A sickly four-month-old baby girl has become the latest Western Cape child at the centre of an international custody battle.
|||Cape Town - A sickly four-month-old baby girl has become the latest Western Cape child at the centre of an international custody battle, with her US father claiming that she was removed by her SA mother in contravention of the terms of the Hague Convention.
The details are contained in papers filed with the Western Cape High Court. The child’s father is a professor at a US university, and his SA wife a former Fulbright scholar in the US.
The matter was due to be heard this week, but the case has been postponed until next month as Judge Siraj Desai was not available to hear it.
The couple, who are in the process of divorcing, were married in April 2011. Their daughter was born in the US in May this year.
She suffers from severe gastric reflux, which causes projectile vomiting and results in pain, constant crying and inability to breathe.
It also requires her to be fed small amounts frequently, and to be held upright for a period of about 30 minutes after each feed.
She requires constant attention to ensure that she does not choke, and cannot be laid flat on her back. She must also sleep at a 30-degree angle.
The father says in his court application that as he and the mother are still legally married, they have equal custody of the child, whose habitual residence is the US.
But the mother counters that she left the US with his consent and knowledge. He travelled with them to SA in June this year.
In responding court papers, the baby’s father said: “I did not consent to (child’s name) being out of the country for more than six months.”
The mother says she came to SA with the intention of applying for a new visa, which would allow her to take up a job offer at a US university, and so her mother could help her care for the baby.
She was due to return to the US to start her new job in January next year, but because of the visa application and her child’s needs, she had postponed her starting date to August next year. She says she has every intention of returning to the US.
However, the father responds that he was unaware that his wife had delayed the start date of her post, and that it appeared she was deliberately stalling her visa application process because she believed that “in the absence of a visa she would be unable to return to the USA for a substantial period, thus preventing a return order”.
The woman was initially in the US on a J-1 visa, which allowed her to stay there while completing her PhD.
She says in her papers that, according to US visa regulations, she is required to return to her home country for a period of two years after the expiry of her visa.
She had applied for this period to be waived so that she could apply for a job in the US after completing her studies, but this application had been denied.
She says she is in the process of applying for an O-1 visa, which is granted to people of “extraordinary ability”.
The mother claims that due to the father’s hectic work and travel schedule, he would not be able to adequately care for the child, who is still being breastfed.
She also claims that the father had not played a significant role in caring for their daughter following her birth.
“The applicant only infrequently assisted me with holding (the child) upright.
“In fact, he would become annoyed at night when he could not sleep because of (her) constant crying, and her inability to be consoled.”
He, however, says he will cut back on his travel schedule, and can afford day care and nanny services for the times he is working or travelling. He disputes that the mother is the primary care-giver, despite the fact that the child is still being breastfed.
The matter will be heard by the Western Cape High Court on November 15.
Weekend Argus