U.S. Won’t Tolerate Loopholes in Child Abduction Treaty with Japan

As Tokyo moves to ratify the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, the U.S. said Thursday that it will not accept any loopholes Japan might seek in resolving the long-running source of conflict.

Kurt Campbell, the assistant secretary of state for East Asia, said, “We will not rest until we see the kinds of changes that are necessary and we will certainly not abide by loopholes or other steps that will, frankly, somehow negate or water down (the agreement).”

Japanese critics of the treaty fear that it will facilitate the return of children to abusive parents, even though the treaty has a provision concerning abuse. Japanese lawmakers are considering making exceptions to the treaty if there are fears of abuse. These exceptions could be used as a loophole to return children to foreign parents, or be used to delay the return.

The U.S. is also pressing Japan to allow greater visitation rights outside of the treaty. It is customary in Japan for the parent with custody to deny the other parent visitation rights, the reason for which I have discussed previously.

One reason the U.S. may fear Japan will seek a loophole in the international treaty is rooted in the precedent Japan demonstrated in exploiting the loophole for scientific research in the International Whaling Commission’s 1986 moratorium.

I think the reason Japan seeks loopholes in international treaties has to do with the Japanese concepts of “honne” and “tatemae.” Tatemae is the facade, while honne is the reality. The tatemae often represents an ideal, while the honne continues to be carried out. The Japanese don’t consider the contradictory nature of honne and tatemae to be lying, because the tatemae is an ideal and how can an ideal be a lie? Western Japanophiles who think Japan can do no wrong usually buy into Japan’s slogans presenting the tatemae, without seeking out the honne. Having a worldview that allows this contradiction is useful in a country where privacy is virtually nonexistent. People are allowed an inner privacy by putting forward a tatemae, and most people don’t seek out the honne out of respect for the others’ inner privacy. This sometimes leads to conflicts in international forums where Japan puts forth its tatemae and keeps the honne hidden. In fact, the West insisting on Japan to say what it means and do what it says may be considered ethnocentric from the Japanese point-of-view.

Even if Japan ratifies the 1980 convention, the law will only apply to future cases of alleged child abduction, and will not be applied to the 123 cases that are currently in dispute.