Egyptian grandmother refuses to leave

Son defiant as Eveline Fadayel stays past Sunday deadline

Eveline Fadayel

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Eveline Fadayel, the Egyptian grandmother who has been refused permission to stay with her family in Finland, is not planning to leave Finland, even though the deadline for her departure from Finland expired on Sunday.
      Fadayel’s son Maher Gerges told the Finnish News Agency STT that his mother was not going anywhere. He feels that the police should investigate whether or not Finnish officials have committed a crime.
      “I will not send my mother to die. I will not let officials kill her”, Gerges said.
     
In late May Gerges filed a criminal complaint in which he accused officials of negligence. The police say that they have made note of the complaint, but have not had the time to act on it yet.
      Police also say that Fadayel herself would have to be interviewed over the complaint, but her current whereabouts and intentions remain unknown, as she has not reported to officials as required. Police say that it is quite normal for time to lapse between filing a complaint and the start of an investigation.
     
Gerges refuses to say where Fadayel is currently staying. He says that he is caring for his mother, who is getting private medical treatment.
      “I do my job, I pay my taxes, and I do my duty. I am not a criminal. I need to get justice, which means having my mother near me, in the same way that some Finns have their mothers near them.”
     
The head of the police investigation, Juha Hirvonen, says that the police will have to force her to leave if she does not go voluntarily. In such a case the police will arrange the travel and possibly escort her to her destination.
      No specific plans exist. Much depends on the routing, as Fadayel does not have a residence permit for the Schengen zone. The airline can also refuse to take her on a flight without an escort.
     
Police now plan to start to look for Fadayel.
      “The East Uusimaa Police implement the expulsion of some person almost every day. This is not exceptional in any way”, Hirvonen points out.
      Hirvonen says that when a deportee is found, agreement is generally reached on what to do.
     
In another similar case that has raised controversy in Finland, the family of Russian grandmother Irina Antonova gave up the fight to keep her in Finland, and consented to have her go back to Russia.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Eveline Fadayel´s residence application rejected once again (13.4.2010)
  Police order Eveline Fadayel to buy a one-way ticket to Egypt (25.5.2010)
  Amendment to Aliens Act would open doors to hundreds of grandparents (8.4.2010)
  Family gives up resistance - Antonova to go back to Russia (8.6.2010)
  Promised legislation to protect grandparents of immigrants fizzles (26.5.2010)

Helsingin Sanomat