Petition to: Vice President Mike Pence
SIGN: American children kidnapped by Norway's Barnevernet
SIGN: American children kidnapped by Norway's Barnevernet
In September 2018, a Christian family moved to Norway from the United States. Less than a year later, on May 20th, the children were forcefully kidnapped by Norway's notorious Child Protective Services (Barnevernet).
The mother, Natalya, is an American citizen. Her husband is Lithuanian. Their three children, ages age 7 to 11, were born in the US and are American citizens.
On Friday, May 17th, just three days before the children were kidnapped, the oldest daughter received a phone for her birthday. Over the weekend, her misbehavior caused Natalya to take away the phone until her behavior improved.
On Monday, May 20th, the daughter spoke about this incident at school. That night, Norway's Barnevernet broke into the family's house with the police. The kids were already asleep. They were ripped out of their beds and removed from the house. The entire family was kept in police custody for 24 hours and interrogated separately for three hours each. The children were then sent to foster care in a city an hour away.
Barnevernet has insinuated that the reason that they took the children was because they believed that the children didn't have a proper routine. In Norway this, and pretty much anything, can be considered "neglect“ or "potential future neglect," and can be used as grounds to remove a child.
It took over a month for this story to break because the parents were told that if they talked to anyone before June 11th they could be put into prison for up to two years.
On June 6th, the family had a court hearing. It was decided that the children should remain in foster care. Starting June 11th, the parents were allowed to see the children once a week for an hour. It took another week for them to actually see their children, which meant that they hadn't seen them for an entire month!
This petition is directed to US Vice President Mike Pence. Our hope is that he will investigate this case, since the children and mother are American citizens. We are asking Vice President Pence to demand evidence from Norway of true neglect, and not mere cultural differences or appropriate discipline. If this evidence does not exist, Vice President Pence should demand that the children be returned to their family.
As you may know, this isn't the first time Barnevernet has forcefully removed an American child from its parents. CitizenGO recently ran a petition regarding a similar case involving a baby named Tyler and his American mother Amy.
Please sign this urgent petition so that this family can be reunited!
---
More information and an interview with the mother:
https://stepup4childrensrights.com/three-american-children-taken/
Complete your signature
Sign this petition now!
Investigate Government Kidnapping of American Children in Norway
Dear Vice President Michael Pence,
I am writing to ask for your urgent help. On Monday, May 20th, three American children were kidnapped by Norway's notorious Child Protective Services (Barnevernet). The children, ages 7 to 11, are all American citizens. Their mother, Natalya, is also an American citizen.
A few days before their kidnapping, the oldest daughter was given a cell phone for her birthday. The daughter's misbehavior over the weekend caused her mother to take away this privilege until the behavior was corrected. Prior to this incident, a school teacher had expressed concern to Natalya because her daughter didn't always bring a lunch to school (the daughter was apparently hiding her packed lunches in her backpack because she didn't like them). Barnavarnet has insinuated that there was a lack of routine for the children, and that this "potential neglect" was enough reason to remove the children from their parents.
I hope we can agree that none of this evidence warrants forcefully removing children from their parents.
Natalya and her husband were not allowed to see their children for over a month. Now, they are only allowed supervised weekly visits for two hours. I cannot imagine the emotional trauma this has caused for the children and their parents.
I am pleading with you. Will you look to look into this case? Demand that Norway give you all evidence they have of mistreatment. If the evidence is inadequate, as I believe it may be, please step in to help this family.
An American family in Norway is counting on your help.
Investigate Government Kidnapping of American Children in Norway
Dear Vice President Michael Pence,
I am writing to ask for your urgent help. On Monday, May 20th, three American children were kidnapped by Norway's notorious Child Protective Services (Barnevernet). The children, ages 7 to 11, are all American citizens. Their mother, Natalya, is also an American citizen.
A few days before their kidnapping, the oldest daughter was given a cell phone for her birthday. The daughter's misbehavior over the weekend caused her mother to take away this privilege until the behavior was corrected. Prior to this incident, a school teacher had expressed concern to Natalya because her daughter didn't always bring a lunch to school (the daughter was apparently hiding her packed lunches in her backpack because she didn't like them). Barnavarnet has insinuated that there was a lack of routine for the children, and that this "potential neglect" was enough reason to remove the children from their parents.
I hope we can agree that none of this evidence warrants forcefully removing children from their parents.
Natalya and her husband were not allowed to see their children for over a month. Now, they are only allowed supervised weekly visits for two hours. I cannot imagine the emotional trauma this has caused for the children and their parents.
I am pleading with you. Will you look to look into this case? Demand that Norway give you all evidence they have of mistreatment. If the evidence is inadequate, as I believe it may be, please step in to help this family.
An American family in Norway is counting on your help.
