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The '''[[fathers' rights movement]]''' has evolved in many countries. This article provides details about the fathers' rights movement in specific countries.


==Australia==
{{main|Fathers' rights movement in Australia}}
Fathers' rights groups began in Australia in the 1970s with the founding of organizations such as the Lone Fathers Association. Other well-known groups include Equality for Fathers, Dads Against Discrimination, Dads in Distress, Fathers Without Rights, The Men's Confraternity and the Shared Parenting Council.<ref name=kaye>{{cite journal
| last =Kaye
| first =Miranda
| authorlink =
| coauthors =Julia Tolmie
| title =Fathers' Rights Groups in Australia and their Engagement with Issues in Family Law
| journal =Australian Journal of Family Law
| volume =12
| issue =
| pages =pp 19–68
| publisher =
| year =1998
| url =http://sisyphe.org/IMG/doc/doc-656.doc
| doi =
| id =
| accessdate = 2007-03-24 }}</ref> As with other fathers' rights activists, Australian organizations focus on issues of erosion of the family unit, custody, access, child support, [[domestic violence]] (including false allegations, and violence against men), [[child abuse]], maintenance, the reintroduction of fault into divorce proceedings, biased and adversarial court systems and secrecy issues. Groups have successfully garnered media, as well as influence on politicians and legal reform.<ref name=kaye/> On May 22, 2006, Australia passed the "Family Law Amendment (Shared Parental Responsibility) Act 2006" making both parents responsible for decisions about their child through the concept of ‘equal shared parental responsibility’.<ref name ="Layman's Guide">{{cite journal
| author =Watts McCray Lawyers
| title =A Layman's Guide to the Family Law Amendment (Shared Parental Responsibility) Act 2006
| version =
| publisher =
| year =2006
| url =http://www.wattsmccray.com.au/laymansguide/laymans_guide.pdf
| format =pdf
| accessdate = 2007-03-25 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070104125950/http://www.wattsmccray.com.au/laymansguide/laymans_guide.pdf <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-01-04}}</ref> The Act requires courts to consider an order that the child spend equal amounts of time with each parent under certain circumstances, but the Act does not state that courts must order that the child spend equal amounts of time with each parent.<ref name ="Layman's Guide"/><ref>{{cite journal
| author =Watts McCray Lawyers
| title =SOME PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS OF THE FAMILY LAW AMENDMENT
| version =
| publisher =
| year =2006
| url =http://www.wattsmccray.com.au/pages/content.asp?pid=468&agid=&action=preview
| format =pdf
| accessdate = 2007-04-20 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070626085718/http://www.wattsmccray.com.au/pages/content.asp?pid=468&agid=&action=preview <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-06-26}}</ref> While Dad's in Distress expressed both appreciation of the Act as a small step in the right direction and concern whether the changes would be taken seriously by Family Law Practitioners<ref>{{cite press release
| title =Dads in Distress Welcome new changes
| publisher =Fatherhood Foundation
| date =2006-06-29
| url =http://www.dadsindistress.asn.au/news481.html
| accessdate =2007-04-20}}</ref> and Barry Williams, national president and founder of the Lone Fathers Association, stated, "I think these new laws are going to be the best in 30 years",<ref>{{cite press release
| title =New law agony for divorced fathers
| publisher =Fatherhood Foundation
| date =2006-07-02
| url =http://www.dadsindistress.asn.au/news486.html
| accessdate =2007-04-20}}</ref> The Men's Confraternity welcomed the changes but also expressed disppointment and stated that the Act does not "force the Court to view parents as equals."<ref>{{cite press release
| title =Submission by Men's Confraternity
| publisher =Parliament of Australia
| date =2006-07-15
| url =http://www.aph.gov.au/house/committee/laca/familylaw/subs/sub40.pdf
|format=PDF| accessdate =2007-04-20}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
| title =Men's Confraternity discuss Family Lawyer Tricks
| publisher =Men's Confraternity
| date =
| url =http://www.mensconfraternity.org.au/?page=p13
| accessdate =2007-04-20}}</ref><br />
Fathers' rights groups in Australia have condemned the actions of a militant men's group that engaged in criminal activities, including stalking and harassment.<ref name =angry>{{cite book
|last=Flood
|first=Michael
| authorlink = Michael Flood
| coauthors =
|editor=Stacey Elin Rossi
|others=
|title=The Battle and Backlash Rage On
|format=pdf
|accessdate=2007-09-16
|year=2004
|publisher=Xlibris Corporation
|chapter=Angry Men's Movements
| chapterurl = http://www.xyonline.net/downloads/backlash.pdf
}}</ref>

