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Missing abroad

Suppose a friend or relative of yours has been abroad for some time, and has kept in touch with you by email, postcard or telephone. But suddenly the messages stop. You start worrying, and you begin to suspect that your friend or relative has gone missing. What do you do?

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will help you trace a missing person and do everything possible to assist you in this difficult situation.

• What you can do when someone goes missing
• What the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can do
• What the embassy or consulate will do
• Some advice
• Assistance

What you can do when someone goes missing

What you can do yourself:

You can ask friends, other relatives and those of the missing person’s travelling companion whether they have received any news. You can contact the missing person's bank or credit card company to find out where and when the last money transactions took place. And you can contact the last place where the missing person stayed, usually a hotel, youth hostel or boarding house, and collect information about further travel plans.

Who can help you

If you fail to find your missing friend or relative and you are worried about his/her safety and well-being, you should get in touch with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs:

Consular Affairs Department
Social Consular Affairs Division (DCZ/CM)
Postbus 20061
2500 EB Den Haag
Tel.: (070) 348 47 70
Fax: (070) 348 52 56

Reporting a missing person

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will ask you to report the missing person to the police in the Dutch municipality where he/she normally resides. Ask for a copy of the missing person report, and note the name of the police contact person. It is up to the police to assess whether it is necessary to report the case to international agencies.

Travel insurance

If the missing person has taken out a travel insurance policy, you should contact the travel insurance emergency support centre (alarmcentrale). The support centre will inform you about possible funding for search operations, such as the deployment of an aircraft or helicopter, or the placing of an advertisement in a local newspaper.

What the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can do

Information

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will ask you for as many clues as possible to help find the missing person in cooperation with the local authorities. It will ask you, for instance, for detailed information about the person and his/her travel plans, such as:

• the missing person’s personal details;
• passport and driving licence details;
• date on which the person was last seen or heard from;
• place at which the person was last seen or heard from;
• date/place of the person’s last known address;
• details of the person with whom the missing person last had contact locally;
• travel information (purpose of travel, itinerary);
• details of travelling companions;
• travel insurance details;
• other information about air tickets, money, credit cards and traveller’s cheques, transport, use of medicines;
• extract from the municipal population register;
• copy of the official missing person report;
• name, address, telephone number, and email address of the person who can act as a contact for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Expenses

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs charges private individuals for its services. It will first ask you to transfer €113.45 (2003-2004). Depending on whatever extra activities are undertaken by the embassy or consulate – such as placing an advertisement in a newspaper or issuing an appeal on television – you may be charged more.

What the embassy or consulate will do

Local authorities

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will pass on all available information to the embassy or consulate in the country where your friend or relative has gone missing. The embassy or consulate will then contact the local authorities – like the immigration service, customs authorities and police – and ask them to launch an investigation. The embassy or consulate will liaise between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the local authorities.

No powers of investigation

An embassy or consulate has no powers of investigation abroad. It depends on the willingness and expertise of the local authorities to obtain information and conduct the investigation.

Contact person

You will have a specific contact person at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Do not contact the embassy or consulate directly. Several contact persons within one organisation can lead to confusion and misunderstandings.

Some advice

Keep a written record

You are in a situation where you have to cope with a lot of different things. With all the emotional distress, it will be difficult to remember everything you are told. So you should keep a written record of the steps you have taken and of all the information you receive from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the police and other organisations.

Independent investigation

Please follow the advice you receive from the Ministry, and do not start investigating independently. You could hamper the efforts of the embassy and local police and thus delay the investigation. If you still decide to set off to the country where your friend or relative went missing, please do so in close consultation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The media

There is every chance that the press will approach you. Be sensible. Don’t be tempted to make statements that will not benefit the investigation. You can always refer journalists to the Press Division of the Information and Communication Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Contact

If the missing person suddenly gets in touch, tell the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as soon as possible. The investigation will then be stopped.

Assistance

Association of Friends and Relatives of Missing Persons

When a person goes missing, it causes great distress and is difficult to cope with. The Association of Friends and Relatives of Missing Persons is a support organisation for people in this situation. It will represent your interests and offer an opportunity to talk with people who share your misfortune.

Association of Friends and Relatives of Missing Persons (Vereniging Achterblijvers na Vermissing)
Vorselaar 7
4907 LK Oosterhout
Tel./Fax: +31 (0)162 450 377

Missing Persons Helpline

The Missing Persons Helpline is operated by the Dutch Red Cross and offers free and confidential telephone support when someone goes missing. The helpline registers missing persons, it provides practical advice and information, and it offers emotional support to persons whose friends or relatives have gone missing. The helpline is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Missing Persons Helpline (Hulplijn Vermiste Personen)
Postbus 28120
2502 EB Den Haag
Tel.: 0800-VERMIST of 0800-83 76 478
Fax: +31 (0)70 445 5620
Email: vermistepersonen@redcross.nl