In 1997, a 21-year-old asylum seeker arrives in Norway. He pretends to be Ali Haidari from Iraq. Nine years later, the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) discovers that his real name is Ahmad Charafeddine, and that he comes from Beirut in Lebanon. In 2019, he was deported from Norway with a five-year entry ban. His four children and wife will then remain in Leknes in Lofoten. – It is very unfair. The resources they used to send him out could have been better spent on someone who is actually a criminal. Not my father, who works as a teacher and has four daughters and a wife, says Ahmad’s eldest daughter, Selma Amin (16). MEET ON HOLIDAYS: Selma says dad Ahmad has been her best friend since she was little. This photo was taken at Christmas in Turkey. The family has been gathered here twice since 2019. Photo: Privat Violation of the human rights convention The fact that Ahmad has not had the opportunity to see his daughters for five years may be a violation of the human rights convention, according to the Norwegian Organization for Asylum Seekers (NOAS). – It is about the right to grow up with both parents. It is about the child’s best interests being a central consideration in all decisions made when children are affected, says senior adviser at NOAS, Jon Ole Martinsen, who refers to the Baumann report. In 2022, a report came out that looked at how deportation cases affect children. It was drawn up by an external working group set up by the Solberg government. The Baumann report An external working group, led by panel judge Elizabeth Baumann, was set up by the Solberg government in the summer of 2021. The finished report was published in 2022. The working group looked at how the societal considerations related to immigration regulation are weighed against the interests of children in deportation cases. According to Baumann, there may be a conflict of interest between these considerations. – There are general preventive considerations that justify deportation and it is to ensure effective immigration control. But those considerations will not necessarily have the same impact with regard to a child, she says to news. Furthermore, she says that it often takes a lot for the child’s best interests to be influential in such cases. – These interests are not completely equal. The report suggests, among other things, that as a general rule parents should not be deported if there is no real possibility for the family to continue family life in another country. The majority in the working group has proposed stronger softening in several of the conclusions. – Our recommendation is that you look towards alternative forms of reaction. One could imagine criminal legal reactions instead of deportation, which would then more specifically affect the parents and not the children. The report in its entirety can be read on the government’s own pages. The report suggests, among other things, that as a general rule parents should not be deported if there is no real possibility for the family to continue family life in another country. This was not the case for Ahmad and his family. The family cannot settle in either Ahmad’s or his wife Fida’s homeland. The reason is that the conflict-filled relationship between Lebanon and the partially recognized state of Palestine makes it impossible to be accepted in each other’s homeland. Tried to assume the role of father – My father has been my best friend since I was little, but it has been more difficult to keep in touch after he was sent out, says Selma (16). She was 12 years old when plainclothes police knocked on the door early one April morning in 2019. – It started as a completely normal morning. I woke up and went downstairs to make breakfast. Then there was a knock on the door, she says. Selma knew about her father’s case, but no one thought he would be picked up that day. Selma was 12 years old when her father had to leave the country. Photo: Privat Selma’s youngest sister was only five years old when her father had to leave the country. If he is allowed to return after the entry ban is lifted, he has been gone for half her life. – He wasn’t there when she had her first day at school, when she learned to ride a bike or had her first football match. We have not had both of our parents, as we are entitled to. They take away our childhood. – They have only done what they think is right, without thinking about the outcome for us. As the older sister, Selma has tried to fill the role that her father should have. As early as 12 years old, she was the one who performed at everything from school graduations to football matches. She became the person the sisters could come to if they wanted to talk about anything. Here is Ahmed Charafeddine with his four daughters at Leknes in Lofoten before he was sent out of the country. Photo: Private – So that my sisters wouldn’t feel left behind. I have had a father in the circumstances they have not had. Listen to the podcast about the story of Selma and dad: Afraid of liberalization of immigration policy – It is about children who have no other state than the Norwegian one to look after their basic interests and the right to family life, says Martinsen in NOAS. He says that children in similar deportation cases are often traumatized by the breakup of the relationship. Norway could probably be found guilty in the European Criminal Court for not having placed enough emphasis on the best interests of the child, according to Martinsen. He is critical of the fact that little has happened since the report with its crystal clear conclusion came out over a