==Belgium==

Since Sep 2006 the Belgian federal law on "co-parenté" came into effect.
It introduced a presumption of dual location or shared residency which by
law should be taken into serious consideration and thorough investigation
with priority in each individual case by the Belgian family courts and
judges on the request of either one of the divorcing parents separately.
Immediate court-access can also be requested by one parent, when additional
reinforcement orders are necessary.

==Canada==

In an attempt to pass a law creating a rebuttable presumption for shared parenting, several fathers' rights groups launched an action in the [[Federal Court of Canada]] to overturn the child custody provisions of the existing federal Divorce Act claiming that the legal test used to decide which parent obtains custody is biased against fathers, thereby violating the discrimination based on sex provisions of the [[Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms]], as well as the United Nations [[Convention on the Rights of the Child]].<ref>{{cite web
| last =Gordan
| first =Sheldon
| publisher = Canadian Bar Association Magazine
| url =http://www.cba.org/CBA/National/dec03/cover.aspx | title =Fathers' Day
| accessdate =2007-05-28 }}</ref></br>

The Canadian Equal Parenting Council, a coalition of 40 member organizations and worldwide affiliates stated that it is pleased with a proposed amendment to the Divorce Act to create a presumption for equal parenting.<ref>{{cite news
| last =Barry
| first =Martin
| publisher = Laval News
| url =http://www.lavalnews.ca/articles/TLN1714/parentingBill171408.html
| title =Private bill for ‘equal parenting’ goes on Parliament’s order
| date =2009-07-15
| accessdate =2009-07-21 }} {{Dead link|date=October 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref></br>

==France==

Separation of the parents has no effect on the rules governing the awarding of parental authority. Parental authority continues to be exercised jointly except if in the interest of the child the exercise of this authority '''must''' be entrusted to only one of the parents.<ref>[http://ec.europa.eu/civiljustice/parental_resp/parental_resp_fra_en.htm European Commission - European Judicial Network - Parental responsibility - France<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

==Germany==

In Germany, one parent may apply to the family court for sole right of custody. The court will agree to such an application if the removal of joint custody and transfer of custody to one parent is in the child’s best interests.<ref>[http://ec.europa.eu/civiljustice/parental_resp/parental_resp_ger_en.htm#5. European Commission - European Judicial Network - Parental responsibility - Germany<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

Non-married Fathers; To obtain "Shared Custody" (and any real rights concerning children) was only possible through marriage or by the mother signing a declaration of shared custody. Thus, sole custody (for the father) is of course not realistic under the current German family law. The German Supreme Court (Bundesverfassungericht) has decided on 21 July 2010 that the actual Family Law is against the German Constitution Law.<ref>http://www.bverfg.de/pressemitteilungen/bvg10-057.html Actually only in German Language</ref>
For a very detailed explanation of the legal situation, see Wikipedia German web page;<ref>http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sorgerecht</ref>

Mathieu Carriere, a well-known German actor, who after the mother and sole custodian of his 8-year old daughter sued him for allowing several newspapers to publish pictures of Carriere with his daughter, decided to refuse to pay a 5,000 Euro fine associated with the lawsuit and instead announced publicly that he would be serving a 10-day prison sentence in support of the campaign for equal rights for both parents following divorce or separation.<ref>{{cite web
| title =German Actor Willingly Goes to Jail for Being a Dad!!!
| publisher =Families & Fathers
| url =http://www.fathersandfamilies.org/site/news.php?id=39
| date=2004-12-13
| accessdate = 2007-05-26 }}</ref>

There are a lot engaed communities to change the rights like Blauer-Weihnachtsmann.de,<ref>{{cite web
| title =Blauer-Weihnachtsmann.de
| publisher =Families & Fathers
| url =http://Blauer-Weihnachtsmann.de
| date=2010-10-24
| accessdate = 2010-10-24 }}
http://Blauer-Weihnachtsmann.de</ref> Väteraufbruch or Väter helfen Väter.

