Holding a Study Visit to Paris for Examining the Child Abduction Alert System

The event was organized under the Project Italian Child Abduction Alert System (ICAAS) with the involvement of experts from the Italian SIRENE Office (which is part of the Service of International Police Cooperation of the Ministry of the Interior) who is the project leader, from the Comando Generale dei Carabinieri, as well as from Interpol, the State Police, the Italian Ministry of Justice and Formez.
The French alert system “Alerte enlèvement” in the case of  child kidnapping was launched in France in February 2006, although the preliminary works were embarked on with a study visit to Canada in 2004. At the conclusion of the latter, a work group was created in France composed of representatives from the Ministry of Justice, the Prosecutor’s Office, the Police, the National “Gendarmerie”, the High Audiovisual Council and the Association of the Parents of the Victims. 
The following year, in 2005, a meeting was organized in which the national media took part for the purpose of outlining the objectives of the alert system and of submitting an initial hypothesis about their involvement.
The French alert system aims at launching an announcement on all TV and radio channels as well as on lighting boards in train stations and highways, thus encouraging people to get in touch with the Police as soon as they see a child being kidnapped or the alleged kidnappers in action. The message will be broadcast by the French authorities, repeatedly for three hours, on all TV channels as an advert or through TV news anchors or by means of superimposed lines. The alert in France is launched by the Prosecutor’s Office (which is different from the Swiss system which provides that the alert is authorized by the cantonal Police and broadcast by the Federal Police at national level) only in extraordinary cases and when the following circumstances occur: in the case of certain child abduction; physical integrity of the victim or their kidnapper; supply of the necessary elements for spotting the victims or their kidnappers.
Since its establishment three years ago, the alert system has been used only in 9 cases in as much as in no case the alert can imply endangering the child’s life.
The Italian experts will conclude the cycle of study visits in Prague in mid March, as provided, for examining in detail the peculiarities of the blind system.