Snatched

'If a child is taken to a Hague convention country, an abduction case may be turned around in six weeks,' says Reunite's David Huxley. But, he says, if a country hasn't signed up to the Hague agreement, or if there are complications with local law, as in Catherine Meyer's case, weeks can turn into years.

Living in hope
'It's like a bereavement,' says David Huxley. 'And the longer it drags on, the worse it becomes.' One woman, whose children were abducted to Libya, was finally allowed telephone contact only to discover they could no longer understand her English accent. Other parents who are lucky enough to discover their children's whereabouts will never be sure if their cards, letters and presents have ever reached them.

And for parents whose children have been brainwashed to hate them, a reunion can be bittersweet as parent and child try to heal the rift. 'Often the child is told that their mum doesn't want them, that they will never see her again, or that she is dead,' says David Huxley.

'You end up being vilified by the abducted child,' says Catherine. 'My sons have probably heard bad things about me, and even if they try to think of positive images of me, they might begin to believe it was true. They may believe that I have abandoned them and no longer want to see them. Because surely if I loved them, I would be there with them. They don't know how hard I've been trying.'