== Greece ==
One million divorced fathers live in Greece. Under the Greek law, there is no option for co-responsibility between parents in divorce. In 99,9% of the cases the mothers take the sole and exclusive authority of the children. The association of Greek fathers for justice association was created in December 2004 officially by the professor Dr Spitalas Nicolas at Thessaloniki with the name of the SYGAPA (http://www.sos-sygapa.eu). Dr Spitalas imagines to compose the political party in Europe of the name: 'European Social Party' for introducing in the European elections, in June 2009. Nicolas Spitalas, (http://spitalas.blogspot.com )founder and President of the unique association 'fathers for justice' in Greece and founder of the political party of the divorced fathers of all European countries has created the SYGAPA association in December 2004 at Thessaloniki (25.000 members in 2009), and he has organized the first international Congress of family, dad's rights, Equality and Justice in Drama (North of Greece) 2–5 January 2009. He have provoked 200 publications, 200 interviews in television and radios.

<!----
COMMON AUTORITY: http://www.facebook.com/groups/edit.php?members&gid=83895595699#/group.php?gid=83895595699

SYGAPA FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/groups/edit.php?members&gid=83895595699#/group.php?gid=6965054543

SITE IN GREECE-SYGAPA ASSOCIATION: http://www.sos-sygapa.eu

FACEBOOK EUROPEAN SOCIAL MOVEMENT IN GREECE: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=80334963536

BLOG OF THE PARTY: http://europeansocialmovement.blogspot.com

Some Publications in English: Elections boycott on the cards 11 Sep, 2007 http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_2_11/09/2007_87663

Fathers demand rights 15 Feb, 2007 http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_ell_2_15/02/2007_80153

Single dads fight court inequality 23 Jun, 2006 http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_2_23/06/2006_71239

Athens news: Divorced dads' new image http://www.athensnews.gr/athweb/nathens.prnt_article?e=C&f=&t=04&m=A38&aa=1

Europe Takes Another Look At Divorced Fathers http://www.thecuttingedgenews.com/index.php?article=706&pageid=&pagename=

Divorced men protest at Thessaloniki Courthouse, Thessaloniki, 23 March 2006 http://www.hri.org/news/greek/mpab/2006/06-03-23.mpab.html

Father's rights movement in Greece

A new image for fathers of divorce http://www.speroforum.com/site/article.asp?idCategory=33&idsub=124&id=15880&t=A+new+image+for+fathers+of+divorce

In Turkish newspaper (Sabah: Komşuda babalar ayaklandı) http://arsiv.sabah.com.tr/2006/01/22/dun104.html

In Hungary (20.000 desperate divorce father seeking help)

http://www.szegedigorogok.hu/gsajto_hirvalogatas67.html

Other politically sitations: Elections boycott on the cards http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/news/content.asp?aid=87663

Creation of the dad's party http://www.paratiritis-news.gr/full_articles_index.php?stili_title=&db_table=koinwnia&todo=others&article_id=8889

Divorced dads found political party http://news.kathimerini.gr/4Dcgi/4Dcgi/_w_articles_civ_11_15/01/2009_299332

Party of dads http://www.espressonews.gr/default.asp?pid=21&la=2&catid=1&artid=911014

Blogs: http://spitalas.blogspot.com

resolution RADAR http://www.mediaradar.org/docs/UN-ViolenceReport-Resolution.pdf

sospapasgrecs en francais http://sospapagrecs.over-blog.com

International observatory of alienation http://internationalienation.blogspot.com

wikipedia: http://www.easypedia.gr/%CF%83/%CF%8D/%CE%BD/%CE%A3%CF%8D%CE%BD%CE%B4%CF%81%CE%BF%CE%BC%CE%BF_%CE%93%CE%BF%CE%BD%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AE%CF%82_%CE%91%CF%80%CE%BF%CE%BE%CE%AD%CE%BD%CF%89%CF%83%CE%B7%CF%82_a21e.html

Discussion in Greek parlement (video) http://www.veoh.com/browse/videos/category/family/watch/v6291693HmPSF6bY#

Interviews of Mr Spitalas: 'Ta Nea': Justice (in Greece) is against fathers http://www.tanea.gr/default.asp?pid=2&ct=1&artid=1404552

'Eleftherotypia': Dads are bad for the authority of children? http://www.enet.gr/online/online_text/c=112,dt=23.10.2008,id=5340832
--->

