge of that person is guilty of an indictible offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years. "

" Every one who, not being the parent, guardian or person having the lawful care or charge of a person under the age of fourteen years, unlawfully takes, entices away, conceals, detains, receives or harbours that person with intent to deprive a parent or guardian, or any person who has the lawful care or charge of that person, of the possession of that person is guilty of an indictible offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years. "

" (1) Every one who, being the parent, guardian or the person having the lawful care or charge of a person under the age of fourteen years, takes, entices away, conceals, detains, receives or harbors that person, in contravention of the custody provision of a custody order in relation to that person made by a court anywhere in Canada with intent to deprive a parent or guardian or any other person whose has the lawful care or charge of that person, of the possession of that person is guilty of :

" (2) Where a court charges an offence under subsection (1) and the offence is not proven only because the accused did not believe that there was a valid order but the evidence does prove an offence under section 283, the accused may be convicted of an offence under section 283"

The offence has two important items- age of the child and contravention of the custody provisions. Case law has established two important points in dealing with custody provisions :

1. Removal of the child or children from a geographically explained area without consent of the other party or a court order ;
2. Access rights- when one parent gives the child to the other parent for a court ordered access parent then the access parent takes lawful care or charge of that person. Therefore if the custodial parent denies access to the child then that person is contrevening the custody provision.

In offences of this nature, it must be kept in mind that custody order is subject to variation.

" (1) Every one who, being the parent, guardian or person having the lawful care or charge of a person under the age of fourteen years, takes, entices away, conceals, detains, receives or harbors that person, whether or not there is a custody order in relation to that person made by a court anywhere in Canada, with intent to deprive a parent or guardian, or any other person who has the lawful care or charge of that person, of the possession of that person is guilty of :

The defense in the Canadian Criminal Code under Section 284 is the consent of the parent, or under Section 285 to protect the child from danger of imminent harm or if person charged was escaping from danger or imminent harm.

In certain cases civil proceedings are usually used.

International texts.

Canada has signed Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction of 1980 in 1988.

Internationally, Canada Customs and Revenue Agency is signatory to 11 bilateral agreements with Canada's major trading partner for the prevention, investigation and repression of customs offences (with Australia, France, USA, Germany, Korea, The Netherlands, Russia, United Mexican States, European Union, Hong Kong and the United Kingdom).

It is also signatory to a number of multilateral agreements linking 153 States that are party to the World Customs Organization.

The difficulty experienced by a number of foreign customs administrations in responding to Canadian requests relating to transborder movements of missing or abducted children is created by domestic legislation and the roles, mandates and responsabilities given to individual customs administrations.

• Police investigations.

The investigation can differ from one police department to the other. However, investigations include the following :

• Organize the search of the child and the parental or stranger abductor ;

• Provide a support system to the victim's family ;

• Inform the victim's family of the progression of the investigation ;

• Communicate with media and liaise with voluntary organizations.

Whenever a child is reported missing, police officers go over the circumstances that led to disappearance : the family context, the school context, the emotional and psychological state of the child, especially as far as runaway child is concerned.

In nonfamily abductions cases, children are considered to be in extreme and imminent danger.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police Missing Children's Registry (MCR) was established in 1986 to help investigate missing children cases in Canada. The MCR will assist investigators by conducting operational research in investigative methods, problem resolution and / or any other issue on missing children. The Registry has developed particular expertise in international cases.

The MCR maintains and monitors files on missing children in Canada. The Registry is linked to the Canadian Police Information Center (CPIC) Missing Person Files and automatically receives unsolicited messages whenever a police department in Canada adds, modifies or removes a missing child record. By accessing the unsolicited messages, the Registry is able to liaise with the police departments investigating the missing child report.

Additionally, the Registry acts as an information center, providing research findings on missing children from a procincial and national perspective. Police departments use this service on an ongoing basis.

CANADIAN POLICE INFORMATION CENTER (CPIC)

The CPIC is a database managed by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCPM) which contains all reported cases of missing children entered by the investigative agency in the Missing Person Files.

Police officers can also liaise with other computer information systems which are :

• Field Operation Support System (FOSS) which is a database managed by Citizenship and Immigration Canada. This may be helpful in international abduction cases.

• Integrated Customs Enforcement System (ICES) which is a database managed by Canada Customs.

• Police Information Retrieval Systems (PIRS) which is a RCMP database in which all missing children lookouts are entered.

• Primary automated lookout System (PALS) which is a database for Customs and immigration Officers containing missing children lookouts.

RCMP Missing Children's Registry is the Canadian response center for missing children. However, in 1991, Canada Customs Missing Children Program - International Project Return - and the RCMP Missing Children's Registry co-located their respective programs. Later in 1994 and 1996 respectively they joined forces with Citizenship and Immigration Canada and the Departmentof Foreign Affairs and International Trade to form a partnership under the " OUR MISSING CHILDREN " program.

Although each department has its own function within the program, they operate as one unit to assist police forces and other concerned agencies across Canada and internationally in locating and returning missing children.

For example, over 3500 customs officers have been trained in technics to indentify and recover missing children at Canadian borders and airports. A new legislation which was implemented in the summer 1999 gives customs officers more powers to react in abduction situations such as to arrest without a warrant.

The RCMP also works very closely with United States's National Crime Information Center and FBI.

INTERPOL

The use of INTERPOL's Red or Yellow notices to help in the location missing children or children abductors in the international field is an effective mean to progress in the investigation.

CANADIAN NON-PROFIT AGENCIES

Part of the mandate given to the MCR was to improve the working relationship between police and non-profit organizations, that work in the field of missing children. In Canada, MCR recognizes the following Non-Profit Organizations :

1. The Missing Children's Society of Canada
2. Child Find Canada.
3. North America Missing Children Association
4. W.C.M FaxFind
5. Operation Go Home
6. Missing Children's Network
7. Victims of Violence / Canadian Center for Missing Children.

Their mission is to work with the parents and as a source of information for the law enforcement agencies. This enables the police to concentrate their efforts in locating the child.

MCR and the NCMEC in the United States work closely and try to provide a service available to all North America.

INTERNATIONAL SOCIAL SERVICES (ISS)

ISS is an international agency that normally does not help to locate missing but will intervene after the child has been found by attempting mediation to allow the reurn of the child.

In the international field, agencies such as the INTERNATIONAL RED CROSS and SALVATION ARMY TRACING SERVICE will assist in attempting to locate a missing person.

Media (Tv, Internet ...)

The Registry uses the media as much as possible to publicize the photographs of the missing children. It has worked with TV networks to develop programs, print media and radio. Any type of coverage that informs the public will be used.

The Registry will also provide informations on the internet http://ourmissingchildren.ca website.

The Internet website provides an overview of the services offered by the four partners : (RCMP, Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, Citizenship and Immigration and the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade). The main objective is to assit in the investigation, interception, recovery and reunification of missing children and their legal guardian.

You can reach the MCR by telephoning 613-993-1525 or toll free for Canada and the United States 1-877-318-3576. For all other countries, contact telephone 613-993-1525. These phone numbers may be used for anonymous calls, registering complaints and collecting information about cases involving missing children.

V. Address, telephone number and facsimile

"Our Missing Children"
c/o Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Missing Children's Registry
1200 Vanier Parkway
P.O. Box 8885
Ottawa, Ontario K1G 3M8
telephone (613) 993-1525 or toll free (877) 318-3576
facsimile (613) 993-5430

Legislation of INTERPOL member states on missing Children