Read original at Diario16+ (in spanish)
Last summer, a couple formed by a Spanish citizen and a Filipino woman in the process of divorce traveled with their two children to the country of seven thousand islands. According to sources consulted, the mother’s excuse was that her family had not yet met the youngest daughter, who was born during the pandemic. However, the trip was part of a plan to abduct the two minors, aged 6 and 4, who did not board the return flight to Spain.
Cases like this are expected to become increasingly common in a globalized world, particularly having Spain a high percentage of international marriages. It is estimated that international child abductions, according to statistics from cases processed under the Hague Convention and the Ministry of Justice, are carried out by women in 60% to 70% of cases and by men in 30% to 40%, varying by country and region.
Sources indicate that, in the case of men, the father often flees to a country where the mother does not have the same rights as the father, making it difficult or impossible for her to claim any authority over the abducted children. When the abductors are women, the general strategy involves choosing a third-world country (often their country of origin if they have family support) and disappearing there. The abductor is usually not financially needy but rather a middle-class or upper-middle-class individual willing to deprive the children of the other parent.
The Magundayao Case puts the Republic of the Philippines under scrutiny, as it signed the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. On paper, therefore, the Filipino State should not become a haven for abductors. The Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has informed the Spanish family that there is no precedent for applying the Hague Convention with the Philippines, making this first case a critical test for future diplomatic relations between the two countries regarding illegal child trafficking.
A Case with Aggravating Factors
While abductions mostly occur in families with a single child, this case involves the rare circumstance where the two abducted children have half-sisters from their father’s previous marriage, with whom they had a close emotional relationship, forming a large, united family.
Additionally, the abducted boy was receiving speech therapy for language issues, which he had begun to overcome. Since September, however, the boy has not been exposed to his native languages (Catalan and Spanish), except through his younger sister, who is also still developing her language skills. This lack of linguistic exposure will severely hinder the child's cognitive development.
Lastly, following the disappearance strategy, the mother has failed to respond to the court’s summons in the divorce proceedings, despite the Spanish family providing notarial evidence that she received and read both the complaint and the court's admission of the case. This disappearance tactic works in the abductor's favor, as they aim for the case to be forgotten, for the family to lose hope, and for the children to erase all memories of the other parent. In this case, erasing the memories would mean forgetting four half-sisters.
"How Do You Tell a Devastated Family They Have a Serious Financial Problem?"
Laura Rodríguez Caro, the designated spokesperson for this case, told Diario16+ that, despite the father initiating legal proceedings, it is very difficult to secure the children's return without diplomatic intervention. "It is inconceivable that, in the 21st century, it is so easy to abduct children," she said, "and equally shocking that the recovery process, even just the attempt, will cost the family around 80,000 euros. How do you tell a devastated family that they have a serious financial problem from the outset?". Rodríguez Caro, who has years of experience in fundraising for NGOs, foundations, hospitals, and universities, is assisting the family in this case. "Without adequate funding, these children will never come back. Even with it, there’s no guarantee they will return," she warned. "Spaniards must understand that in today’s world of global relationships, this could happen to anyone."
The ball is now in the court of the Filipino judicial system. The Southeast Asian country must decide whether it will align itself with lawless states or join the ranks of civilized nations. Diario16 will continue to monitor this case, which also tests the international diplomatic capacity of the Spanish State.