==Hungary==

Shared parenting cannot be requested by one parent, it is unregulated. The Family Court must 'place the children' and it must suspend the other parents' rights after divorce/separation. Any other formation requires mutual agreement between the parents. Post-divorce equal shared parenting is disfavoured resulting in penetration of 0.1% of divorce cases annual. State control over family life is overwhelming while legislation has been slow and avoided public debates. The Family Law Act in power is the same that had been ordered by the stalinist dictator Mátyás Rákosi in 1952. Judges are not seeking any form of equality regarding legal status, economic situation or family work sharing of the parents. After the court approval an unfair agreement cannot be revoked. A father's returning from abroad is not a major change of circumstances. Court policy allows mothers for an unlimited replacement of personal custody duties by 3rd parties (babysitters) although it has been against the Constitution. While it is known that every third homeless person is a divorced father, policy makers see woman divorce (71%) even for pure financial purpose as a "normal step", almost as a social benefit provided by the state.

In principle, during divorce or separation the state takes away the presence and caring of one parent and the revenue share of the other parent from the children. In other words divorce in Dual Earner Dual Carer family means 100% increase in child raising costs for one of the parents. The "the best interest" is identical with the court decision without detailed reasoning. Therefore, the exclusion of FLA (Csjt) Art. 69/A, 72 and 72/A should be considered before a mixed marriage, this also avoids any conflict with ECHR Art.8. ("Right to private and family life"). Note that there are no sanctions against family value offenders, e.g. family home leaver spouse, first kidnapper parent. Divorcing for 'fault' does not exist.

Low women employment and poor birth rate figures since 1980's are often blamed on maternalism. The real face of Hungarian maternalism appears in the FLA: it is prohibited for the Family Court to decide for equality, even if both parents are apt and willing to continue parenting. The radical deviation from the constitutional equality undermines goals of many women movements: there is no such family work sharing which is an expectation during marriage, but would become prohibited by law once divorce/separation.


===Non-Governmental Father Organisations in Hungary===
The Association of Divorce Fathers Hungary (ELVÁLTAPÁK) was created in 1989 - with the slogan "Apák összefognak gyermekeikért" (Fathers unite for their children). The child focus is reflected in offering creative programs for children on a regular basis - Children's Day, Fathers'Day (http://elvaltapak.hu).
In 2004, when Hungary entered the EU, an activist workgroup was formed (EUROCSALÁD). It is focussing on the legal security of parenthood and family work sharing.
In 2008 a demonstration was held in front of the Parliament in Budapest for a new father-friendly legislation - "Az ész és szív törvénye" (The Law of Mind and Heart).
In 2010 an international meeting was organised in Budapest to promote the collaboration of local father organisations in the EU (ESP WG). The success of this meeting opened the way to the foundation of the "Platform for European Fathers" on 27 June, 2011 in Brussels by 11 EU countries (http://europeanfathers.eu).
In 2010-11 Eurocsalád Workgroup contributed to EU's FAMILYPLATFORM project suggesting that FLA accounts for about 1/3 part of the family policy in each member country. With advanced child related benefits in place a highly abusive FLA or court practice might become showstopper for birth or marriage rate.
In 2012 hard-liner communist family judges who developed the current court practice will have been retired by 1 Jan.

==India==

See [[Men's rights movement in India]]

India is not a signatory to the Hague Convention for child custody cases.

There are many laws which discriminate against fathers and husbands. See [[Dowry law in India]].

==Ireland==

Shared parenting is usually only granted by the courts where the children are not a contentious issue and there is broad agreement on their upbringing education etc.<ref>[http://ec.europa.eu/civiljustice/parental_resp/parental_resp_ire_en.htm European Commission - European Judicial Network - Parental responsibility - Ireland<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The [[Fathers Rights-Responsibility Party]] was registered in 2007 and contested the [[2007 Irish general election]]. [[John Waters (columnist)|John Waters]] of ''[[The Irish Times]]'' frequently advocates improved father's rights in his weekly [[op-ed]].

==Italy==
{{Main|Fathers' rights movement in Italy}}
{{See also|Coparenting}}
In January 2006, the Italian Parliament enacted a rebuttable presumption for shared parenting.

