“Parental child abduction is child abuse,” Smith said Wednesday. “These victims are American citizens who need the help of their government when normal legal processes are unavailable or fail. Too many families have been waiting too long.”
{mosads}The panel also cleared a Smith bill that would block the State Department from giving Vietnam any non-humanitarian foreign aid above 2012 levels unless the communist country improves its democratic and human-rights record. A resolution from ranking member Karen Bass (D-Calif.) calling for African leaders and the international community to band together to stop the violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo also cleared the committee.