– I have packed for me and both children. It will be too difficult to be without them. Faustina Krogstad says so. On 21 March, the trial against UNE (Immigration Board) starts. Then she will know whether she can stay in Norway or not. She and two sisters came from Ghana for family reunification with their father in 2016. The following year, they were taken care of by the child protection agency. Now all are over 18 and two of the sisters have been ordered to be deported from Norway. Faustina has established herself in Norway. She has an apartment, a husband, children and a permanent job as a healthcare worker. Now she is in danger of having to leave the country. Serious consequences The Immigration Act today states that cohabitants and spouses who come to Norway for family reunification and are exposed to violence have the right to have a residence permit assessed on an independent basis. – The same does not apply to children and we see that as very serious. So says SV politician Efia Marie Damba, who sits on the city council in Trondheim. – If you are a child and are exposed to abuse or neglect, you may risk being sent back to the country you came from, if you have other carers there. Efia Marie Damba says children who come for family reunification and are exposed to neglect can be thrown out of the country if the child protection service takes over their care. Photo: Bent Lindsetmo / news Damba believes that a consequence of this may be that children are afraid to contact child protection or the support system. – It is also something parents can use as a threat to their children. Fake passports and family in their home country Faustina and the sisters today have no contact with the father who brought them to the country. The mother and two half-siblings still live in Ghana. The reason for the expulsion is that UNE believes the sisters came to Norway with false passports. They think they are older than what the passports they came to the country with show. In addition to disagreements about the passports, UNE believes that the sisters have a strong enough connection to Ghana and the family that lives there. Faustina feels Norwegian and has created a life of her own in Norway with a husband, children, house and job. The family of four could be split up if Faustina does not get a residence permit. Photo: Bent Lindsetmo / news Soon she may be forced to make a choice – should she take the children with her to Ghana or leave them with her husband in Norway. – I have a husband, two children and two sisters here, but they think there is not enough connection. It is in Norway that we have had the most important time in our lives. The sisters have also trained as healthcare workers in Norway. They now live at a secret address. Faustina’s husband, Kenneth Krogstad admits that it is tough. – It’s pretty damn good. I feel that I have to make a choice between being Norwegian or having a family. The future we have built in Norway is just falling away. Together they have a two-and-a-half-year-old daughter and a six-month-old son. Unreasonable – We want children to also be assessed for residence on an independent basis if they are exposed to neglect, says Damba. She is clear that SV is now working for a change in the law that ensures children’s rights. Damba has been in contact with the sisters from Ghana and knows about their case. – The girls came to Norway as children and have developed a strong connection to the country. Child welfare services came in to help them, so I think it is completely unreasonable that they should be punished for something the parents have done. – Norway is part of us. It is not possible to just take it away from us, says Faustina. UNE says that they do not wish to advance the case in the media, and that their view will be presented in the district court.
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Faustina is in danger of being thrown out of Norway – the suitcases are packed – news Trøndelag