On May 18, 2007, members of the Fathers' Armada protested to highlight their claim that only women have rights after a divorce. Delegates met with the Equal Opportunities Minister, [[Barbara Pollastrini]], who pledged support.<ref>{{cite web
| title =Fathers' Armada Wants Equal Rights for Dads
| publisher =Italy
| date =2007-05-18
| url =http://www.italymag.co.uk/2007/news-from-italy/fathers-armada-wants-equal-rights-for-dads/
| accessdate =2007-05-26 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20071006082643/http://www.italymag.co.uk/2007/news-from-italy/fathers-armada-wants-equal-rights-for-dads/ <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-10-06}}</ref>

==Jamaica==

Dads protested against family court in Kingston, Jamaica.<ref>{{cite web
| title =Dads Protest in Jamaica
| publisher =Jamaica Observer
| url =http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20030613T230000-0500_45087_OBS_DADS_LASH_OUT_AGAINST_FAMILY_COURT.asp
| accessdate = 2007-05-26 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070926231852/http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20030613T230000-0500_45087_OBS_DADS_LASH_OUT_AGAINST_FAMILY_COURT.asp <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-09-26}}</ref>

==Japan==
Father's Rights in Japan (FRIJ) and Children's Rights Network Japan [http://www.crnjapan.net] are campaigning to change the current legal position which allows the [[Kidnapping|abduction]] of the child by the mother with no legal redress.[http://www.frij.net] K Net is campaigning in Japanese.<ref>[http://kyodosinken.com/ K Net] Shared Parenting Movement Net Work</ref>

==Spain==
The translation of joint custody in Spanish is 'custodia compartida'.
Recent changes in regional laws, as Aragon, establish joint custody as preferency regim for children after the divorce of their parents.
The INE, National Statistic Institute, offers fiable data on the custody (mother, father or joint custody):
see: http://www.ine.es/jaxi/menu.do?type=pcaxis&path=/t18/p420/p01/a2009/&file=pcaxis
In 2009, 84,1% of the custody is only for mother, 5,6% only for father and 9,6% is joint custody.
Father's Rights in Spain [CCPMI] http://www.ccpmi.eu PARTY of Father's Rights Shared Custodia (equal rights and obligations in the raising and the education of the children after the divorce).
Feminist movement is stroing opponent of joint custody. This movement is the strong allied of the Ministry of 'Equity' (really Ministry of Women), very socially contested.
Interesting website on joint custody is: http://www.custodiacompartida.org/

==New Zealand==

Members of the fathers' rights movement raise awareness about the need for shared parenting in New Zealand by sponsoring an award-winning<ref>{{cite web
| title =Blogger's Choice Award for Hands On Equal Parenting
| publisher =Bloggerschoiceawards
| date =2007-05-26
| url =http://www.bloggerschoiceawards.com/blogs/show/16569
| accessdate =2007-05-26}}</ref> website, holding meetings, and protesting publicly from their War-4-Kids wagon.<ref>{{cite web
| title =Hands On Equal Parenting
| publisher =
| date =2007-05-26
| url =http://handsonequalparent.org.nz/
| accessdate =2007-05-26}}</ref> Fathers of New Zealand sponsors a website that offers advice to help fathers succeed in family court.<ref>{{cite web
| title =Father of New Zealand
| publisher =
| date =2007-05-26
| url =http://fathers.orcon.net.nz/
| accessdate =2007-05-26}}</ref>

==Norway==

Laws on Children were introduced in 1981.<ref>Norwegian Law on Children: http://www.lovdata.no/all/nl-19810408-007.html</ref> Several changes has been made since then, the latest January 1, 2009. The letter of the laws are very similar to those of Germany.
The Family Activist Movement started to become a force in Norway mid 1980s with the introduction of F2F (Foreningen 2 Foreldre).<ref>Foreningen 2 Foreldre: http://www.f2f.no</ref> Today F2F is by most Norwegian activists considered as a political organisation that speak according to what the government want to be the official truth, that mothers are best fit to be single parents. However, several researchers in Norway have found that mothers are actually more dangerous to their children than fathers.<ref>Translation of article from Dagbladet: http://www.mediaradar.org/norwayMinisterWorriedAboutWomensViolence.php</ref>

