Back in Norway after two years in Malaysia

Kids Children MalaysiaIllustration....Kids Playing. Photo: Pixabay.com

Mother and kids back in Norway after two years in Malaysia

A mother, who abducted her two children from Norway to Malaysia, returned to Norway Thursday after two years on the run from the Norwegian child welfare.

 

Together with representatives from the child welfare in Trondheim and police, the Norwegian woman and her two children have traveled from Malaysia to Norway. They landed at Gardermoen on Thursday, according to TV 2. From there, the journey continued to Trondheim, where the family is from.

– As far as I know, there will be nothing extraordinary arranged when they arrive in their hometown. She is not charged and will therefore not be arrested on arrival, says the woman’s lawyer, Ola Andreas Thrana, to NTB.

Still charged

The police confirm that they will not arrest the woman when she arrives in Trondheim, but says that the original charge of gross neglect is still standing.

– The mother is charged in the case and is still regarded as being so. But she will not be apprehended on arrival, says police adviser in the Trøndelag police district, Charlotte Aspehaug, to NTB.

She explains that there are no provisions in the law to arrest her when she returns to Norway with her children.

Traveled to Malaysia

The mother was arrested by local authorities in Malaysia last Thursday after she had hid from Norwegian authorities and the father of the children since February 2016.

After a decision that the two children were to be placed in a foster home after the parents split up, the ethnic Norwegian mother traveled from Norway to Malaysia. The country has no extradition agreement with Norway. After her arrest last week, the mother stated that she would seek asylum in Malaysia and, with the help of a local lawyer, supposedly initiated such a process with local authorities.

Cooperation

What caused the woman to return to Norway on Wednesday is not revealed.

– The work to bring the children home has been ongoing, where the aim has been for the mother to return voluntarily with the children. The cooperation that the municipality of Trondheim has had with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, the immigration authorities in Malaysia and the local police has been decisive for the success of this case, says the municipal leader of Trondheim, Hilde Maavø Vikan, in a press release on Thursday.

Police and child welfare

– The police have assisted child welfare in bringing these children back to Norway. The case will be finalized as a criminal case and end with a recommendation. That is not yet finalized, says police adviser, Aspehaug.

The mothers Lawyer, Thrana, says that he will meet up with his client Friday and follow up on the matter. He has not had regular contact with the woman recently, and does not know why she has chosen to return to Norway. Neither do the police or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wish to elaborate on the matter.

The efforts of the Norwegian authorities have been to safeguard the children’s safety and rights and not those of the mother. The possible criminal prosecution of the mother has also been of little importance as long as the children’s situation has been unclear.

– Matters that involve minors are particularly demanding and the concern for the children in this case has been prioritized, says press speech spokesperson in the ministry, Astrid Sehl, to NTB.

 

© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today