Catherine on a train

D1_C1

D4 C1 [08:55:39] Catherine train 

LOCATION: TOKYO

Catherine: (01:36:33) On my way home from work, I got a phone call from my lawyer and, um, she told me to get off the train at the next station and call her back.

And I was like, oh, okay. So I got off the train at the very next stop // I was standing on the platform and um, wasn't sure what I was going to hear. I had no idea and I called her and she said, we've just received fax from your husband's lawyer saying that he and the children have moved out. And I wanted to let you know before you got home. And I was just stunned. I was shocked. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. And um, I, I sort of, what do you mean? And she said, well, he and the children have gone.

 Catherine: (01:50:23) I really wondered how my husband, this man who had laid next to me with his head on the pillow next to mine for 25 years could be capable of doing such a thing. It just didn't seem to make sense.

Catherine: (02:07:11) Um, I haven't spoken to them since the day before they were abducted

STORY TITLE:

JAPAN’S TAKEN CHILDREN

Karla Grant, Jodie Noyce, Colin Cosier, Simon Phegan

GVs + car driving pics from after shooting the PTC on D4_C1

VO: Japan is a complex mix of new and old…

An ultra-modern society… with traditional values.

Functional – yet constrained… and at times, conflicting.

VO:  I’ve come to Japan to investigate a controversial custody law that’s cutting off some Australian parents from their kids

D4_C1

SUPER: Karla Grant, reporter

[07:48:30] [08:02:08] KARLA PTC:

So …Under Japanese laws, only one parent maintains parental authority following a divorce.

This means one parent makes all the decisions about the child’s life. Now, they can choose to let the other parent be involved. Or... they can deny access and cut them out.  And this is what happened to an Australian mum I’m about to meet.

Catherine at home 

D1 C1 - [00:00:09] Arrival hello

UPSOT: Hi Catherine nice to meet you

Catherine: just take your shoes off here, please

Catherine in spare room

D1_C1 _bedroom

Karla walking with Catherine into spare room

12.36 close ups of baby clothes

27.49 back shot of Karla and Catherine looking 

Karla: (04:56) So Catherine, tell me about this room and what do you have in here?

Catherine: (05:00) Yeah. So this is the spare bedroom and these are some of the few things that I have left of the children's.

Catherine: (05:26) these are some little Japanese outfits that my daughter had worn to festivals and things like that.
 
Karla: (05:34) How old would you have been when she wore this? Under one?
 
Catherine: (05:36) Oh yeah. So it's a little jacket here and in this box are all knitted clothes that my mother had knitted. Wow. When my daughter was born

Karla: (08:41) How do you feel going through all these belongings?
 
Catherine: (08:46) I actually haven't looked at these for a very long time. I didn't, I didn't remember that my mum had made so many actually, you know, like these are the first clothes that they ever wore, so yeah, I've kept, oh, and the first little boots.
 
Karla: (09:02) Oh, cute.
 
Catherine: (09:04) Somebody sent yes. So these are very, yeah, I just had to keep, I can't, I can't get rid of them cuz this is all I have left

In 2019 without warning - Catherine’s husband moved out taking their two kids.

At the time she had no idea how final this separation would be.

D1_C1_CATHERINE MASTER

D1_5D – Karla’s reverse

SUPER: Catherine Henderson

3rd party > Catherine > photos of empty house

Catherine: (01:37:59) So I went home and opened the front door with some trepidation and went inside and the children's bedroom was completely blank. There was no furniture. There was just some carpets on the floor on one shelf.

Catherine: (01:53:01) And I couldn't believe that he would do something. It is so obviously harmful to the children. You know, I, I don't doubt that he loves them, but I believed that this is a really harmful act.

Family photos

3^rd Party > Catherine>

> Early Days Photos

+

> Wedding

VO: High-school teacher Catherine met the man she thought she’d spend life the rest of her life with, in Australia in 1996.

VO: They married and decided to start a new life together in his native Japan.

