Nella could be deported to Pakistan – with her parents ruled unfit

3-year-old Nella’s parents are not allowed to take care of her – the Swedish authorities judge them as “completely unsuitable”.

Now they are to be deported and then Nella must accompany them to Pakistan.

– My hope now is to raise public opinion. That the Swedish Migration Agency thinks that you can’t do that. That she can stay with me, says her foster mother Therese Åkerberg.

Therese Åkerberg from Simrishamn is the family home for three-year-old Nella. For two years she has been her mother.

On Monday, they received word that Nella will be deported to Pakistan with her biological parents in the near future.

– She was born in Sweden and has never been to Pakistan. She is in compulsory care according to the LVU due to neglect and lack of care, says Therése.

Judgment: Unable to take care of Nella

Nella was only 11 months old when the Court of Appeal ruled that her parents were not fit to care for her.

In the judgment, it appears that they are concerned “that the parents do not meet Nella’s needs for nutritious food, stimulation, emotional closeness and security” and that they “express strong concern for Nella’s continued development”. It also appears that they breached security.

Two months later, Nella was placed with Therese Åkerberg.

Since then, she has lived with Therése and the dog Harry, who is a trained school and therapy dog.

During the first months, Nella was quiet and never cried. But now she has blossomed into a lively and happy little girl.

– When I entered this, it was with the attitude of becoming a mother. She has her secure connection with me now and it feels absolutely terrible that she will be deported to Pakistan. I am completely devastated, says Therese.

“Danger to her life”

Nella has special needs and is suspected of having an intellectual disability. At present, she therefore has continuous contact with healthcare in Sweden.

Therese fears that those needs will not be met in Pakistan.

– My daughter and I use signs as support (THANK) and also image support to communicate. It works great. She also understands Swedish, even if she doesn’t say that many words, says Therése.

– Deporting her to Pakistan would be terrible. She’s going to do so badly there. It is so clear that Nella’s life is in danger if you deport her there. Especially when you notice that she has a great need for support, she continues.

Decision goes against LVU and the Convention on the Rights of the Child

Already in the spring of 2022, a deportation threat hung over Nella.

However, after her biological parents had their residence permits extended, Nella’s residence permit was also extended.

Now, however, her biological father’s work permit has expired and both he and his wife are to be deported.

Despite the fact that Nella has lived with Therese for most of her life, and despite the fact that the Swedish social service considers her parents unfit to take care of her, she must be deported together with them.

– Despite what LVU and the Convention on the Rights of the Child say, the Aliens Act has more weight here. But there has to be a practice where the laws are interpreted in favor of the children, says Therése.

Want to arouse opinion

Therese says she hopes to raise public opinion and debate about this by drawing attention to the case of Nella. She also hopes that the Swedish Migration Agency can look out for Nella’s best interests.

And most of all, she hopes that Nella will be allowed to stay with her. That she should be allowed to take over custody of Nella, and continue to be her mother, see her develop and make sure she gets the support she needs.

Since the process started, Therése and Nella have received help from the organization Brinn for the children. They are still helping them so that Nella can stay in Sweden with Therese.

– You have to think that it is not always the biological ties that are the strongest. In this Case, Nella has lived with me and Harry for most of her life. I hope she gets to stay with me and they do a custody transfer. I have been fighting for over a year for it, says Therese.

Sweden criticized

Louise Dane, a lawyer at the Asylum Rights Centre, who has extensive experience in migration law, is not familiar with the individual case, but says that an LVU decision does not automatically prevent the Migration Agency from deciding on deportation.

– The fact that you are allowed to deport does not mean that you have to do it. If an assessment of a residence permit is to be granted, it must be made based on all the circumstances of the case – the fact that the child is cared for must be taken into account, says Louise Dane.

In the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child’s latest recommendations to Sweden, the committee highlighted that Sweden must ensure that children who are separated from their parents and placed after being subjected to violence or abuse by their parents are not deported together with their violent parents.

Sweden has received criticism from children’s rights organizations, among other things because it must be ensured that parents are not violent towards them.

– You have to look at her entire life situation here versus the country she will be deported to, says Louise Dane at the Asylum Law Centre.

Footnote: “Nella” is actually called something else.