When it comes to Norway’s Child Protective Services (Barnevernet) the case of American citizen Amy Jakobsen and her son Tyler is one of the most disturbing. Barnevernet has swiftly removed Tyler from Amy in 2013 at age 19 months because she was still supplementing his diet by breastfeeding him.
Given the snitch culture in Norway, someone reported Amy to the state for breastfeeding her toddler, as if this was against some law. The World Health Organization has a very powerful statement on breastfeeding, and it states:
“Breastfeeding is the normal way of providing young infants with the nutrients they need for healthy growth and development. … Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended up to 6 months of age, with continued breastfeeding along with appropriate complementary foods up to two years of age or beyond.”
Tyler was quickly taken to the hospital to be examined and found to be in good health weighing 9.6 kg (21 lbs) which is within normal limits for a 19-month-old. Amy was told that the child should in fact weigh 10 kg (22 lbs) and this was the pretext for removing him under emergent circumstances. His name has been changed twice, and he is currently held at a secret address without parental contact.
Keeping in line with the modus operandi we have observed in the Bodnariu case, Barnevernet removed Tyler without due process under the law. There was no court order, no proper social investigation, and no help was offered to Amy. All this was done swiftly because court documents show that Barnevernet were very concerned about Amy’s American citizen status and her ability to go back to America at any time. They decided to circumvent the law to achieve their statist goal of maintaining Tyler as property of the state.
Various Good Samaritans like Steven Bennett, Bjo Ern, and Marius Reikeras are trying to help Amy Jakobsen by popularizing her ordeal, but so far there has not been any significant effort from the American government, as far as I can tell. There is a social media campaign going on at this time asking people to change their profile picture holding the sign “Norway, Return Tyler to Amy.” The sign can be downloaded here. Official pages supporting Amy are here and here. Such campaigns can be very influential because they expose the human rights violations committed by Norway. Social media was in fact one of the key factors that led Norway to return the 5 Bodnariu children to their family.
Delight in Truth FB page has published material about Amy and Tyler. See video below as a summary of her case.
Delight in Truth 
I tried to share this on Erna Solberg’s facebook page, but, (like some other shares) it was marked “spam.” STILL, whatever they mark it, they see it. Want to send a strong message? Let’s have 100 people share this on Erna Solberg’s page. Also, can tweet the link to her. @erna_solberg also, @SolveigHorne and email, postmottak@bld.dep.no erna.solberg@smk.dep.no
Some Norwegian politicians, and certainly Bufetat (the section of the Ministry handling child and family matters) are somewhat nervous about all the protests and publicity re CPS transgressions, and since their whole way of thinking is unrealistic (just like the whole ideology of the CPS), they do not really understand the protests at all. The thing to do is to keep on letting the public know, and ignore the politicians. If one seems to be begging the politicians to mend their ways, they feel uppety and powerful, and “inform” those who petition or contact them (particularly foreigners!) them of how wonderful the system is. Let the politicians stew, it is worse than useless to give them much attention.
– And we have to realise that it is a very long fight. We have to try to overcome a deep-rooted philosophy in the Norwegian population which says that our authorities are right, knowledgeable, competent.
– Furthermore, Norway is not alone. These ideas of social work and psychology, including “the nanny state”, are present in all Western countries and are being promoted in other countries as well. We are fighting a fashionable and politically correct tide. But fighting it is the right thing to do, for the gain of children and their families. Every family saved is a blessing, and it will not in the end be in vain.
Marianne, I am afraid you are right about the Western world…
And particularly here could Eastern European countries contribute.
Like in the recent IDAG article (in Norwegian), with wonderful quotes from Mr Adelean: http://idag.no/nyheter/samfunn/det-er-noe-som-skurrer-nar-ingen-vil-snakke-i-norge/19.26495
As far as I know this is the same Mr. Ardelean who is the rapporteur for Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe for the current investigations: http://assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/XRef/Xref-XML2HTML-en.asp?fileid=22505&lang=en
I see over 200 people shared this on facebook, YET we can barely get 10 people to post or support posts with a like on Erna Solberg’s page. Sharing and informing our friends is great. But information will not win the day. It takes action. And we are sending a very strong message to the Prime Minister of Norway that FEW people CARE. It is NUMBERS that catch the attention of politicians.
I am not so negative to the steady posting of articles abroad. On the contrary, you can be sure that to pepper Norwegian politicians with just loud opinions will have no effect on them, they take that to be just “not serious”. But continuous or repeated matter-of-fact information and exposure abroad, about ever more individual cases, with meticulous reporting of details, will in the end have a chance to win the day.
