Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 72: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs further to Parliamentary Question No. 205 of 20 October 2010, if he will provide full details of the contact of the Irish authorities in Thailand and Kuala Lumpur with a person (details supplied); if the honorary consul approached the Thai authorities with the person when the most recent contact with the person took place; if he has appointed an official to liaise with the Thai authorities and the person, in view of the suspected abduction of an eight year old Irish citizen since June 2010; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39628/10]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 73: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs further to Parliamentary Question No 205 of 20 October 2010, if he will outline the procedure to be followed when an Irish citizen is abducted in a foreign territory; the level of support his Department offers families of the abducted; the communication that is customary between foreign authorities and the Department of Foreign Affairs in this situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39629/10]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 72 and 73 together.

Where a child is abducted in a foreign country our overriding concern would be for the welfare of the child. Custody issues would be a matter for a court to decide and my Department has no role as to how a court in a foreign jurisdiction might decide on such issues. If a child is abducted within a foreign country, such as in the case referred to in P.Q. No.205, the Irish Mission (in this case the Honorary Consul) in that country supported by our accredited Embassy, can offer consular assistance to an Irish parent. This assistance usually involves giving general advice to the parent including providing a list of English speaking lawyers, as has been done in this case, and information about the general legal procedures and customs in the country where the child has been taken. We may also be able to help a parent make contact with the relevant local authorities and organizations. However, our Missions cannot conduct searches or provide financial assistance for search operations.

Once a lawyer has been appointed we would expect that the lawyer would maintain contact with the police and court authorities in relation to the return of the child to the parent, or at least making an order as to custody etc. While every case is different, depending on legal systems in the State, our Missions can and do maintain contact with the relevant Government agencies to ensure that the process is working in an appropriate manner and that the child is brought before a court for a decision on appropriate custody arrangements. Our contact with the relevant authorities ensures that they are aware of our continuing interest in the case.

In the case in question, the position is that, as the abduction happened within a country, the Hague Convention on Abducted Children does not apply as the Convention only deals with cases of inter-country abduction.