In 2003 a group of women and men started to question F2F's efficiency and ability to change the Norwegian policy and practice to accept fathers as equal parents after broken relationships and marriages. BarneFaren was founded in 2004, but is today an underground movement and organisation due to the Norwegian governments and judges attitudes against the activities BarneFaren enforced,<ref>Previous domain name was http://www.barnefaren.no; see http://mino.no/Company/75404/Barnefaren.html</ref> ranging from lobbying to Centers for children and fathers to stay safe from administration intervention that hurt children and their right to have equal contact with both biological parents. The leader has been arrested by the police several time and refused appeal when unlawfully convicted, the latter according to several activists. The Norwegian institutions and press refuse to publish stories about institutional crimes committed by Norwegian officials. Latest and ongoing is the kidnapping of two children from Morocco, now proven to be organised by the Norwegian government at top level {{Citation needed|date=November 2010}}. This has been normal procedure at least for the last 15 years in Norway. Italy, Portugal, Pakistan and Russia are some of the countries where children have been kidnapped from, with Norwegian top political aid and money.{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}}

In 2004 the first Men's Day (October 7) was held in Oslo.<ref>Featured article Dagbladet comparing the feminist movement and the Family Movement and their slogans: http://www.dagbladet.no/kultur/2004/10/07/410529.html</ref> Only the Ombud of Gender Equality was represented and held a speech in front of Stortinget (The Parliament) in 2004. All other public institutions, including the Ombud for Children, refused to participate.
The extreme radical feminist organisation, Ottar<ref>OTTAR; extreme radical feminist organisation: http://kvinnegruppa-ottar.no/no/</ref> have tried to ridicule the Men's Day, but there are still Family Activists that keep it as an official day to argue for Children-, Men's- and Fathers Rights.

In 2006 the organisation Far og Barn [Father and Child(ren)]<ref>Far og Barn: http://www.farogbarn.no/artman/publish/</ref> was started. Later that year yet another important, and probably the most influential family organisation in Norway, was founded. Familiestiftelsen<ref>Familiestiftelsen 15. mai: http://www.familiestiftelsen.no</ref> was established in December 2006 partly after the Swedish model. Familiestiftelsen use the Swedish Pappa-Barn logo.

In 2010 Far og Barn - started the quarterly magazine [http://www.pappamagasinet.no Pappamagasinet Far og Barn], which was the first dad's magazine in Norway.

Norwegian organisations seem to focus more on the Right of the Child than the rights of fathers, the latter more common in North America and the rest of Europe, thus some Norwegian organisations also argue the family issues put into a gender equality context.
BarneFaren is not participating in any political activities anymore, thus the organisation on a daily basis invites officials and press to debate family policies in Norway. BarneFaren's focus is therefore to engage in activities that aid children and fathers, and some children and mothers, that are exposed to abuse from public institutions. BarneFaren is also building networks around the world to gain resources to answer the Norwegian policy in a manner that create headlines in the international press. This strategy is a mean to try expose the true face of the Norwegian government's crimes in Family Policies.
The other organisations focus most on dialogue, but report that it is very difficult to send criticism against the top level administrational-, judicial- and political systems in Norway, and hardly ever possible to get straight answers from these institutions.
The main topic of disagreement in Norway seem to be the lack of a clear definition on the notion of the Best Interest of the Child, which is very clear in the articles of the Right of the Child Convention.

==Poland==

Polish Fathers want a rebuttable presumption for shared parenting in polish law. There is a project of new law actually being prepared. The Polish Parliament should pass it shortly.

Active Fathers organizations are Inicjatywa Społeczna Porozumienie Rawskie PorozumienieRawskie.pl, Rodzice Pomorza and a web portal www.opiekarownowazna.pl. This groups are active to highlight their claim that only women have rights after a divorce. Delegates work in Senate and Parliament to pass the new coo parenting law.<ref>{{cite web
| title = MAMA TO NIE TATO Konkubenci mają więcej praw do dziecka, niż biologiczni ojcowie. Opieka równoważna ma to zmienić.
| publisher =POLAND
| date =2009-10-28
| url =http://www.tygodnikpodhalanski.pl/www/index.php?mod=news&id=6240&tponlineserwis=ef7b2f6299fbd284daef8b5620437716
| accessdate =2009-11-26}}</ref>

