On Saturday 10th June, we were very kindly invited as guests to a Gentleman's Evening with the Ladies (and their gentlemen) of the Costa Blanca Lodge of Tranquility No 52 at the beautiful Hotel Montepiedra.
The ladies of the lodge have supported Reunite International Child Abduction Centre in 2016 and 2017. Their kindness, hard work and generosity is greatly appreciated by all at Reunite as well as the many parents who contact the charity for help, support and advice.
The mediation service is a vital part of reunite and as such, they decided to use the generous donations in 2016 to make improvements to their two mediation rooms so they can provide parents with a comfortable, tranquil space when attending meetings and mediation.
The evening was very enjoyable and had the most amazing menu and surroundings. I would highly recommend this hotel for all who wish to stay here or organise an event in the future.
Sadly, representitives from Reunite could not attend the event this year, however, I was honoured to be able to give a speech about the charity and the work that they do on their behalf
Thank you all for your continued support and friendship
Thank you so much for your continued support in 2016. Our efforts and
your kindness has now raised an amazing £6,222 in total for Reunite International Child Abduction Centre through One Day Closer.
A special thank you to Costa Blanca Tranquillity Lodge, as well as the The Fire Station
bar, Shani and Andy Ormiston, all the football teams competing in the
Reunite International Shield including the singers who entertained in
the evening events, those who supported my skydive and also a huge thank
you to Michelle Clark who has been my rock during all of this. One more day closer... https://www.justgiving.com/teams/reunite-spain
At the beginning of the month, it was announced that the government has decided to opt in to the
recast of the EU legislation known as the Brussels IIa regulation. The
regulation outlines procedures to be used in cross-border family issues
within the EU, such as the recognition of existing court orders and the
abduction of children between EU states, and is currently being used by
UK courts.
Reunite took part in the government’s consultation on
the recast of Brussels IIa, and whether the UK should opt in to further
discussions. They stated that the government shares their view that it
is important for the UK to be part of the recast, even with Brexit on
the horizon.
Reunite feel the impact of the proposed changes on families
within the EU, including the families or British nationals living in
other EU states, could be significant.
Reunite made a submission to the Justice Committee’s consultation on ‘the implications of Brexit for the justice system’ shortly following the announcement.
The EU’s Brussels IIa regulation is currently integrated into UK national law. Brussels IIa allows for orders in relation to parental
responsibility to be recognised from one EU Member State to another, and
adds extra obligations on Member States for the benefit of children in
inter-EU 1980 Hague abduction cases.
As a
result, leaving the EU and potentially losing this key piece of
legislation is going to have an impact on UK law and international
family cases, and this needs to be taken into consideration by Parliament
whatever happens next.
Reunite hopes that their submission will be beneficial to the consultation and
ultimately help to inform Parliament to make the best decisions for
families and abducted children.
On the 17th November, Reunite organised a parents get together in London. This was a great opportunity to have a chat and share experiences with
other parents and a few members of the reunite team over a drink and
some nibbles.
They organise these meetings every second month. If you would like to attend one of the future meetings, send an email to Mitta at reunite@dircon.co.uk who will send you further details.
Sadly, several new cases were reported during the month of November involving UK, Spain, Poland and Jamaica. Reunite aim provide ongoing advice and support to the parents who speak with them and work with them towards what will hopefully be a positive outcome
for their children.
If you are affected by Parental Child Abduction and need advice, please call the Reunite International Child Abduction Centre advice line - 0044 (0)116 2556 234.
Later in the month, Reunite hosted a seminar with the British Embassy in Seoul on the 1980 Hague
Convention, with the aim of informing local lawyers about child
abduction and how the 1980 Hague Convention works.
There were a number of speakers, who included the Hague Permanent Bureau,
Judge Kim and Professor Suk from Korea, the Korean Central Authority,
Justice Bennett from Australia, John Mellor of CAFCASS, Anne-Marie
Hutchinson and our Reunite's Alison Shalaby.
Reunite hope that this seminar has helped to increase knowledge and
confidence amongst professionals, in an effort to secure the best
possible outcomes for the children in 1980 Hague cases.
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Also, late in November, Reunite's Sam Chapman attended the Embassy Consular Conference, talking about the work of reunite with
FCO's Consular Director, Julia Longbottom, and London's consular
community.
Here in Spain, we would like to offer our huge appreciation to the Costa Blanca Tranquillity Lodge for their continued support for the Reunite International Child Abduction Centre Charity. Through their efforts, they have raised approximately £1,500 that will be used towards updating the centre offices.
We would also like to give our best wishes and support to Shani Ormiston, who has supported the charity for a number of years through events and cd sales.
Her latest release "You Gotta Let It Go" can be seen on YouTube
We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Costa Blanca Tranquility Lodge for their support this year. It really means so much to the charity that they have selected Reunite International Child Abduction Centre as their nominated charity for 2016.
The Gentleman's evening was held at the beautiful Clock House (La Casa del Reloj) in San Pedro del Pinatar and it was wonderful to see Samantha Chapman and Joanne Orton from Reunite flying over from UK to be at the event.
Thank you so much to Jemmy, Linda and all at the Lodge as well as the staff at Clock House and JJ (entertainment) for making it such a lovely event.
