Greek court rules for Greek-Turkish child to remain with Turkish mother

Banu Şen - İZMIR

A Greek court has ruled for the 2.5-year-old child of a Turkish-Greek couple to remain with her Turkish mother, following a lengthy dispute between the two separating parents.

The decision came after the Greek father, Yorgo Tsakiridis, reportedly took the child to the Greek port city of Thesseloniki from the western Turkish province of İzmir.

A Turkish court had previously ruled for the child to stay with her father, but after the ruling her mother, Dilek Güneş, filed an appeal. The appeals court subsequently reversed the decision.

Following this development, Tsakiridis applied to a court in Thesseloniki for custody rights.

However, the Thesseloniki court ruled for the child to stay with her mother on the grounds that “it will be more consistent and beneficial for the baby to be with mother for a long time in terms of her emotional stability.”

The court stated that experts suggest babies should stay with their mother at least until they are three as “they are in constant need of maternal care and stability.”

“The complainant [the father] will be permitted to communicate with his daughter via telephone or online applications such as Skype once per day,” the court added.

Dilek Güneş’s lawyer, Mehmet Emin Keleş, said they welcomed the decision “proving their righteousness,” saying it was “most beneficial for the baby’s wellbeing.”