Another cautionary tale from the last year, which caught my attention, this time from Sweden, where the child was kidnapped after the mother was accused of being too caring and of distrust in the Swedish medical institution.
For more than two weeks, Russian woman Elena Shishina did not see her daughter. She was taken away by the authorities of Sweden, where Elena lives with her family. Swedish social services did not like that Elena dared to turn to Russian doctors to clarify the diagnosis of the child.
The Scandinavian authorities regarded the appeal to the Russian doctors as a fact of distrust in Swedish medicine. And the mother herself was accused of excessive guardianship and anxiety.
Elena moved to Sweden in 2002. First she studied there, then worked as a nanny, then got a job in a transport company.
While abroad, Elena met her future husband: a citizen of Belarus, Vitaly Bitel. From him, she gave birth to a daughter, Lisa.
Related article: Anti-human rights agencies. Russian Germans had their newborn son taken away"I gave birth to Lisa when I was 41 years old," says Elena Shishina. — She wasn't sickly, but she always ate poorly. In Sweden, we asked for help several times, but we were always sent home, saying that the child is healthy, and you are making everything up."
But her daughter was getting worse. Lisa stopped gaining weight, began to have colic and constant diarrhoea.
It was then that Elena decided to seek help from Russian doctors. In her native Cherepovets, she still has relatives. It was during the next visit to her homeland that she decided to turn to the local doctors.
"Tests were made and they found out that Lisa is allergic to cow's milk protein and eggs," says Elena. - I had to change the mixture. And - lo and behold - Lisa's bowel disorder stopped! She began to go to the toilet normally and even started to gain weight."
But Elena's joy was premature. After she and her daughter returned to Stockholm and told local doctors that she had managed to determine the cause of her daughter's intestinal disorder, the guardianship authorities intervened. They regarded her appeal to Russian doctors as a fact of distrust of Swedish medicine. And the mother herself was accused of excessive care and anxiety. "They believe that since we did some research in Russia, we tormented Lisa, hindered her development," explains Elena Shishina. — And about all those medical tests that we did in Russia, they said that it was a lie, and I made up the diarrhoea. In their opinion, we worry too much and go to the doctors too often, and this is wrong."
Related article: "Because I'm Russian." In Switzerland, the guardianship authorities took the baby from the motherElena was told that after medical procedures, Lisa developed depression, the girl is not well in the family and should be removed and transferred to a Swedish shelter.
"In Sweden, they love to treat all sorts of mental illnesses, so the diagnosis of "depression" is a common thing here. We were not provided with any documents for the removal of our daughter," says Elena Shishina. "The trial should take place only in 2 months. In the meantime, we were offered to meet with Lisa for an hour once every 3 weeks under the supervision of the guardianship authorities. But we did not agree with their proposal and asked them to change it."
Now Lisa is in a rehabilitation centre without hypo-allergenic food and, most importantly, without maternal love and affection. The Russian authorities and human rights activists have already become interested in the case.
For example, the organization "Russian Mothers" supports Elena Shishina and suspects that the Swedish guardianship authorities want to enrich themselves on the removal of the child. In their opinion, in Europe, children of this age are "a hot commodity", there are queues for their adoption.
The family contacted the Russian Embassy in Sweden. They promised to provide assistance in challenging the court's decision and in reuniting the family.
"The diplomats are in constant contact with the Russian woman. The Embassy is providing her with all the necessary assistance," Dmitry Krylov, a spokesman for the Russian Embassy in Sweden, told TASS. "We have sent a request to the Swedish authorities."