Girl in foster care 'abducted' by her mother in 2020, returns to Malta

Arsema, the child that had been abducted by her mother from foster care has been returned safely to Malta on Tuesday.

Addressing the media on Tuesday, Childrens’ Rights Minister Michael Falzon broke the news that Arsema, the child in foster care that had been abducted by her mother, has returned safely to Malta on 8 March. 

He explained that Arsema had been living in foster care for more than six years, as per an agreement with the mother in 2014. The mother and the ministry had agreed that the father was not a suitable carer for Arsema, and the child saw her mother once a week and her father on certain occasions. 

In 2020, the Maltese court recommended increasing the amount of time Arsema spent with her mother as long as it was in Arsema's best interest. In October 2020, Arsema saw her mother for an entire weekend and on 11 October, Arsema was flown out of the country by her mother. 

The child had been picked up for the weekend at her foster home on 9 October 2020, by the mother who indicated she would return two days later, as per the usual routine. Arsema did not return on 11 October and the foster carer did not manage to get through to the mother. 

On 12 October 2020, the foster carer informed Arsema’s social worker of the case and the child was reported missing to the police. The foster carer eventually managed to contact the mother's workplace and was informed that Arsema's mother had resigned to go abroad. In court, Arsema's mother did not agree with this version of events. 

The court established that Arsema flew to Paris with her mother on 11 October 2020, using another child’s passport, through flights booked two days earlier. The passport had been fraudently acquired by the mother at the airport. 

Once in Paris, they were joined by the mother’s boyfriend, who left Malta on 7 October 2020. The three of them travelled to the 'Jungle' outside Calais, where they stayed until 8 November, 2020. 

The 'Jungle' is an unofficial camp near Calais where those who want to get to the UK try to cross the English Channel. The ministry said Arsema, her mother and her mother's boyfriend crossed the English Channel under “dangerous circumstances” in a rigid-hulled inflatable boat on the night of 8 November 2020. According to reports, the boat capsized during the crossing and they were rescued by British authorities. 

When they arrived on 9 November, 2020, Arsema's mother and her boyfriend were initially detained by the UK Border Force but were later released and they eventually settled in an area of the United Kingdom where Arsema went to school. 

On 3 February 2021, the Ministry commenced proceedings in the English High Court, seeking the return of Arsema under the 1980 Hague Convention on Child Abduction. The High Court ordered that Arsema be "picked up" by English police and placed in the foster care of a local authority in London. However, Arsema's whereabouts could not be located. 

On 8 February 2021, the Maltese Civil Court declared that Arsema had been removed from Malta without the consent of the authorities and ordered Arsema's return to Malta as soon as she was located. 

On 2 November 2021, Arsema's school made a referral to the local authority on the basis of things Arsema said to them about her mother. 

On 11 November 2021, the ministry was notified that Arsema and her mother had been located. On 19 November 19 2021, Arsema was collected by the English police for the second time and placed in foster care in the United Kingdom. Arsema settled well into the foster home and eventually began seeing her mother once a week, which was strictly supervised. 

Following the ministry's application proceeding in the High Court, a children's guardian was appointed to ascertain Arsema's wishes and feelings and to represent her interests but Arsema's mother objected to return the child. Arsema's father, although participating in only part of the legal proceedings, did not object to Arsema's return.

The court held that Arsema's removal from Malta was planned and calculated and that she was exposed to life-threatening danger during the journey to the United Kingdom by her mother and her mother's boyfriend as they attempted to cross the English Channel. The court considered that none of the mother's reasons to object to Arsema's return were sufficient and ordered Arsema's return to Malta. 

The child was accompanied on her return to Malta by her Maltese social worker, whom she knew well. Falzon said the ministry worked closely with the local authorities, drawing up a plan for the child’s return to Malta. 

The minister said Arsema’s mother is free to return to Malta, and declared it would “carefully” consider how to support and monitor the contact between the child and her natural parents.