[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1326 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1326

 Calling on the Government of Japan to immediately address the growing 
 problem of abduction to and retention of United States citizen minor 
 children in Japan, to work closely with the Government of the United 
  States to return these children to their custodial parent or to the 
original jurisdiction for a custody determination in the United States, 
to provide left-behind parents immediate access to their children, and 
 to adopt without delay the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects 
                   of International Child Abduction.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 5, 2010

   Mr. Moran of Virginia (for himself, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. 
  Hinchey, Mr. Gary G. Miller of California, Mrs. Blackburn, and Mr. 
Becerra) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Calling on the Government of Japan to immediately address the growing 
 problem of abduction to and retention of United States citizen minor 
 children in Japan, to work closely with the Government of the United 
  States to return these children to their custodial parent or to the 
original jurisdiction for a custody determination in the United States, 
to provide left-behind parents immediate access to their children, and 
 to adopt without delay the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects 
                   of International Child Abduction.

Whereas Japan is an important partner with the United States and shares 
        interests in the areas of economy, defense, the promotion of global 
        peace and prosperity, and the mutual protection of the human rights of 
        the two nations' respective citizens in the increasingly integrated 
        global society;
Whereas the Government of Japan acceded to the Universal Declaration of Human 
        Rights that states under Article 16 (1), ``Men and women of full age, 
        without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the 
        right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights 
        as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution'', and Article 16 
        (3), ``The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society 
        and is entitled to protection by society and the State'';
Whereas the Government of Japan acceded in 1979 to the International Covenant on 
        Civil and Political Rights that states ``States Parties to the present 
        Covenant shall take appropriate steps to ensure equality of rights and 
        responsibilities of spouses as to marriage, during marriage and at its 
        dissolution. In the case of dissolution, provision shall be made for the 
        necessary protection of any children [Article 23]'';
Whereas according to Japan's National Institute of Population and Social 
        Security Research, 44,701 marriages between a Japanese national and a 
        foreigner were registered in Japan in 2006, and 17,102 divorces were 
        registered in Japan in 2006 between a Japanese national and foreigner;
Whereas since 1994 the Office of Children's Issues (OCI) at the United States 
        Department of State had opened 194 cases involving 269 United States 
        citizen minor children abducted to or wrongfully retained in Japan, and 
        as of March 25, 2010, OCI had 85 open cases involving 121 United States 
        citizen minor children abducted to or wrongfully retained in Japan;
Whereas since the signing of the Treaty of Peace with Japan (San Francisco 
        Treaty) between the Allied Powers and the Government of Japan in 1951, 
        the Japanese Government has never issued and enforced a legal decision 
        to return a single abducted child to the United States;
Whereas Japan has not acceded to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects 
        of International Child Abduction (the Hague Convention), resulting in 
        the continued absence of an immediate civil remedy that as a matter of 
        urgency would enable the expedited return of abducted children to their 
        custodial parent in the United States where appropriate, or otherwise 
        immediately allow access to their United States parent;
Whereas the Government of Japan is the only G-7 country that has not acceded to 
        the Hague Convention;
Whereas the Hague Convention would not apply to abductions occurring before the 
        accession of Japan to the Hague Convention, requiring, therefore, that 
        Japan create a separate parallel process to resolve the abductions of 
        all United States citizen minor children who currently remain wrongfully 
        removed to or retained in Japan, including the 121 United States citizen 
        minor children who have been reported to the United States Department of 
        State and who are being held in Japan against the wishes of their parent 
        in the United States and, in many cases, in direct violation of a valid 
        United States court order;
Whereas the Hague Convention provides enumerated defenses designed to provide 
        protection to children alleged to be subjected to physical or 
        psychological abuse in the left-behind country;
Whereas United States laws against domestic violence extend protection and 
        redress to Japanese spouses;
Whereas there are numerous acknowledged cases, such as the Jade and Michael 
        Elias case, of Japanese consulates located within the United States 
        issuing or reissuing travel documents of dual-national minor children in 
        violation of United States court orders restricting travel and in 
        violation of United States Federal criminal parental kidnapping 
        statutes;
Whereas there are numerous cases in which the actions of the Government of Japan 
        evidence a disregard of United States law and jurisdiction, other cases 
        show indifference to the United States and customary international 
        jurisprudence in the area of family law, which overwhelmingly reflects 
        the worldwide preference for the resolution of parenting disputes by 
