Child abduction alert system
Currently, there are Child Alert systems in 21 European countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
Its activities cover prevention and awareness-raising, training, research, and child alerting, as well as launching initiatives aimed at impacting policies and legislation in the area of children’s rights.
Since then, its network has expanded and now encompasses different experts from a variety of backgrounds who make their know-how and experiences available to improve existing practices and procedures for a fast and safe recovery of children gone missing.
If, after a proper risk assessment, it is believed that the life or health of a missing child is in imminent danger, police can decide to issue a national AMBER Alert.
Where images of missing children are disseminated, it should be done with the consent of the parents or legal representative, and taking into account the need to balance the risks faced by the child with his or her right to privacy.
Therefore, the impact of this must be assessed by law enforcement agencies (e.g. police or public prosecutor) taking into consideration article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and national legislation.
The system enables the police to immediately alert press and public nationwide, using any medium available – from electronic highway signs, to TV, radio, social media such as Facebook and Twitter, pop-up and screensavers on PC's, large advertising screens (digital signage), e-mail, SMS text messages, smartphone apps, printable posters, RSS newsfeeds and website banners and pop-ups.
A missing child is considered endangered when there is an immediate and significant risk of harm but the case does not reach the criteria for an AMBER Alert.
[21] The system works in a way, where in the local area of the suspected abduction, radio and television broadcasts are immediately interrupted (even in some cases during mid-speech) and listeners/viewers are provided details of anything to look out for.
In England, the counties of Hampshire, Leicestershire, Surrey, Sussex, Gloucestershire, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Norfolk, Derbyshire, Suffolk, Thames Valley, Wiltshire, and Somerset, and the London Metropolitan Police Service, have adopted a similar program called the Child Rescue Alert system.
[32] On 3 October 2012, the first child rescue alert since the system was introduced, was issued in the search for April Jones, who was abducted near her home in the market town of Machynlleth in Mid-Wales.
[38] The development, promotion and operation of the system is funded initially by the players of the People's Postcode Lottery[39] via the Dreamfund, the European Union and through the help of other supporters.
The AMBER Alert system is a notification to the general public, by media outlets in Canada and in the United States, issued when police confirm that a child has been abducted.
