Leave to remove a child: Pakistan and child abduction

When parents separate, deciding where the children will live is one of the most important but difficult decisions to make. The increase in multi-cultural marriages and relationships over the years has given rise to an increased number of parents wishing to move abroad with the children after separating from the other parent, often to be closer to family.

In order to remove a child from England & Wales to live abroad, the parent will need the permission of every person who has parental responsibility for the child. Often the other parent will not give permission and the parent wishing to leave will need to apply to the court for an order for ‘leave to remove’ the child.

In a few cases, the parent may decide to leave the UK with the child without obtaining permission from the other parent or the court. Once the child has left the UK, the law that applies to have that child returned will depend on where the child in taken to live.

If the child is abducted to a country that is a party to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction 1980 (the Hague Convention) then this Convention will apply. If a child is abducted to an EU country, the Brussels II Regulation will apply (except for Denmark) and gives more guidance on how to apply the Hague Convention between EU member states.

Even more difficulty arises if the country is not a party to the Hague Convention and this is highlighted by the well-reported problems of retrieving children abducted to Pakistan. In 2012, there were approximately 40 reported cases of child abduction from the UK to Pakistan.

As Pakistan is not a party to the Hague Convention, this creates serious difficulties in retrieving a child. There is also no extradition treaty between the UK and Pakistan so a parent will struggle to seek extradition of the other parent back to the UK. However, there is an agreement called the ‘Protocol (Child Abduction Cases between the UK and Pakistan (2003)’ which aims to assist co-operation between the countries in child abduction cases.

The parent wanting the child returned will have to make an application to the courts in Pakistan and be reliant on the Pakistani judicial system alone. The case of Atiya Anjum-Wilkinson Atiya was reported recently when she was finally returned to the UK after being abducted in 2009 and taken to Pakistan by her father. This case highlights that child abduction to Pakistan remains a serious issue and can take years to resolve.

In a promising move, Pakistan's interim law minister recently indicated that the Pakistani government will now ratify the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of Child Abduction. In a speech concluding a day-long consultation, Mr Ahmer Bilal Soofi said:

"My ministry will examine it. We genuinely believe that this convention should be adopted."

The meeting heard that the number of child abduction cases has risen primarily due to the mass exodus of Pakistanis to foreign countries over the last few decades. The ministers comments bring hope that the Hague Convention could be ratified by Pakistan. This would assist many families who are fighting for the return of a child from the country.