House condemns Japan on custody rights; since when do the FRs control the state department?

Why is Japan being singled out for attention? Kids are held in countries all over the world by one parent or another, while the other parent sits in the U.S. And most of the time, the U.S. government can't be bothered. Well, they come out and say it. Japan is "tilted towards fathers." No wasted space here on American moms who can't get their kids out of the middle east. Nope. It's pretty clear here what leverage the FR movement has when they can command the attention of the top U.S. diplomat of East Asia and the U.S. Secretary of State in this ridiculous attempt to alienate a major U.S. ally--all because their culture still values mothers as primary caretakers. Of all the horrible things going on in the world, these two top American officials are supposed to drop everything to address 121 children living with their Japanese mothers? This is not only ridiculous from a mother's rights standpoint, but a ridiculous waste of government time.

We've also reported on dad CHRISTOPHER SAVOIE before, whose past is far more checkered than is let on here. See our earlier posts on this case by searching under Japan.

http://www.thestate.com/2010/09/29/1489144/house-condemns-japan-on-custody.html

Wednesday, Sep. 29, 2010
House condemns Japan on custody rights
By FOSTER KLUG - Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON — The House turned up the pressure Wednesday on close ally Japan, strongly urging Tokyo to return immediately half-Japanese children that lawmakers say have been kidnapped from their American parents.

The House voted overwhelmingly for a nonbinding resolution that "condemns the abduction and retention" of children held in Japan "in violation of their human rights and United States and international law."

The resolution, which passed 416-1, also calls for Japan to allow Americans to visit their children and for the Japanese government to join a 1980 international convention on child abduction that would allow for the quick return of the children to America.

Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., told reporters that the resolution sends a strong signal to Japan that Congress "is watching and expecting action."

Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., said, "Americans are fed up with our friend and ally Japan and their pattern of noncooperation."

The Japanese Embassy said in a statement that Japan is sympathetic to the plight of children caught in custody battles between Japanese and American citizens and "is continuing to make sincere efforts to deal with this issue from the standpoint that the welfare of the child should be of the utmost importance."

The United States often calls Japan its lynchpin ally in Asia, and tens of thousands of U.S. troops are stationed in Japan. But Japan's stance on custody rights has been a source of friction. U.S. lawmakers say at least 121 American children currently are being held in Japan.

Japanese law allows only one parent to have custody in cases of divorce, usually the mother. Activists say the court system in Japan is tilted against fathers and foreigners.

Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, the top U.S. diplomat for East Asia, told lawmakers at a hearing Wednesday that the issue is a priority, with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton raising it in meetings with her Japanese counterpart.

Campbell said he also would raise the matter when he travels to Tokyo next week and that Japan should act urgently.

Christopher Savoie, a father who was arrested last year after going to Japan in a failed attempt to reclaim his two children who were taken from Franklin, Tenn., by his Japanese ex-wife, joined lawmakers and other fathers at a news conference before the House vote.

Read more: http://www.thestate.com/2010/09/29/1489144/house-condemns-japan-on-custody.html#ixzz1125tMw1s