John Sichi, center, plays with his children at their home in San Francisco, Calif., after they returned to the United States on April 18. Courtesy of John Sichi

American citizen John Sichi was recently reunited with his two children after a years-long journey to retrieve them, following their abduction by his Korean spouse. Sichi's family, originally based in California, experienced upheaval when his spouse vanished with their children in late 2019 after relocating to Korea.

Now resettled in San Francisco, Sichi and his two children — a seven-year-old boy and a five-year-old girl — are piecing their lives back together and envisioning a future that once seemed lost.

John Sichi speaks during a video interiview with The Korea Times, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Lee Hyo-jin

"It still feels unreal, like I'm dreaming. The fact that I'm here in San Francisco with them, rebuilding our story... and that they want to have piggyback rides with me and do all the simple things that children want to do. I feel overwhelmed," Sichi said in a video interview with The Korea Times, Tuesday.

They returned to the United States on April 18 and the kids are readjusting to life in America as they prepare to start school and kindergarten soon. They are also catching up with their American relatives, some of whom they had never met before.

But the children remain quite confused. During the four years of separation from their father, the children's mother portrayed Sichi and their American relatives in a negative light, according to the father.

"It's confusing for them. It's a big change and they didn't really understand what was happening. So we spent a lot of time talking about their life in Korea and life in America and why they are changing schools," Sichi said, adding that they are working with a child psychiatrist and therapist.

"We finished one marathon, and now we're starting the next marathon, which is helping the kids adjust to American life and have a good life here."

Protracted legal proceedings

Sichi's story traces back to November 2019, when his Korean wife, surnamed Lee, took their children from San Francisco to Korea and disappeared. Despite a San Francisco County Superior Court order granting sole custody to Sichi and demanding the children's return to the U.S., Lee refused to comply.

She also disregarded rulings from the Seoul Family Court and subsequent appeals courts, which accused her of international parental child abduction under the Hague Abduction Convention. The international treaty, ratified in Korea in 2012, aims to safeguard children from wrongful removal or retention across borders by one parent.

In accordance with the Hague convention, the Korean Supreme Court ordered the children's prompt repatriation to the U.S. in February 2022.

Despite multiple attempts by court officials to enforce the order, however, they were unable to retrieve the children due to Lee's strong resistance and the children's refusal to be separated from their mother.

Over the past few years, Sichi was entangled in a maze of legal proceedings and bureaucratic hurdles. He navigated ongoing legal battles with the Supreme Court and the Ministry of Justice, which oversees the enforcement of the convention.

A significant challenge in enforcing the return order arose from the court's reliance on the children's opinion regarding their living arrangements, Sichi explained.

John Sichi's children play in the backyard of their home in San Francisco, Calif., April 19. Courtesy of John Sichi

During the enforcement process, a court official asked the children, "Would you like to live with your mom or your dad?" and they refused to live with Sichi. Relevant rules stipulated that the court could not enforce repatriation against the children's will.

This decision seemed unfair to Sichi, as the kids were not able to fully comprehend the circumstances.

"They did not know why they had abruptly moved to Korea, and were extremely stressed in a situation where their mother became emotional in the presence of police officers and court officials," Sichi said.

According to court documents obtained by The Korea Times, a child psychiatrist who conducted interviews with the children suggested that their response could have been influenced by their mother. She appeared to have instilled guilt in them for having spent time with their dad and described him as a "kidnapper" and a "bad person," according to the documents.

But Sichi still could not get back his children due to what he described as a "flawed legal system." Following multiple failed enforcement attempts, he had almost lost hope.

His case experienced a significant breakthrough in January when the Supreme Court implemented a new enforcement rule for Hague Abduction Convention cases. This rule no longer requires the child's consent during the execution of the return order and mandates the presence of child welfare experts at the site to ensure their safety.

"Recognizing flaws in the outdated rule enacted in 1982, which appeared out of touch with reality when handling cases involving young children, the Ministry of Justice worked with the Supreme Court to come up with the new rule," said attorney Min Ji-won of IPG law firm, Sichi's legal representative.

"It may sound a little odd not to ask the children's opinion when retrieving them. But in reality, children at a very young age do not fully understand what's going on and who they should listen to. This is what happened in Sichi's case," Min said.

John Sichi's children take a walk at Lands End hiking trail in San Francisco, Calif., after they returned to the United States on April 18. Courtesy of John Sichi

With the revised rules in place from April, court officials successfully carried out the enforcement order at Lee's residence in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, April 15. After a 50-minute process involving two child welfare experts, Sichi finally reunited with his children, marking the end of his four-year-and-five-month struggle.

"It's been a long road, and I know that I criticized the Korean government pretty harshly at various points. But along that road, we were able to work together and make progress to change the rule. This is really encouraging," Sichi said during the interview.

The American citizen also emphasized that significant public attention among Koreans had contributed to advancing his case.

Sichi's story gained considerable traction as he organized numerous "treadmill protests" across various locations in Seoul between October 2022 and July 2023, spending hours walking on the treadmill to symbolize his inability to reach his children despite his efforts.

"The huge wave of support really made a difference. That's what kept me going," he said.

John Sichi stages a treadmill protest in front of Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul, Nov. 30, 2022, demanding Korean authorities enforce court orders that his children should be returned to the United States under the Hague Abduction Convention. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Unresolved cases

Sichi's case is a rare example of an international parental kidnapping that has found a positive resolution, as many left-behind parents with Korean partners face challenges due to delays in the government's return process.

In its "2024 Action Report on International Child Abduction," released on Tuesday, the U.S. Department of State included Korea on a list of countries showing a pattern of non-compliance with the Hague convention, marking the third consecutive year of receiving such a designation.

According to the report, as of 2023, eight child abduction cases involving an American parent whose child was taken by a Korean spouse remained unresolved.

"The Republic of Korea's efforts to reform its enforcement procedures were encouraging; however, it remains to be seen if this change will secure prompt returns," the report read, referring to Korea by its official name.

The U.S. Embassy in Seoul, which played a pivotal role in resolving Sichi's case, affirmed its commitment to cooperate with the Korean government on pending cases.

"The U.S. Department of State has no higher priority than the safety and welfare of U.S. citizens overseas, and we are dedicated to protecting the welfare of our most vulnerable citizens — children," the embassy told The Korea Times via an email.

"As a key ally, the Republic of Korea partners with the United States and other like-minded democracies around the world to promote human rights. We have confidence that our Republic of Korea counterparts also want to act in the best interest of these children and are coordinating with us to resolve this issue," it added.