Dear Amy
It makes me so sad for your whole family that is going through this hell, started by Barnevernet.
I am in same situasion that my son was moving to his father, a father that abbuse his own son and some other kids. I had my son at with me untill his 4th birthday. That day ruende a whole family ( grandmother, my aunt and my aunts husband). My son got sexual abused when live whit his dad.
Luckly for my son is in a sawe fosterhome, thet take very good care of fim and hiss problem with life.
Me myself is getting ready to give up, and there are lots of reason to do it…
I would love get you to know, so have other parents that is samme situasioner with other backgrounds.
If you wanna contact me as a mother is situasion
Hug from one mother to another mother.
Dear Unni,
It makes me so sad to read about your family as well.
Do you think your son does not need you any more? 😦
I think it is Barnevernet’s goal (and perhaps ideology) that you believe you are not needed any more??
A nice article in Aftenbladet in Norwegian– the author moved 27 times…
https://www.aftenbladet.no/meninger/kommentar/i/1Lm4Q/Hva-er-kjarlighet-i-barnevernet
Some more fresh new articles on Barnevernet:
in English:
http://www.sundayguardianlive.com/lifestyle/11055-norway-s-child-confiscation-policies-are-disastrous-unjust
in Norwegian:
reaction: https://www.minervanett.no/frp-representant-barnevernet-stat-i-staten/
on extremely high profit rate in child welfare services:
https://www.dagbladet.no/nyheter/herfra-investerer-oppkjopsfond-i-norsk-barnevern—mer-lonnsomt-enn-olje/68599158
http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/barnevernsmilliardene/barnevernsmilliardene-sv-og-roedt-krever-profittavklaring-fra-ap/a/24135902/
https://www.dagbladet.no/nyheter/reagerer-pa-at-fond-i-skatteparadis-investerer-i-barnevernet—dette-er-grelle-eksempler-fra-en-virkelighet-vi-har-advart-mot/68662270
http://fontene.no/nyheter/-vi-tar-kampen-for-profittfri-velferd-6.47.482591.aad650e0d6
child welfare manager (with power to decide on emergency care) with double roles (in Norwegian)
about Nordre & Sondre Land:
https://www.nrk.no/ho/bufdir_-_–kan-vaere-ulovlig-av-nordre-og-sondre-land-1.13701934
about Oslo and Follo:
https://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/barnevernsmilliardene/vg-avsloerer-barnevernmillionaer-fikk-sparken-etter-dobbeltrolle-naa-jobber-han-i-nabokommunen/a/24154178/
a lawyer’s comment:
http://advokatsylte.no/artikkel/9/barnevernsaker/713/ulovlige-private-akuttvedtak
as far as I see, Oslo has much more favorable statistics (much less emergency orders per 1000 children) than most of other counties in Norway, and Oslo has also played an important role about the scandals about private actors and huge profits… most likely not a coincident.
Why are so many parents in Norway claiming that the state is kidnapping their children? With a spike in cases in recent years and accusations of racial intolerance, Dateline asks whether these children are being saved, or stolen?
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/dateline/story/norways-stolen-children
My friend, Crystal Nuttle, from Phoenix, Arizona, has a similar very heart touching emotional story.
http://hsbn.tv/_demand/%5Bare-you-listening%5D%20038.html
Crystal shares her heart breaking story of CPS corruption, including how her children were taken away unnecessarily and put in very abusive situations.
Thank you for sharing, Octavian. One of the reasons this is such a problem in the U.S. is that people have become very good liars. They are good enough to fool judges with years of experience. I know there are other problems inside parts of the system and I’ve heard and read of such cases. The problems I’ve seem with my own eyes involve people who can look a judge straight in the eye and lie. And the children suffer.
One of the cases against Norway which has been accepted to be argued before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, is the case of the Lobben family. Now there is a judgment; it if in favour of the state, with a majority of 4 judges against 3 dissenting.
Case of Strand Lobben and others v. Norway
30 November 2017
http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng?i=001-178877
The Norwegian judge in Strasbourg, Erik Møse, was of course on the winning side, in favour of the state – all formal procedures have been followed in Norway, everything is correct! What a revealing example of Norwegian justice: all form and no humane content. No understanding of the actually scientific, solid facts of family feelings and their importance either, just this ridiculous belief in our misguided “child experts” and the “excellence” of our judicial system. All the formalisms actually cover up the erosion of family life the state causes.
And three other judges in Strasbourg buy this nonsense: Nussberger (Germany), Potocki (France), Kucsko-Stadlmayer (Austria).
