Filenews 19 April 2022 - by Michalis Hadjivasilis
Eight cases of child mock adoptions are being investigated by the Anti-Trafficking Bureau, which believes that there are circuits behind them.
Already one case has been registered in the District Court of Nicosia, while the path of Justice is taken by three more. Four files of similar cases have been forwarded to the Legal Service and instructions are awaited. As stated in "F", the head of the Office for combating trafficking in persons, Eleni Michael, has been found by statements and entries in the District Administration of Nicosia as well as in the Department of Civil Registry and Migration, that many Cypriots or other citizens with a European passport are presented as fathers of mothers' children from African countries.
As revealed by examinations of the Office against trafficking in persons, asylum seekers of African origin, while waiting for the examination of their applications, became pregnant. From the examination of their applications it emerged that with the help of their accomplices (here it is not excluded the involvement of Cypriots for a fee) they identified Cypriots or Africans with European citizenships, who for some fee, went to the offices of the District Administration and recognized the children as the biological fathers. Then the mothers appeared in the District Administration and asked for the issuance of a birth certificate of the child on which the "father" was written. With this in hand, they then went to the Department of Civil Registry and Migration in order to be issued with a residence permit on the territory of the Republic as the spouse of a Cypriot or a European citizen.
Mrs Michael appeared certain that behind all this data, there is some kind of circuit in operation, which knows the law very well, otherwise there is no explanation for the fact that mothers follow all the steps laid down by law.
By giving evidence of the cases investigated to date, it appeared that the circuit uses people who are in financial need and are not afraid to take risks in order to secure a sum. According to the head of the Office against Trafficking in Persons, testimony was obtained in eight cases, one case was referred to the Assize Court of Nicosia and is awaiting trial. Three cases within the week are expected to be filed in court and for the remaining four they have been sent to the Attorney General's office for instructions, he said.
Information from "F" indicates that because the problem with the new scheme that is being attempted to obtain a residence permit may be exacerbated, consideration is being given to whether a declaration of recognition of a child will be required to request a paternity test.
