Topic: Traveling to Foreign Countries

International Law Primer: UPDATED: 2-8-16 International Megan's Law was approed by Congress and signed into law by President Obama on 2-8-16. Right now everyone is thinking only about what is being said about IML, but the real question is, how can they possibly implement such a disastrous law. Given this writer knows they will do so through SORNA but immediately a problem, only 17 states are in compliance, 34 are not. Think about that and start thinking about the meaning of Due Process. We also need to see what happens with the Federal Lawsuit by CA-RSOL over IML. Court on 4-13-16 Says: Too Soon to Fight Sex Offender Passport Mark ---More later---. Note what Barnett Howard & Williams PLLC in Fort Worth, Texas has to say on IML All men and women not incarcerated have certain International Law Rights granted them in two United Nations documents: A) Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) (1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state. (2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country. B) International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights(ICCPR) (1) Everyone lawfully within the territory of a State shall, within that territory, have the right to liberty of movement and freedom to choose his residence. (2) Everyone shall be free to leave any country, including his own. (3) The above-mentioned rights shall not be subject to any restrictions except those which are provided by law, are necessary to protect national security, public order (ordre public), public health or morals or the rights and freedoms of others, and are consistent with the other rights recognized in the present Covenant. Those familiar with U.S. Sex Offender laws knows the above rights are violated regularly. Given the U.S. does not assess a registrant's dangerousness to the community in any meaningful way, when the U.S. notifies a foreign country that a registrant, considered dangerous or implies dangerousness, is coming to their country, the U.S. falsely portrays that registrant and does so without a hearing; a form of harassment legalized. Unfortunately the U.S. has not ratified these documents without exceptions so registrants cannot raise issues in U.S. courts. Ratified or not violations occur regularly in U.S. laws. With the above in mind.... General Restrictions: Traveling to Foreign Countries (i.e., International Megans Law): Note: Persons on Parole, Probation, Supervised Release or Other State/Federal Supervision: It would be wise to FIRST Plan your trip, listing everywhere you wish to go, then before going, get your Supervising Agent's written approval, without that you will likely be arrested! During the 111th Congress there was a bill called "International Megan's Law" the intent of which was to place restrictions on registrants leaving the USA. That bill did not pass, but, the SMART Office still added all the International Megan's Law restrictions into the Supplemental Guidelines when they added Guidelines for the Kid's Act on 1-11-2011 (Yes a sly trick of the SMART Office). (Note: The SMART Office is the "Voice" of the U.S. AG with respect to sex offenders) Accordingly, there are restrictions on all registrants through the Final Supplemental Guidelines passed on January 11, 2011. Given these are Guidelines, States are supposed to enact them into state registry laws. Your state may or may not have done that yet. Ask the folks who handle your local registry to be sure. The following is the verbatim Federal requirements for ALL registrants (Effective no matter what): International Travel Part II.A of these supplemental guidelines exercises ‘‘[t]he authority under 42 U.S.C. 16914(a)(7) to expand the range of required registration information * * * to provide that registrants must be required to inform their residence jurisdictions of intended travel outside of the United States at least 21 days in advance of such travel.’’ NOTE: For readers who wish to read the full text of the SMART Office's DOUBLESPEAK on what they have done with regards to the Supp. Guidelines and International Travel, we have stored that portion of the Supp. Guidelines HERE for your viewing. The full Supp. Guidelines are available on this government website: HERE Restrictions on Entering Foreign Countries: If your vacation takes you abroad (to a foreign country) it is best to know if they will even allow you to enter their country before getting there. Canadian laws have changed recently see this article: Canadian travel restrictions based on criminal record Mexico is a NEW problem w/their new Laws check with the Mexican Gov't info on the U.S. State Dep't website We are looking for their new laws and will post BI BANS ALIEN SEX OFFENDERS IN THE PHILIPPINES see their Press Release: " Foreign nationals who are registered sex offenders in other countries are not welcome to visit the Philippines. Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Siegfred B. Mison yesterday said any alien whose name is found in the registry of sex offenders as may be provided by a foreign embassy will be issued an order to leave. In an operations order to the Bureau personnel, Mison stated that foreign nationals who are registered sex offenders clearly pose a threat to public safety. ..." Foreign child molesters not allowed in Sri Lanka - CPA writes to UNICEF 3-21-2013: The Child Protection Authority states that it is initiating a special program to prevent foreign child molesters from arriving in Sri Lanka. The CPA has also written to UNICEF requesting assistance to prevent individuals who have had involvement in child molestation activities in foreign countries from arriving in Sri Lanka as tourists. ... See what happened to Russell Brand and the Rolling Stones in Japan No joke could get Russell Brand out of this mess. While joining wife Katy Perry on her World Tour in Asia, Brand was detained by Japanese authorities on Sunday after it was learned of his past arrest record which consists of drug offenses and public indecency. Though the offenses happened more than 10 years ago, and Russell Brand has reformed himself, his past clashes with Japan’s anti drug laws forcing them to deport Brand out of the country. Both Perry and Brand took to Twitter to talk of the incident. “So my husband just got deported from Japan. I am so sad,” Katy posted on Twitter early Sunday morning. “I brought him all this way to show him my favorite place.” Brand took the opportunity to make fun of the situation, “Planning escape from Japanese custody,” he tweeted. “It’s bloody hard to dig a tunnel with a chopstick.” Brand joins the ranks of Legendary rock band Rolling Stones who struggled for years to gain entry to Japan, whose immigration laws strictly prohibit individuals with drug convictions coming into the island nation. However, exceptions are occasionally made, and the Rolling Stones were eventually allowed in despite drug convictions among the band’s members. Note: As you review what is shown on the State Dep't website, remember, the two stories above, and for those countries there is zero about convictions. We have seen a few countries mention criminal convictions but not many even though they will reject folks (I.e., above stories). Every country has a place to contact to ask questions, it would be wise BEFORE going to check lest you go and they reject you, and you lose all the money spent on getting there. Critical Information: How to Deal With Medical Issues Abroad: This is very important esp. for women and children: How to Deal With Medical Issues Abroad. Make sure you follow the embedded links. Remember, your are the human in a foreign land, and maybe do not speak their language. U.S. State Department: Great website jammed with necessary info: The U.S. State Department has a wonderful website jam packed with information about Passports and Alerts in other countries, and every country' entrance requirements. The State Dept even covers medical and prescription information. Now CLICK HERE to get to the U.S. State Department website, then look on the lower left where it says "Learn About Your Destination" just INPUT a country NAME and learn all about it. Unfortunately you need to know how to spell the COUNTRY NAME (which used to be provided) so HERE is a link to the names of every country in the world. BTW: Within that list is further information about each country you may want to review, including maps. Please remember to review the State Department Travel "Alerts and Warnings" as they change frequently. Additional Links: World Embassy Finder Foreign Ministries For now, thats about it. Enjoy your trip and stay safe. If you have problems at borders, etc. while traveling: There is a Federal Agency where you can complain about the problem/s you encountered. It is called: DHS Traveler Redress Inquiry Program (DHS TRIP) follow the procedure to file your complaint. Have a great trip. Arrested in a Foreign Country: What if you are arrested in a foreign country? Findlaw.com has this very interesting article on that subject. Thats about it folks, so plan ahead, and have a good time. For now, have a great day and a better tomorrow. eAdvocate (BACK to the Top Page)