 VO: They had two kids, a girl and a boy… but after 15 years of family life – the marriage came to an end.

D1_C1

D1_5D – Karla’s reverse

Catherine: (02:45:17) So in 2017, on our 15 year wedding anniversary, um, I booked a restaurant, a Spanish restaurant for us to go out for dinner and part way through the meal. He asked me for a divorce and I was completely in utterly shocked. ///

I had absolutely no idea that, um, he was gonna ask me for a divorce on that day.

Catherine walking alone through bamboo park [03:03:36] - [03:11:47]

Catherine’s husband filed for divorce in 2018

VO: It was while they were negotiating custody that Catherine’s husband took the children.

Catherine (02:07:45): I feel like, well, I feel like I should have been given an opportunity to at least be able to talk to them. /// I mean, I have a lot of, a lot of feelings and mostly again, it's just complete and utter disbelief. Like I would just catch the train home from work so many days and you'd just be sitting there normally. And then all of a sudden you'd remember and you'd go, my kids have been abducted and I haven't seen them. And like even now I can't believe it's been three and a half years. And //

Catherine: (02:49:59)  I don't understand how a country can prevent me from seeing my children when I haven't done anything wrong. Does a country have that? Right? I, I don't know, but it feels wrong.

D5 C1 (50 fps)

[09:21:39] playground shots - no kids

[09:33:46] slippery slide shot

[09:34:30] swings slow mo

VO: In Japan, parental abduction of a child is often considered legal.

VO: In nearly all custody disputes, Japanese family courts grant sole custody to whoever has physical control of the children at the time of divorce^[1]

D1_C1_CATHERINE

D1_5D – Karla’s reverse

Catherine: (02:35:34) they absolutely give all of the benefits to the parents that abduct their children. So it's almost like you are the fool for not having abducted. It's basically a race to abduct, but the problem in my case was, I didn't know about that. And I don't think I could have, but it's basically whoever abducts first wins. That's the system.

Catherine walks to shops, buys food from a shop, walks home, eats dinner alone

D1_C1 - [03:11:57] – [03:29:25]

VO: The courts granted Catherine’s husband sole custody of their two kids.

Catherine hasn’t been allowed to visit.

And her kids told the court they didn’t want to see her. 

She believes her ex-husband influenced this outcome.

Catherine: (02:49:05)
I've read enough about parental alienation and these kinds of issues that I understand intellectually, that they have to say that to keep my husband or my ex-husband happy

Catherine: (02:49:33) but to think that the children that came through my body could say that is, is just, there's something physical about it. It's a physical thing. That's just unbelievable. 

Explainer: International situation

VO: Japan is one of the few countries in the world with a sole custody system.

VO: It gained international attention at last year’s Tokyo Olympics when French father of two Vincent Fichot went on a hunger strike outside the main stadium.

 3^rd party > vincent > DAY 1 - Vincent Fichot

French – subtitles

[0.02] VINCENT: My kids have been abducted in Tokyo, on August 10^th, 2018, and I haven’t had any news of them ever since.

The Australian department of foreign affairs and trade has provided consular assistance to 82 children involved in parental abduction and child custody cases in Japan since 2004.

But it’s not just foreigners losing access to their children

When former Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi divorced, his pregnant wife got custody of their unborn child while he got custody of their two sons.

By the youngest’s 18th birthday, they had reportedly never met their father.

Catherine’s lawyer

D2_C1_LAWYER IV

Catherine walking with lawyer

02:19:18 TAMAYO: The rule that only one parent can retain custody is inextricably linked to Japan’s traditional family system culture.

02:31:48 TAMAYO: I feel strongly that the Japanese system doesn't serve children's welfare.

Tamayo Omura (Ta-may-Oh Om-er-ah) is an expert in family law.

She’s also Catherine’s lawyer.

D2_C1

SUPER: Tamayo Omura, lawyer

JAPANESE - subtitles

02:16:54 TAMAYO: In the past, Japan had the ‘family system’. The head of the family was the father. And that system applies to the situation after divorce.

