Parents warn Tokyo’s two-year delay in implementing new laws could trigger a “dash to the finish line” to abduct more children.
There are fresh allegations of intimidation in the Pacific as Beijing’s influence grows to encompass everything from infrastructure to media,mining,policing and healthcare in one of Australia’s closest neighbours.
Canberra has encouraged Tokyo to introduce shared parenting after The Age,The Sydney Morning Herald and 60 Minutes reported that at least 82 Australian children had been abducted by their Japanese parent since 2004.
Prominent Japanese politicians have labelled the country’s sole custody system an embarrassment and appealed to Australia to raise the issue publicly in Japan.
The mother is the only Australian parent known to have won the child abduction race under Japan’s sole custody system,while a Canadian father sailed 1000 kilometres to see his kids during pandemic lockdowns.
Australian parents whose Japanese former spouses have abducted their children are demanding urgent action from both governments as years pass without any contact.