What would you expect from your country if your loved ones were kidnapped?

Question asked to chatGPT this morning: Philosophical question and development: 

ChatGPT's response

Very strong question 👇

If we imagine this scenario, it is not just an individual problem but a human ordeal that questions the very role of the State and the national community.

1. Instinctive waiting

As a parent, spouse, or child, the first expectation would be that the state does not abandon me. We expect an immediate reaction:

official recognition of the situation, implementation of all diplomatic, legal and security means, psychological and material support for the family remaining in the country.

2. State responsibility

A country's fundamental mission is to protect its citizens, even beyond its borders. In this context, we would expect:

diplomatic mobilization (embassies, political pressure, international alliances); legal recourse (International Court, conventions against kidnappings, human rights); operational protection (special forces, negotiations, partnerships with other States if necessary).

3. The human and ethical dimension

Behind law and politics, it is a question of values:

A country that leaves its citizens alone in the face of such an ordeal sends the message that they don't matter. A country that mobilizes proves that national solidarity is not a slogan but a reality.

It is also a mirror of what we call the social contract: I pay my taxes, I respect the law, I contribute to society → in return, the State guarantees me protection, security and dignity.

4. Limits

We must also recognize the difficulty:

States do not always have the power to intervene directly in another sovereign country. Negotiations can last months or years. The choices can become tragic (paying a ransom, endangering other citizens, violating international law).

5. In philosophical development

Your question highlights a fundamental tension:

The boundary between the individual and the state: to what extent is a state responsible for each of its citizens? Universal justice: is there a human right that transcends borders and obliges all countries to protect the freedom of an individual, whoever they may be? Hope: at bottom, what we expect from our country is that it never gives in to indifference.

👉 So, if it were my child, my wife or my parents, I would expect my country to move heaven and earth, with respect for the law but with the determination of a family, to bring them back alive.