GVs of people walking in the park

Historically, men were the only decision makers in a family, so parental authority went to them.

Japan’s family system ended after world war two - giving women the right to claim sole custody.

But the idea that only one parent has custody remains.

D2_C1

JAPANESE - subtitles

02:21:26 TAMAYO: When parents divorce, they're not on good terms. So, the thinking is that, in such a state, parents wouldn't be able to discuss and make the right decisions at the right time for the child.

02:32:14 TAMAYO I feel strongly that we need to change the system into one that serves child welfare.

Tamayo is taking the fight to the Japanese government – hoping to help parents like Catherine.

D2_C1

JAPANESE - subtitles

02:52:33 – Tamayo

I’m joint legal counsel in two class action lawsuits.

One concerns Japan's failure to outlaw parents abducting their children. We are claiming that this contravenes the constitution. The other concerns the fact that, upon divorce, there is no system in place to ensure a child has access to their non-custodial parent. We claim this is unconstitutional.

Catherine looking for children

D2 C1

[04:49:34] Karla and Catherine on train together   

VO: Tamayo and Catherine are hopeful that if successful, the class actions will force the Japanese government to change their laws.

VO: But while they wait, Catherine is stuck in a desperate situation.

VO: Without visitation rights, the closest she can get to her children is standing outside the apartment block.

D2_C1

Outside train station about to walk to apartment

[03:48:55] - [04:45:48] Karla and Catherine up escalator to see children's apartment and walking there  

[04:46:02] exterior shots of apartment building  

[04:48:38] Catherine and Karla walking  

Karla: (01:45)
 So Catherine, you've been given the address of where your children live yes. With your ex ex-husband that's right? Yes. How far away is it from here?

Catherine: (01:52) I'm not exactly sure. This is my first time to go and have a look for where it is.

Karla: (04:14) So could it be one of these apartments?
 
Catherine: (04:17) Yeah, probably one of these apartments. That's right

Catherine: (05:34) I'm feeling a little bit nervous and a little bit, um, I'm
 
Karla: (05:39) Excited?

Catherine: (05:39) half excited and half a bit worried, um, that maybe I'll get in trouble for trying to approach them. ///

Karla: (16:27) What would happen if the children came out now? How would you feel? How would you react?
 
Catherine: (16:32) I would feel really happy, but I'm also a little bit nervous at their reaction. If they rejected me or ignored me, I'd feel bad.   

/// last time, um, when I found the apartment they were living in, I found their Duna covers hanging on the line, so I knew it was definitely the apartment that they were living in. So, then every time when I walked past there, I looked up at that apartment and just sort of thought, oh, they're there. You know? And if the lights were on, oh, they're home. And if the lights weren't on, oh, well who knows where they are. Just made me feel comforted that they were safe.
 

// You know, a lot of Australians say to me, well, why don't you just go and get your kids? Why don't you just go and get them and bring them. And, and it's just not that simple.

Catherine: (21:16) I am fearful of the police or the system and getting in trouble and because I'm not Japanese, I could get thrown out of the country and lose my right to live here and then I'd be even further away from the children.

Karla: (17:46) How does it feel to be so close, and yet, so far
 
Catherine: (17:52) It's crazy. It's really crazy. I mean, it just doesn't make any sense. Does it? That you can come almost up to where they live, but you just can't get that last, last little bit.

Catherine: (25:13) and it's just so incredibly painful.  // because you feel like your children are sort of part of you and it's like an arm or a hand has being cut off all of a sudden.  Then I see like this, a mother with her daughter walking hand in hand, and that seems so normal. And people take it for granted. And I think that why can't I have that anymore and why didn't I appreciate that? Simple, simple things, just like that.

