Japan to sign parental Hague Convention Treaty - eventually
Agrees to join world in adopting multinational parental child-abduction legislation
Amid mounting pressure from the international community, and only thirty years after the fact, the Japanese government has finally agreed to sign the Hague Convention Treaty (25 October 1980) on International Child Abduction. Government sources announced the decision Saturday, August 14, 2010; however, the timetable for official ratification is still up in the air because Tokyo must first revise its existing parental-custody laws - or implement new ones - in order to work within the framework of the Treaty.
The Hague Convention Treaty provides an apparatus for the "prompt return" of children abducted across international borders by one parental partner of a failed international marriage, as well as the protection of any applicable custodial or parental-access rights of either parent. Because of its heretofore non-participation in the Treaty legislation, Japan has become a destination of choice for many parents (especially Japanese nationals) who have taken their children and fled the country of residence, against the wishes and rights of the other parent - and, oftentimes, also against the country's child-custodial laws.
A necessary solution . . .
Japan's historical bias toward parents of Japanese descent and against foreign-born parents in family court child-custody cases cannot be disputed. And, because Japanese law only provides for 'full custody' awards to one parent (unlike the dual-custody status often given in the United States and many European nations), foreign parents are typically left with virtually no recourse - and no access to even see their children. Adoption of the Hague Convention Treaty should help to bring some relief to those individuals as well as to the children, and breathe a spirit of equity and fairness into a situation that is always painful for everyone involved.
It is interesting to note the government sources cited sensitivity to Japan's 'international standing' in the eyes of the foreign community as the ultimate reason for signing the Treaty. In the face of growing criticism from without and within, Japan's government has decided that now is the time to join the rest of the world in doing something about this critical issue. In addition to diplomatic pressure from many high-level foreign officials, several civic organizations inside the country have sought to put pressure on Tokyo to adopt the Hague initiative. For instance, the Free Choice Foundation, a foreigners' rights advocate, has worked to increase public awareness of the problem and present their views directly to the Japanese government.
Before the new system is officially adopted, there are a number of important questions that must be answered, situations that have to be postulated and laws that must be adjusted. For instance, the exact circumstances under which the Treaty provisions would be enforced have to be identified, and steps for parental conflict resolution must also be put in place. Further, the government seems to question parents' post-divorce ability to continue to nurture their children via dual custody. They also foresee undesirable effects on the welfare of subject children - though the thirty-year-old Treaty seems to be working effectively elsewhere.
It is certainly good news to see that Japan has finally decided to cooperate with the nations of the foreign community by signing this important Treaty. Unfortunately, it's anybody's guess as to when the country will actually become a signator. There are a number of important questions which must be answered, situations that have to be postulated and laws that must be adjusted. Ultimately, it will get done - just don't hold your breath while you're waiting.