        negotiated joint custody;
Whereas Japan's existing family law system does not recognize joint custody nor 
        actively enforce parental access agreements for either its own nationals 
        or foreigners, there is little hope for minor children to have contact 
        with the noncustodial parent in violation of internationally recognized 
        and protected rights;
Whereas there exists no due process within the Japanese family court system for 
        the redress of such disputes, and the existing system has no recognized 
        process to enforce a custody or parental access order from outside of 
        Japan or within it, without the voluntary cooperation of the abducting 
        parent or guardian;
Whereas the Government of Japan has repeatedly claimed to foreign governments 
        that parental child abduction is not considered a crime in Japan despite 
        the fact that Article 3 of the Japanese Penal Code does indeed make it a 
        crime for a Japanese citizen to abduct a child and move the child across 
        national borders, even if the child is moved to Japan;
Whereas the Government of Japan has refused to prosecute an abducting parent or 
        relative criminally when that parent or relative abducts the child into 
        Japan;
Whereas according to the United States Department of State's April 2008 Report 
        on Compliance with the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of 
        International Child Abduction, abducted children are at risk of serious 
        emotional and psychological problems and have been found to experience 
        anxiety, eating problems, nightmares, mood swings, sleep disturbances, 
        aggressive behavior, resentment, guilt, and fearfulness, and as adults 
        may struggle with identity issues, their own personal relationships, and 
        parenting;
Whereas left-behind parents may encounter substantial psychological, emotional, 
        and financial problems, and many may not have the financial resources to 
        pursue civil or criminal remedies for the return of their children in 
        foreign courts or political systems;
Whereas Erika Toland was abducted in 2003 from Negishi United States Navy Family 
        housing in Yokohama to Tokyo, Japan, by her now deceased mother and is 
        being held by her Japanese maternal grandmother, while being denied 
        access to her father since 2004;
Whereas Melissa Braden was covertly abducted from her home in 2006 by her mother 
        to Japan in violation of previous Los Angeles Superior Court orders 
        giving both parents access to the child and prohibiting international 
        travel (travel to Japan) with the child by either parent and has since 
        been denied any contact with her father;
Whereas Kai Hachiya was abducted in 2006 to Japan by his father, who had been 
        found by a court of competent jurisdiction to have physically and 
        mentally abused Kai's mother who had been awarded sole custody in the 
        State of Hawaii, and as a result, Kai has had limited contact with his 
        mother;
Whereas Isaac and Rebecca Savoie were abducted in 2009 to Japan by their mother 
        in violation of a Tennessee State court order of joint custody and 
        Tennessee statutes, and have been denied any access or communication 
        with their father, despite their father having been awarded sole custody 
        of them by a United States court;
Whereas Karina Garcia was abducted to Japan in 2008 by her mother, who was 
        ordered by the United States courts to return Karina to the care of her 
        sole custodian father in the United States, but the order to return of 
        the child has not been granted even though the sole custody order had 
        been recognized by the Osaka High Court;
Whereas United States citizen minor children who have been abducted to Japan are 
        being deprived of their United States heritage;
Whereas, on October 16, 2009, the Ambassadors to Japan of Australia, Canada, 
        France, Italy, New Zealand, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United 
        States, all parties to the Hague Convention, called upon Japan to accede 
        to the Hague Convention and meanwhile to identify and implement measures 
        to enable parents who are separated from their children to establish 
        contact with them and to visit them;
Whereas, on January 30, 2010, the Ambassadors to Japan of Australia, France, New 
        Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States, the Charges 
        d'Affaires ad interim of Canada and Spain, and the Deputy Head of 
        Mission of Italy, called on Japan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, 
        submitted their concerns over the increase in international parental 
        abduction cases involving Japan and affecting their nationals, and again 
        urged Japan to sign the Hague Convention;
Whereas the Governments of the United States and the French Republic have 
        recently established bilateral commissions with Japan's Ministry of 
        Foreign Affairs to share information on and seek resolution of 
        outstanding Japanese parental child abduction cases;
Whereas the bilateral commission is limited by the fact that it does not 
        currently include Japan's Ministry of Justice, which has jurisdiction 
        over family law;
Whereas Japan's Justice Minister Keiko Chiba said upon her appointment that she 
        is determined to show that Japan ``is very proactive'' in adopting 
        international protocols and conventions that are the ``international 
        standard''; and
Whereas it is critical for the Governments of the United States and Japan to 
        work together to prevent future incidents of international parental 
        child abduction to Japan, which damages children, families, and Japan's 
        national image with the United States: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That--
            (1) the House of Representatives--
                    (A) condemns the abduction and retention of all 
                minor children being held in Japan away from their 