UK - Paul

LOCATION: Chippenham, UK

While some parents are fighting to see their children, others are picking up the pieces after years of separation

Master IV

UK_C1

SUPER: Paul Halton

PAUL: (59:00) I'm Paul Halton and in August, 2014, my kids were abducted.  They were taken by my Japanese ex-wife to Japan, eight years on they're now being returned to me, the oldest two anyway, and,  next year, hopefully my youngest as well

UK_C2 [00:00:00] - [00:12:47] Paul and ANNE getting ready for lunch

Paul’s kids were finally returned just over two months ago

They’re now living in a blended family with Paul’s new wife.

UK_C2 [00:12:47] AINE: Lunch is ready!

UK_C2 [00:14:00]-[00:44:10] lunch

Aine has two children from a previous relationship.

She and Paul also have a daughter between them.

So, with two more from Japan, there are now seven people in the house

UK_C2 - Anne OTF

[00:22:43] AINE- definitely busy, lot going on, now that we have four of them are teenagers, so always trying to get them out of bed and have their breakfast before it's lunchtime

UK_C2 – Paul leaves table with food

[00:38:41] PAUL I'll take this to their rooms now

UK_C2 [00:42:21] Paul takes food to kids

With his kids recently returned to him, Paul had hoped they’d take part in this story.

UK_C2

[00:42:35] knocks

[00:42:40] PAUL: I brought you something to eat. you must be starving by now

They’ve chosen to stay in their rooms and won’t join the family for lunch.

Lunch convo

UK_C2

[00:35:01] PAUL they're not comfortable being on camera and talking about the situation they're in.

PAUL: (35:08) I think it's mainly because they /// don't really understand that what's happened to them is wrong. So, the whole concept of this is a bit strange to them or unusual and it's just making them feel a bit uncomfortable.

Paul looking at photo book

UK_C3

VO: Paul is still getting used to living with his kids again – but he says how he lost them is frightening

Paul IV – UK_C1

UK_C1 - PAUL: (10:10) in 2011, um, my, uh, ex-wife and I, uh, at the time married, uh, with three kids living in, in England, we'd always lived in England, never in Japan, uh, decided to separate and divorce. Um, it was not the easiest of, um, separations (10:29) and we did end up in court over child custody, and she was trying to apply to take the children to Japan on a permanent basis. Thankfully, um, the courts didn't approve that

PAUL: (07:05) ///and then they went away on holiday, uh, to the south of England, um, for a couple of weeks and on the date that I was due to go and pick them up, I got an email from my ex to say that actually they hadn't gone to the south of England. They'd gone to Japan and that they weren't gonna return.

Paul looking at photo book

UK_C3

Paul fought for his kids all the way up to Japan’s high court... and won... but he says the system still failed him.

Paul IV - UK_C1

PAUL: (50:20)
The high court in Japan gave, uh, a return order, um, for all three children. Um, but then we found that when they came to enforce that, uh, all my ex had to do was say no. Uh, and they weren't able to enforce her to return to the UK // So that was a realization that actually the system is broken

UK_C2 - [00:48:40] Paul playing badminton with his daughter

PAUL: (15:55) So, then rolling on to // 2022, I had, uh, an email in March from my ex to say that the older two // wanted to return to the UK to continue with their studies. And would I be happy for them to, to come and live with me? Um, which of course fantastic. I was, I was really surprised and yes, definitely, they could, they could come back.

UK_C3 – Paul shows son’s room, then daughter’s room

UK_C3 - [00:10:29] PAUL: this is my son's room. he did bring a few bits and pieces with him. he's a big Star Wars fan... 

[00:14:34] PAUL - in here we put the shelves together for her to put her books on...

UK_C3 – [start of tape] - Paul installing a hook and hanging a guitar on the wall.

PAUL: (28:49)
 since, uh, the kids have been back, it's been, I'm not sure what I was expecting. Exactly. I knew that it wasn't gonna be smooth. It was gonna be, uh, difficult times as, as well as good times just as they are with, with any kids. Um, but we are all getting used to each other. We are having to, um, learn each other's habits and what we like, and don't like, um, and at the same time, try and heal, um, some wounds. Um, so it's been tricky

UK_C1 – Paul IV

PAUL: (58:23) my kids were stolen from me and, and me as a father from them. Uh, and that there's nothing that can be done to, to put their back. It's gone forever.

