Tintin was only eight years old when he was found murdered in an apartment – by his own father. Tintin’s mother Sanam Gharaee had sole custody of the son, but his father had visitation rights every other weekend – despite Tintin’s fears.
– It was above all the psychological violence that marked our everyday life, and that made Tintin afraid of his father, says Sanam.
Now she wants to bring her son’s case, to prevent something similar from happening again.
– I’m starting from Tintin. Tintin had a strong sense of justice, he thought it was unfair when he wasn’t allowed to participate and influence the decisions, she says.
Fighting for change
Camilla Orefjärd, plaintiff’s counsel and lawyer in the Tintin case, explains that Tintin’s anxiety was well documented and that he communicated, in every possible way, the fear he felt about having to be alone with his father. Despite this, the judge, who ruled in the visitation case in the District Court, believes that there was no information about the occurrence of physical violence.
– It testifies to a total lack of knowledge regarding the rights of the child, the various expressions and effects of violence, and regarding the pyramid of violence. Everything indicated that more serious, potentially deadly violence was to come, she says.
Children must, according to current legislation, be made involved and have influence in matters and processes that concern them, explains Orrefjärd, who believes that children should be given the right to their own representative.
– We mean that strengthens the child’s role in the process and thus strengthens the children’s rights perspective all through the legal process, she says.
Want to introduce special courts
Lex Tintin Network is a non-profit association that was created after the murder of Tintin. They work to bring about more extensive changes in the law, through opinion formation and implementation of the knowledge, experiences and laws (the Convention on the Rights of the Child) that already exist today.
Among other things, they want to introduce special courts with requirements for specialist competence of the judges who rule in this type of case, explains Orrefjärd.
– A requirement that we believe would make a difference. This type of case has increased significantly in the last ten years, but judges who possess specialist skills are few, says Orefjärd.
She believes that if you do not have explicit requirements for specialist competence, it can lead to arbitrary and unfounded assessments.
– The lack of this specialist competence and knowledge in turn leads to the children’s rights perspective being disregarded and the parent’s right to the child comes before the child’s right to protection, and a life free from violence, she says.
Sanam also believes that it is not enough to change the law, as long as courts do not have enough specialized knowledge and competence.
– In our case, it was very clear that Tintin was exposed to violence. But the court reformulated the violence into a fight, difficulties in cooperation and conflict, due to ignorance, she says.
“A Guardian Angel”
Despite the indescribable pain of losing her son, Sanam has been very open about sharing her grief and in return has received support from thousands of mothers. Now she has chosen to write a book about Tintin and his life.
– I want to highlight the fantastic, wonderful, wise boy he was. He was very humble, caring and easy to like. He was very special and I’m going to make his case, and I hope that he can be a guardian angel for other children who live in the vulnerability that he lived in. I know that he is with me every step of the way, she says.