                United States parents in violation of their human 
                rights and United States and international law;
                    (B) calls on the Government of Japan to immediately 
                facilitate the resolution of all abduction cases, to 
                recognize United States court orders governing persons 
                subject to jurisdiction in a United States court, and 
                to make immediately possible access and communication 
                for all children with their left-behind parents;
                    (C) calls on the Government of Japan to include 
                Japan's Ministry of Justice in work with the Government 
                of the United States to facilitate the identification 
                and location of all United States minor citizen 
                children alleged to have been wrongfully removed to or 
                retained in Japan and for the immediate establishment 
                of a protocol for the resolution of existing cases of 
                abduction, interference with parental access to 
                children, and violations of United States court orders;
                    (D) calls on the Government of Japan to establish 
                immediately a protocol and timetable to amend its Civil 
                Code to allow for enforceable rights of parental access 
                and communication between minor children and their 
                divorced or separated parents including parents who are 
                not Japanese citizens;
                    (E) calls on the Government of Japan to review and 
                amend its consular procedures to ensure that travel 
                documents for minor children are not issued in 
                violation of United States court orders;
                    (F) calls on Japan to accede to the 1980 Hague 
                Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child 
                Abduction without delay and to promptly establish 
                judicial and enforcement procedures to facilitate 
                credibly the immediate return of children to their 
                habitual residence and to establish protocols for the 
                organization of rights of international parental 
                access; and
                    (G) calls on the President of the United States and 
                the Secretary of State to seek immediately to identify 
                credibly all United States citizen minor children who 
                have been wrongfully removed to and who are retained 
                currently in Japan and to raise the issue of abduction 
                and wrongful retention of those United States citizen 
                minor children in Japan with Japanese officials and 
                domestic and international press; and
            (2) it is the sense of the House of Representatives that 
        the United States should--
                    (A) recognize the issue of child abduction to and 
                retention of United States citizen minor children in 
                Japan as a central foreign policy issue of paramount 
                importance to the United States within the context of 
                its bilateral relationship with Japan;
                    (B) work with the Government of Japan to enact 
                consular procedures and legal agreements to prevent 
                parental abduction to and retention of United States 
                citizen minor children in Japan;
                    (C) encourage the Government of Japan to adopt the 
                policy of not issuing duplicate passports when a United 
                States judge has restricted a child's travel or ordered 
                the surrender of passports and to otherwise require 
                notarized signatures from both parents before issuing a 
                passport to a child;
                    (D) review its advisory services made available to 
                United States citizens from the Department of State, 
                the Department of Justice, and other government 
                agencies to ensure that effective and timely assistance 
                is given to United States citizens in preventing the 
                incidence of wrongful retention or removal of minor 
                children and acting to obtain the expeditious return of 
                their children from Japan;
                    (E) review its advisory services made available to 
                members of the United States Armed Forces, particularly 
                those stationed in Japan by the Department of Defense 
                and the United States Armed Forces, to ensure that 
                effective and timely assistance is given to them, 
                including providing legal assistance in preventing the 
                incidence of wrongful retention or removal of minor 
                children and acting to obtain the expeditious return of 
                their dependent children from Japan at the conclusion 
                of their tour of duty in Japan;
                    (F) call upon the Secretary of Defense to include 
                the issues of child abduction and the protection of 
                members of the United States Armed Forces and their 
                families stationed abroad in any current or future 
                status of forces agreement;
                    (G) call upon the Secretary of State to enact 
                immediately a Memorandum of Understanding with the 
                Government of Japan to establish a bilateral protocol 
                with procedures to address immediately any parental 
                child abduction or access issue reported to the United 
                States Department of State; and
                    (H) urge the Department of State to include 
                international child abduction and Japan's actions 
                regarding abductions as a human rights violation under 
                its Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.
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