Paul's ex-wife didn't respond to emailed questions, but a friend replied on her behalf, writing: "There are two sides to every story."

Despite international pressure to change, Japan has stuck with its sole custody system.

But a recent government survey^[2] found that about 50 per cent of respondents support both divorced parents being involved in raising children.

It comes as Japan’s justice ministry drafts an interim proposal that could allow divorced parents to share custody.

But it may not pass…

And for some, sole custody works just fine.

Yumiko

JAPAN_KG_D5_C1

Super: Yumiko Iwamoto 

[11:55:31] girls getting rice

[11:55:29] daughters getting food 

[11:54:00] - [11:57:19] Karla and family getting ready to eat

Upsot Karla with cat.

VO: In Japan, it’s often mothers who are granted sole custody… women like Yumiko.

11:42:36: YUMIKO: Thank you for the meal.

Everyone: Thank you for the meal

When her 13-year marriage collapsed a few years ago, her two daughters became her sole responsibility

JAPANESE - subtitles

(11:49:32) KARLA: So, do you make all the decisions about the children's lives on your own?

 YUMIKO: Yes, I do. I decide everything as I see fit. I never discuss it with him at all. I'm the decision-maker.

Yumiko’s ex has re-married.

He doesn’t see the kids much at all, and that, she says, is his choice.

JAPANESE - subtitles

SUPER: Yumiko

YUMIKO: I wish he would be proactive about getting more involved, actually. // but he seems unwilling to do so.  

KARLA: So, once the husband married somebody else, they don't really want to have anything to do with the other family? Is that correct?

YUMIKO: I think that happens a lot in Japan.

 JAPANESE - subtitles

Karla: So, for you girls, how often do you see your dad? 

Older girl: In a month… maybe once in every two months or less.

Karla: Would you like to see him more often?

Older girl: I rarely visit him of my own accord, so I'm probably don’t feel like it so much.

Karla: And, what about you? Do you like seeing your dad?

Younger girl: Yes, it's fun.

Karla: It's fun when you see your dad? Where does he take you?

Younger girl: Like shopping and playing.

Karla: Would you like to see him more often?

Younger girl: I'm okay with only seeing him on special occasions like birthdays.

Clearing plates

If she wanted to, Yumiko could cut her ex completely out of the picture.

Instead, she wants him to be more involved.

But because of sole custody, there’s no way she can make him.

JAPANESE - subtitles

YUMIKO: Japanese men generally work outside while women stay at home doing housework. That's the general way of thinking in Japan. So, he followed that kind of idea. He hardly did anything at home and just focused on his work. I feel like I've brought these two up on my own.

12:28:28 KARLA: At the moment, Japan is looking to change the sole custody laws; what do you think should change about them?

12:28:38 YUMIKO: Well... I want to see a spirit of caring. The Japanese way of thinking tends to be ‘the system says this’ and ignore people’s feelings. (12:29:01) So, whichever system becomes the law, I don’t want to see someone cry because of it. As long as no one suffers, I think either would be fine. (12:29:12)

D5_C1 – 11:26:05

Street GVs near the izakaya

VO: Japan is one of only a few countries with a sole custody system.^[3]

This means that after divorce, only one parent has legal authority over a child

It’s a controversial law that has resulted in some parents being cut off from seeing their kids

Izakaya

D5 C1

Karla: (09:50:01) cheers.

Catherine: (09:50:02) Cheers.

At least 82 Australian-Japanese children have been entangled in the system.

Kids, like Danny’s

Danny: (10:01:14)  I've been fighting in court for over two years. Um, and it's been over four years since I've last seen my kids physically

Danny: (10:02:14) And I find that absolutely ridiculous.

