A judge wants to hear what a 10-year-old boy has to say on whether he prefers to live with his mother in Northern Ireland or with his father in Malta.
It would be in the best interest of the child if he would listen to what the boy had to say
The boy’s mother asked Mr Justice Robert Mangion to listen to her son and also to appoint a doctor to dispel allegations she suffered from alcoholism.
She was supported in court yesterday by her Irish MP, Jim Wells, the incoming Health Minister of Northern Ireland, who came to Malta specifically.
The woman lived in Northern Ireland with her former Maltese husband for five years until, in 1996, they returned to Malta before separating in 2002 shortly after their son was born.
The boy had spent his life to date in his mother’s care and custody but was transferred to the father after an alleged drunken incident in Malta in May 2011.
Through her lawyer, Yana Micallef Stafrace, the mother said in court yesterday thatthe two most important issues at hand were that the child was given a voice in court and that allegations of alcoholism were proven to be false.
The father, assisted by lawyer Tania Sammut, said that it was not only a question of alcoholism but her character. She did not drink when alone but in front of the child and then left him for three days only to ring her former partner and ask him to keep the child, which he did for a week at a time.
Dr Sammut said the mother did not want to live in Ireland but was shuttling between Malta and Ireland.
At this point, the mother, visibly irritated at what was said, raised her voice and said: “Your honour, it’s not true, it’s not true.”
Mr Justice Mangion warned her that such outbursts would not be tolerated and doing it again would result in her being thrown out of the court room. The woman apologised.
In dealing with the request for the child to be heard, Dr Sammut said that the boy had already been heard by a child advocate in 2011. The advocate reported that the child told her he loved both parents but preferred the father when his mother was drunk.
This was contested by Dr Micallef Stafrace and the judge took note of the request to have the mother examined by independent doctors to verify her state of health and whether she had any drinking problems.
Mr Justice Mangion said he was of the opinion that it would be in the best interest of the child if he would listen to what the boy had to say.
This will take place on Monday after the boy leaves school.
Mr Wells said later that he was pleased with the judge’s decision.
“Obviously, at almost 11 years old, the boy is in a position to decide where he wants to live and in Northern Ireland he will have a stronger, wider family support system. I’m also pleased that the judge has agreed to appoint an independent expert to assess the health of his mother,” Mr Wells said. The names are not being published to protect the identity of the child.