==Sweden==

If one of the parents wants a change in custody, the question of custody may be decided by a court. The same applies to the questions of which of the parents the child is to live with and how access for the other parent is to be organised. In divorce proceedings, moreover, the court must, in the absence of a claim, award custody of the child to one of the parents if joint custody is '''manifestly incompatible''' with the welfare of the child. This Law, passed in 2006, has resulted in significant majority of all court cases in which sole custody is requested, being awarded to the mother.<ref>[http://ec.europa.eu/civiljustice/parental_resp/parental_resp_swe_en.htm#9. European Commission - European Judicial Network - Parental responsibility - Sweden<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

If a child is born to an unmarried mother, the mother gains sole custody automatically unless she elects to, in her sole decision, agree to shared custody. The same law in Germany was recently determined to be a violation of Human Rights by the EU court of Human Rights

http://www.pappa-barn.se/ is a lobby organisation in Sweden with a large membership of fathers and mothers supporting true equal gender rights in custody.

The Swedish courts rarely order high-conflict litigants to solve their problems with parenting courses, training courses, or mediators, but instead often award sole custody when it is requested. Sweden's statistics bureau reports that more than 90% of all such cases are ruled in favour of the mother.

Enforceability of visitation and joint custody is very difficult in Sweden, as there is no contempt of court, and the courts often will not apply fines or police support of visitation until the complaining parent has gone to court several times. Payment of court fees is often forced by the complaining parent, if the fines asked for are not granted, even if Grounds are clearly established.

In Sweden, which claims to be progressive and promote Gender Equality, has reports 128,000 women currently hold SOLE custody of their children (mostly against the father's wishes) and 11,000 men hold SOLE custody of their children, a ration of more than 11:1 in favour of women.<ref>source: http://www.gp.se/nyheter/ledare/1.324607-lisa-bjorklund-barns-ratt-till-mor-och-far</ref>

Parental Alienation and Parental Alienation Syndrome are still unrecognized by the courts and psychologists of Sweden. Among many men's groups and NPOs working to raise public awareness of the importance of the father for the psychosocial development of the child, the ''Alliance for the Child'' ("Allians för Barnen") is a social initiative to connect interdisciplinary scholars into a competence network engaging in informing political decision-makers in Sweden, Scandinavia and Europe about ''Parental Alienation Disorder'' (PAD). This condition, coined by Professor William Bernet, Professor of Psychiatry at Vanderbilt University, USA, is defined as one of several forms of emotional child abuse. Its website provides knowledge resources and documents on the topic (http://sites.google.com/site/coleur/pas). It has been active since the late 70's in media by publishing articles in the press (Svenska Dagbladet, Brännpunkt: ''Barns rätt till två föräldrar'' - "Children's rights to two parents", Dec 27, 1979), in Swedish Radio (P1: ''Tendens''), and, recently on the social debate media '''Newsmill''' (''Ny Lag behövs till stöd för barn som berövas sina pappor'' - "A new law is required to support children deprived of their fathers") where its research-based argument translates into a social critique: http://www.newsmill.se/artikel/2010/03/23/ny-lag-behovs-till-stod-for-barn-som-berovas-sina-pappor .

Sweden is considered the #1 country in the world for Mothers to live.

