WASHINGTON—Parents Jeffery Morehouse, Juan Garaicoa, and Michelle Littleton sat before a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on Dec. 10 to testify about the same terrible fate of their children—international abduction by a spouse.
“While most children were returning to school, my children were boarding a plane and being kidnapped to war-torn Lebanon,” Littleton, a mother of three, said.
“She had kidnapped our son to Japan,” said Morehouse, the founder and executive director of the non-profit Bring Abducted Children Home. “I don’t even know where he is being held.”
“Time is of the essence and now is the time to bring our children home,” pleaded Garaicoa, whose two children remain in Ecuador.
While the countries, children, and spouses are different, they share the same frustration of fighting to be reunited with their children in foreign lands.
Morehouse won custody of his children in U.S. courts—and twice in Japan—but his teenage son, Mochi, who was taken by his wife at age 6, remains in Japan with his mother because there is no enforcement mechanism under Japanese law.
“In the end, the court refused to reunite Mochi and me,” said Morehouse.”It does not matter how a child ends up with the abductor in Japan, they will not uphold laws and treaties to return children to their rightful home.”
“While most children were returning to school, my children were boarding a plane and being kidnapped to war-torn Lebanon,” Littleton, a mother of three, said.
“She had kidnapped our son to Japan,” said Morehouse, the founder and executive director of the non-profit Bring Abducted Children Home. “I don’t even know where he is being held.”
“Time is of the essence and now is the time to bring our children home,” pleaded Garaicoa, whose two children remain in Ecuador.
While the countries, children, and spouses are different, they share the same frustration of fighting to be reunited with their children in foreign lands.
Morehouse won custody of his children in U.S. courts—and twice in Japan—but his teenage son, Mochi, who was taken by his wife at age 6, remains in Japan with his mother because there is no enforcement mechanism under Japanese law.
“In the end, the court refused to reunite Mochi and me,” said Morehouse.”It does not matter how a child ends up with the abductor in Japan, they will not uphold laws and treaties to return children to their rightful home.”
Japan is a party to the Hague Convention, an international agreement between 82 countries and the European Union that is meant to facilitate safe adoption and protect children from international abduction.
However, Morehouse says Japan has flaunted all of the Hague Convention guidelines, making it “an abysmal failure.” He says U.S. reprimands have largely fallen on deaf ears and, because they haven’t backed their demands with action, Japan has no incentive to comply.
However, Morehouse says Japan has flaunted all of the Hague Convention guidelines, making it “an abysmal failure.” He says U.S. reprimands have largely fallen on deaf ears and, because they haven’t backed their demands with action, Japan has no incentive to comply.
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