The man mediating a custody battle between a New Zealand woman and her
Algerian husband over their three children hopes to have the whole family back
in New Zealand within a fortnight.
Following a seven-month dispute over the children, he said both parents
wanted a resolution and they were "considering leaving Algeria with the
children and returning to New Zealand or Australia".
"I'm hoping to get Mihi and Mohamed and the kids home, hopefully
in a week to a fortnight," said the London-based mediator and family
spokesman, who did not wish to be named.
However, he said he needed more support from the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs in order to be able to carry out the negotiation, "but to date it
hasn't been forthcoming".
Before they travelled to Algeria last August, Northland woman Mihi
Puriri, 33, and her husband Mohamed Azzaoui, a former boxing champion, had a
"perfect marriage".
It was Ms Puriri's seventh trip to her husband's home country "and
that's why she was so comfortable going this time", he said.
However, this time was different.
"She loves for life, she took those marriage vows seriously. She
wears her heart on her sleeve. We're talking a very, very smart young woman
here. The only thing we could accuse her of is being over-trusting."
The couple and their three children travelled to Mr Azzaoui's native
Algeria because she thought his father was gravely ill.
She alleges that soon after they arrived Mr Azzaoui took the family passports
and then held their daughters Iman, 5, Assiya, 2, and son Zakaria, 11 months,
captive in the family home in Mostaganem.
"Upon arrival Mihi realised that the paternal grandfather was not
ill.
"It does appear that Mohamed did have this planned for some time,
it certainly wasn't a spur of the moment thing. I would say that my knowledge
of it is that he had this planned for some weeks ..."
The family shared the two-bedroom apartment with up to 14 Azzaoui
family members, showered once a week at most and there was little entertainment
for the children, said the spokesman.
Ms Puriri has not seen or spoken to her children since she managed to
escape to Algiers on February 27 following a tense stand-off between a New
Zealand diplomat and dozens of police, soldiers and Algerian locals.
"It was felt it was too tenuous a position to leave Mihi there any
longer, and she thought it was better for everyone including the children if
she left at the moment."
Mohamed Azzaoui, 36, has accused the New Zealand diplomat involved of
lying about who she was.
He spoke to BBC correspondent Chloe Arnold, who told National Radio
today (Tue) that she spoke to a "very belligerent" Mr Azzaoui last
week.
"He said this is a matter only for him and his wife, and he was
very angry that the media was getting involved. On the telephone he said this
was absolutely nothing to do with anyone but him and his wife," she told
Radio New Zealand.
The retired boxer said he didn't believe New Zealand Consul Barbara
Welton, who had travelled from Cairo to the apartment with a full gendarme
escort to carry out a welfare visit, was who she said she was.
"... he said this was just a New Zealander who had stolen this
woman's business card and pretended to be the consul and come to his home and
tried to steal the children".
Ms Welton was reportedly involved in a tense stand-off over the three
children, and sat on the floor refusing to leave the property "without my
citizens".
Legal experts say that because Algeria is not a signatory to the Hague
Convention, she is at the mercy of the Algerian legal system in the fight for
her children.
The family spokesman agreed, saying Ms Puriri's only options were
through the Algerian courts or through mediation with her husband.
The spokesman was in contact with her daily, and said while the
situation had been very distressing for her and her New Zealand family, she was
staying strong for her children.
She was particularly upset she would miss the first birthday of her
son, who she had been breastfeeding, when he had his birthday later this week.
The three children spoke English, Arabic and French, were
"wonderful", "highly intelligent" and a credit to both
parents, said the spokesman.
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