Australia has the highest rate per capita of international parental child abductions in the world. With the rise in inter-country marriages, some experts believe there is an increased need to protect children caught between feuding parents after a relationship breakdown. There are some existing protections: Australia is a party to the 'Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction’ which mediates international custody disputes. Under these agreements, if a parent unlawfully takes a child overseas they can be ordered back to the country of residence so the local courts can figure out what to do. But if a child is taken to a country that isn’t a signatory to the convention (including Japan, Lebanon and China), it’s extraordinarily difficult for the other parent to get them back. And even if the country is a signatory, it’s not always possible to locate the child and the abducting parent. In some cases, desperate parents bypass authorities and hire a 'retriever’ – similar to a private investigator – to help find their missing child. Insight asks why this happening, what is being done to protect these children, and whether tightening the laws would have any effect.