Catherine knows the pain of losing her kids, too.

She hasn’t spoken to them in over three years.

So, her lifeline has become other parents stuck in the same situation.

Catherine: (10:00:27) So we made a group chat of Australian parents, um, who have been impacted by this

Catherine: (09:59:23)  It's a double edged sword. Yeah. It's good to know about other cases. Yeah. But it's also sad to hear other cases./// (10:00:04) So we share all of the tips that we can with each other, but still you just can't have success. It's just impossible. We're all fighting this impossible. Invisible enemy.

And fight they do

As well as supporting each other, they take to the streets.

> Catherine > protests > video

CATHERINE: (10:58:55)
So raising awareness, I think is the most important thing.

CATHERINE: (10:59:19) because the average Japanese person is just unaware about this situation

CATHERINE: (11:01:15)So we also have, um, um, orange parades I've um, participated in four of those.

/// and we all wear orange clothing and we walk through the street  //

CATHERINE: (11:01:37) And they've stood outside the ministry of justice. They've stood outside the lawyers association and they have people doing speeches saying, come on you lawyers who are helping people have duck their children and get away with it

// (11:01:53) It's very colorful.

CATHERINE: (11:07:36)
We just need to have many different, um, angles. One thing on its own is, is not gonna be enough

CATHERINE: (11:07:22)
 I think it's gonna be a combination of international pressure. I think it's gonna be a combination of pressure within Japan. I think it's gonna be the class actions and mostly an increase in public awareness.

Shrine

D4 C1

While trying to change Japan from the inside, Catherine is still locked out of her own family

[08:10:05] Karla and Catherine entering shrine

[08:10:17] washing hands before entering

[08:49:14] wide shots of shrine

[08:52:21] Catherine and Karla walking through shrine

Catherine: (02:25:08) I've lost my home, the children, my job, everything everything's gone. And now I feel obligated to stay in Japan because my children are here

 Catherine: (02:09:22)  there's lots of fears. Like, will I die before I get to talk to them again? Or, or will they die before I get to talk to them again? Or, uh, will they have children? And I won't meet my grandchildren. I mean, this is so many fears and grief around future things.

D4_C1

At shrine

Cutaways of Karla  (08:16:13)

With no visitation rights…the only way Catherine can reach her children is through video letters.

Montage of video letters

[0:04] this is my first ever video letter that I’ve made for you.

[1:29] I have to let you know that I’m here and I’m trying. It’s really important to me that you know that.

[0:18] I think about you everyday. Both of you. And I wonder if you’re thinking about me as well.

[2:41] maybe I should stop talking because I’m getting upset (laughs)

[2:00] one day when you’re older I really want you t know, even if we never reconnect with each other, I want you to know that I loved you. Always.

Catherine: (08:15:09)
 Hi, sweetie. /// It's been four years since we've been able to celebrate your birthday together. /// I really miss you. I think about you a lot, and I wish that we can spend time together again soon. I love you, and I'm always waiting for you. Lots of love, mummy.

I feel hopeful that one day I'll be able to show all of the videos to them and that the children will know that I've always been thinking about them and that I never forgot them. I never abandoned them.

Catherine: (02:50:20)  I have to. Um, I have to hold that hope. Otherwise, my thoughts will not go in a good direction. So I have to hold out the hope that one day we will be reconnected and I have to hold out that I had 14 years with my daughter in 10 years with my son. And that they're not gonna forget that.

Karla: (02:52:48)  If you were to see your children, what would you most want to do with them?

Catherine: (02:53:20)  I think I don't let my mind go there because it's too upsetting. Hmm. But hug them if they'll let me.

 [08:41:07] shot of ema on wall

Diegetic text on screen: I hope I will be re-united with my kids soon

 TEXT SLATE

Catherine’s ex-husband declined to be interviewed.

 TEXT SLATE

In a written statement, he said:

“The court ruled... I hadn't committed Parental Alienation, illegally removed the children or failed to cooperate with visitation.”