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A possible, good thing about the opinions expressed by the winning majority here: Foreigners who see or hear of some atrocious CPS case in Norway, e.g affecting their own citizens living in Norway, tend to think that Norway can’t really mean its child protection services to carry on in this way, and that they only have to explain to Norwegian authorities and then Norwegian authorities will put it right. They are very surprised that Norway’s answer is to lecture them about “the Norwegian system”. In a sense, the expectation of these delegations and others from abroad is just as ignorant and naïve as the way Norway is always surprised that the foreigners “do not understand”, that they themselves “do not get through to the foreigners’ understanding” with the official information about “how advanced and good Norwegian CPS is”.
All these foreigners should read the present Strasbourg judgment. Perhaps that will give them a start at understanding how badly placed Norwegian children and their whole families are, under the in many ways superficial, pleasant living here.
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The dissension of three judges should be studied. They are Grozev (Bulgaria), O’Leary (Ireland), and Hüseynov (Azerbaijan). There, at least, one gets some sense of the actual content of human rights being important.
I have read the judgement.
It is surprising that the reasons of the dissenting opinion are even not reacted on by the majority in the judgement.
I am convinced that the topic should worth to be let appealed to the Grand Chamber according to Article 43.
It will be a miracle. But I am glad you are an optimist, Jasper – we need some!
https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng#{“appno”:[“37283/13″],”itemid”:[“001-178877”]}
“Request for referral to the Grand Chamber pending”
“This judgment will become final in the circumstances set out in Article 44 § 2 of the Convention. It may be subject to editorial revision.”
“2. The judgment of a Chamber shall become final
(a) when the parties declare that they will not request that the
case be referred to the Grand Chamber; or
(b) three months after the date of the judgment, if reference of
the case to the Grand Chamber has not been requested;
or
(c) when the panel of the Grand Chamber rejects the request
to refer under Article 43.”
(a) and (b) is hence out of option, and the case goues for the panel of the Grand Chamber to granted or reject the request for second instance trial before the Grand Chamber
Now it says” Referral to the Grand Chamber”.
As far as I understand, the first instace judgment is not the final one and the Grand Chamber is going to have the final say.
Also confirmed here: https://www.regjeringen.no/no/aktuelt/norsk-sak-skal-behandles-av-emds-storkammer/id2596920/
Excellent article by Christopher Booker, senior journalist for The Telegraph:
“Corrupt practices disguised as child-welfare campaigns”
http://www.sundayguardianlive.com/lifestyle/11816-corrupt-practices-disguised-child-welfare-campaigns
2 December 2017
It is mainly about Britain, but mentions Norway, the Netherlands and the USA also.
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Translations of two articles about a recent Czech documentary re Norwegian Barnevern:
Jan Pedersen:
“Children of the state – The Norwegian child protection agency, Barnevernet, har created a society of fear”
http://www.mhskanland.net/page120/page459/page459.html
Jan Simonsen:
” ‘Children of the state’ – Czech documentary with critical spotlight on Norwegian child protection”
http://www.mhskanland.net/page120/page461/page461.html
Let me mention again… This blog seems to have a vast amount on comment on Pentatonix whenever there is a press scandal in Norway about Child Welfare.
Especially article ( https://www.vg.no/spesial/2018/dobbeltroller-i-barnevernet/ ) — in Norwegian, revealing complete lack of control of child welfare officers ordering services from private actors where they have financial interests as stakeholders or also employees — seem to spark a scandal nowadays. However there have been some interesting articles in early December… hopefully the internal pressure inside Norway becomes more or less constant — at least until the discrepancies with respect to legal security against arbitrary decisions of child welfare officers get fixed in Norwegian legislation.
I would recommend Norwt to declare that any decision made by an officer in a mixed role is to be considered as null and void ex tunc and is eligible for a repeated procedure from scratch at another office which had no employees with mixed roles at all…
P.S: there is now someone with nick Jasper R commenting on the blog. This is not me.
Amy, I’ve just become aware of your plight through the citizen go petition.
My heart aches for you, and I’m praying for your family every day. I will continue until you have your precious son home safe.
Much love,
K
The 7y0gfkir.ga http://7y0gfkir.ga/ is okay. It is way too shortly to understand if will probably be sturdy or not.The assistance and delivery ended up very good.
Pardon?
I have googled for this strange website name — I decided not to follow the link.
Could you explain in plain text comment why “the assistance and delivery ended up very good.” I guess you have referred to the case of the Tyler family.
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