year ago. Jon Ole Martinsen is a senior advisor at the Norwegian Organization for Asylum Seekers. Photo: Silje Rognsvåg / news – Unfortunately, we fear that it is on the basis that there is an inherent refusal, because one is afraid that it will be seen as liberalization of immigration policy. Something it is not, says Martinsen. Martinsen says he expected the ministry and responsible politicians to act faster and more than they have done in this case. He emphasizes that it is not about offenses that are of importance to Norwegians in general: – This is not about people who have committed violence or crime, but who have broken the Immigration Act. Minister of Justice and Emergency Preparedness Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) writes in an e-mail to news that the government is constantly working to assess how they can strengthen children’s rights. Read Mehl’s full response further down in the case. Wanted a life without war Ahmad was 15 when he left a war-torn Lebanon in 1990 and turned his nose towards Europe. He dreamed of a life with meaning, he says. When he came to Norway, he lived in Germany, among other places, where his brother applied for a residence permit under his own name. The brother deported and sent back to Lebanon. With that fresh in his mind, 21-year-old Ahmad arrived in Norway in 1997. Both family and acquaintances recommended that he say he was from Iraq – because then there would be a greater likelihood of staying. – The experience of the war has left a deep mark. I wanted a life without war, fear and anxiety, he says. The choice he made at the time was to be bitterly regretted. Eight years later, he applied for a residence permit as Ali Haidari. UDI replied that his information was not documented well enough. He only had the fake papers from when he first came to Norway. Then he chose to lay all his cards on the table. And a few months after the refusal, he received a letter from the UDI saying that they showed that he was Ahmad Charafeddine. It also stated that he had broken the Immigration Act and could lose his residence permit. And he did. Have become a digital dad – I have become a digital dad. There is nothing that can replace that care for the children, says Ahmad. He tells of a long and tough battle against the Norwegian authorities. And he is afraid of the impact it has had and is having on the children. – We noticed from day one how much damage this causes to the children. I have four girls and they handle it differently, but it’s tough. It is a psychological burden considering the safety and security they lost. According to the father, the children experience difficulties related to concentration, sleep and motivation. – I chose to enter the wrong name. It was wrong and I admit it. It is clear that one regrets it. But my children have been deprived of their childhood, he says. Never get the years back – There must be another form of sanction than being sent out. There must be another alternative punishment. We have mentioned earlier that we would accept an alternative punishment, but we did not get that. In April next year, Ahmad will have been in Lebanon for five years. The entry ban will then be lifted and already in October he can apply for family reunification. But he will never get the years with the children back. In an e-mail to news, Mehl is clear that Norway must react to abuse in order to maintain trust in the asylum institute. – It is important for the government to ensure stability and predictability in immigration policy. Norway must protect those who need it, but we must also react to abuse in order to maintain trust in the asylum institute, writes Mehl. The child’s best interests must be a fundamental consideration that is assessed before deporting a parent, says Justice and Emergency Services Minister Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp). Photo: Bjarte Johannesen / news According to Mehl, the Baumann report assessed that there are no decisive differences between current practice and Norway’s obligations under international law. – It always hurts when children and parents are not allowed to be together, whether it is due to reactions to violations of the Immigration Act, serving prison sentences or other difficult situations. The rest of the answer to Justice and Emergency Services Minister Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) She adds that Norway is and must be a driving force to ensure that children’s rights are safeguarded. For the government, it is important that matters involving children are given high priority. – After the Baumann report was presented, the European Court of Human Rights also dealt with a case concerning a Norwegian deportation decision, where the Court of Human Rights reviewed the principles that form the basis of the assessments in Norwegian practice. Norway was unanimously acquitted, writes the minister in the email. – Although the ministry is now working on questions about developing regulations and practice, among other things based on the working group report, this does not provide a basis for putting the relevant cases on hold. She adds that in line with the regulations laid down by the Storting, it is the administration and the courts that handle individual cases. – In the processing of the cases, both consideration of the child’s best interests and immigration regulatory considerations must be emphasized in accordance with current legislation and our obligations under international law.
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– I tried to fill the father’s role – news Nordland