==The United Kingdom==
{{Main|Fathers' rights movement in the UK|Child Support Agency}}
The fathers' rights movement in the UK consists of a variety of groups, ranging from charities, self-help groups to civil disobedience activists. The movement can be traced to the founding in 1974 of [[Families Need Fathers]], though the organization does not see itself as a fathers' rights organisation, pointing out that its primary focus is on the children's right to have a meaningful relationship with their fathers. FNF provides self-help support groups, promotes research into shared parenting, and lobbies political for legal changes in the family law system in the UK. It has been credited with several successes.<ref name="Evidence Submitted by Families Need Fathers">{{cite web
| title = The Operation of the Family Courts
| publisher = House of Commons Constitutional Affairs Committee Family Justice
| date = 2004-11-08
| url =http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200405/cmselect/cmconst/116/116ii.pdf
|format=PDF| comment=Evidence Submitted by Families Need Fathers on page 146
| accessdate =2007-03-18 }}</ref>
The founding of [[Fathers 4 Justice]] in 2003 brought the cause of fathers' rights to public attention with high-profile stunts with members dressing as comic book superheroes and other easily recognizable characters to scale public buildings and monuments. With time their protests became increasingly controversial, and internal strife divided the group. It was officially disbanded in January 2006 following a suggestion that [[Prime Minister]] [[Tony Blair]]'s son be briefly kidnapped, though further protests by a F4J splinter group, the 'Real F4J', have occurred. Other fathers' rights activists have been criticized for harassment, threats and illegal activities, including fraud.<ref>{{cite news
| last =Coates
| first =Sam
| coauthors =
| title =Fathers 4 Justice split by infighting
| work =
| pages =
| language =
| publisher =The Times
| date = 2005-06-08
| url =http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1645108,00.html
| accessdate = 2007-03-24 | location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite news
| last =Travis
| first =Alan
| coauthors =
| title =Militant fathers intimidating court staff
| work =
| pages =
| language =
| publisher =The Guardian
| date =2004-12-31
| url =http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,1381126,00.html
| accessdate = 2007-03-24 }}</ref>
In the UK, fathers' rights groups have advocated for changes to the Child Support Act including child support, shared parenting and access to children<ref name="Contact Ban based on mother's feelings">{{cite web
| last =Dyer
| first =Clare
| authorlink =
| coauthors =
| title =Contact ban for hated father
| work =
| publisher = The Guardian Unlimited
| date = 2003-05-23
| url =http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,961940,00.html
| doi =
| accessdate =2007-03-18 }}</ref>
and lack of enforcement of court orders.<ref name ="Members of Parliament">{{cite web
| last =Dyer
| first =Clare
| authorlink =
| coauthors =
| title =Fathers get raw deal on child access, say MPs
| work =
| publisher =Guardian Unlimited
| date = 2005-03-02
| url =http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,,1428230,00.html
| doi =
| accessdate =2007-03-18 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news
| last = Collier
| first =Richard
| coauthors = Sally Sheldon
| title =Unfamiliar territory
| work =
| pages =
| language =
| publisher =The Guardian
| date =2006-11-01
| url = http://society.guardian.co.uk/children/story/0,,1935970,00.html
| accessdate = 2007-03-24 }}</ref>
Pressure from the fathers' movement has influenced the UK Government, which published a draft Children (Contact) and Adoption Bill in February 2005<ref>[http://www.dfes.gov.uk/childrensneeds UK Children (Contact) and Adoption Bill]</ref> that aims to widen judges' powers in dealing with parents who obstruct their ex-partner from seeing their children.

[[Bob Geldof]] reported that of the approximately 15,000 custodial cases that are resolved in family courts each year, only 7% of fathers in the UK are allowed to live with their children, and that 4 out of 10 fathers lose all touch with their children permanently. He reports that family courts think it extremely unhealthy for a man to articulate his love for his children. He states that 1 in 4 children live in single parent homes, children who grow up without their fathers are 5 times as likely to be unemployed and 3 times as likely to be involved in crime, 80% of all social housing is for single parent families, and that taxpayer costs for fatherlessness are at least £15B per year.<ref>{{cite news
| last =Geldof
| first =Bob
| title =Bob Geldof on Fathers
| publisher =YouTube
| date =
| url =http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQeNwLsA058&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcomment%2Emyspace%2Ecom%2Findex%2Ecfm%3Ffuseaction%3Duser%2EviewComments%26friendID%3D121573235%26MyToken%3D735e66ed%2D83cd%2D43f9%2D9d
| accessdate = 2007-05-26 }}</ref>

==USA==
{{main|Fathers' rights movement in the USA}}

Fathers' rights advocates explicitly compare their movement to the civil rights movement, and point to long held US Supreme Court rulings that parents have a right to care for their children. In 2000, the US Supreme Court reaffirmed this principle in [[Troxel v. Granville]], when it rejected the argument that a judge could supersede a fit parent's judgment about his child's best interest.

As in other countries, fathers' rights activists work on providing education, support and advocacy with issues of custody, access, child support, domestic violence and child abuse, maintenance, and family court issues. In the US, the state governments are autonomous and state laws vary, but states must comply with federal laws or risk the loss of federal funding.
*[http://acfc.org/ American Coalition for Fathers & Children]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}


<!----==External links==---->

{{Masculism}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fathers' Rights Movement By Country}}
[[Category:Gender equality]]
[[Category:Fathers' rights movement by country| ]]
[[Category:Fathers' rights]]
[[Category:Children's rights]]
[http://www.sos-sygapa.eu]

Revision as of 03:06, 22 October 2011

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