She said the convention offered a consistent international framework to ensure children wrongfully taken across borders are promptly returned to their country of habitual residence.
“At least we would have a framework for the left-behind parent’s recourse,” she told FMT.
Created to protect children from the harmful effects of wrongful cross-border removal, the convention also seeks to ensure their prompt return and protect the access rights of the non-custodial parent.
Goh was commenting on the case of Singaporean mother Daylin Limonte Alvarez who claims her seven-year-old son Caleb Liang Wei Luqman Limonte was abducted by his father and brought to Johor Bahru in 2024.
Limonte was granted sole custody of the boy by the shariah courts in both Singapore and Johor Bahru.
The boy’s father, Luqman Liang Hsien Masood Luqman, has been ordered to return him to Limonte, and a Nur Alert has been issued in an effort to locate the child. Johor Bahru Selatan police chief Raub Selamat said efforts to trace Caleb are ongoing.
Goh said Malaysia’s absence from the convention has left parents with limited options, as enforcement depends heavily on interagency cooperation.
She said if Malaysia accedes, it will be required to set up a central authority to process applications, locate abducted children and coordinate their return. It will also be obliged to facilitate court proceedings that allow parents to apply for child return orders.
Goh said the mechanism ensures that, barring specific exceptions, custody disputes are resolved in the child’s home country — helping to deter abductions and wrongful retention.
“By signing on to the convention, the child’s right to continuing contact with both parents is protected, supporting continuity and stability in the child’s life,” she said.
Neighbouring countries such as Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines are signatories to the convention, alongside over 100 countries.
Last week, child rights activist Hartini Zainudin said Malaysia’s failure to sign the convention had hampered efforts to resolve cross-border custody disputes.
Human rights commission Suhakam said it was open to discussing Limonte’s case with the Attorney-General’s Chambers.
Malaysia has been a member of the broader Hague Conference on Private International Law since 2002.