A woman who has not seen her grandchildren for 16 months yesterday had Parliament in tears as she appealed to stop being treated as if she did not exist.

“I lost my son Robert, aged 33, one year and four months ago. Since then, my husband and I have been deprived of seeing our two angels, Kelsey and Calvin, who this month turn 10 and eight, respectively.

“We want to let you know that we love you a lot and we would like to see you,” an emotional Josephine Bartolo told a special plenary session yesterday morning.

Being deprived of seeing her grandchildren amplified the great pain caused by the loss of their son, Ms Bartolo said, adding that she was getting old and had been diagnosed with cancer.

The woman appealed for something to be done so that those in her situation got to see their grandchildren and were no longer treated as if they did not exist.

Ms Bartolo said she had received great support from Fondazzjoni Nanniet Malta,
which yesterday called for a legal framework that allowed courts to consider such pleas when taking decisions on custody and care.

Some elderly people were deprived of seeing their grandchildren because of some squabble between the parents

Addressing parliamentarians, his fellow grandparents and grandchildren, Fondazzjoni Nanniet Malta founder Philip Chircop said some elderly people were deprived of seeing their grandchildren because of some squabble between the parents.

Dr Lynn Faure, who addressed the same session, told Times of Malta that in such cases, the authorities needed to hear out grandchildren and grandparents as well.

Most often, grandchildren have already formed a relationship with their grandparents before family break-ups.

The foundation is asking for a structure that considers grandparents as next of kin in cases where parents cannot be taken into consideration for children’s care, such as in cases of death or care orders.

In cases of separation or divorce proceedings, grandparents should have the possibility to ask the court for visiting hours.

Dr Faure said each case was different and it should always be up to the court to decide on access to children after having heard all sides and carried out its own investigation.

The session was held ahead of grandparents’ day, which will be celebrated tomorrow.

Mr Chircop said he hoped grandparents’ day would become pan-European.

Addressing the same meeting, Dr Miriam Camilleri from the Mental Health Commissioner’s Office appealed for support to grandparents who were the primary carers of grandchildren.

Research has shown that grandparents who took on parental roles were more likely to suffer depression.

She called for balance, because it had been proven that grandparents who interacted with their grandchildren were less likely to develop mental health issues.

Malta’s first parliamentary secretary for the elderly, John Rizzo Naudi, urged fellow elderly people to remain active and take up voluntary work, warning that life expectancy was still on the increase.