There are around 250 cross-cultural custody battles in Finnish district courts each year. This is about one tenth of all custody cases.
Heli Kivelä, who is the chairman of the association helping parents whose spouse has abducted their child, says custody battles are especially heavy for a child. The parents should allow the child to communicate with both mother and father.
“Commonly divorces involve major disagreements, and occasionally an individual wants to show their own leverage and power, that I’m able to aggravate you with this issue," says Kivelä with regrets.
If a parent takes a child by their own accord away from the other parent, the situation is legally considered as an abduction when the child is taken from the permanent country of residence. Last year 30 children were abducted from Finland in custody disputes.
Both mothers and fathers have been guilty of abduction. Children are also brought to Finland from elsewhere. But, as Finland abides strictly by the Hague Convention, children are often returned to their home country within a few months.
