Ten days after she was reported missing, the whereabouts of Angeline continues to be a mystery. Whilst there has been little success in locating this eight-year-old girl, a verbal battle of “he said, she said” continues to erupt between the parties involved, from the police, the adopted family, and now, the National Committee of Child Protection (KOMNAS PA).
Even the Governor of Bali has gotten involved – publicly announcing the need for parents to take responsibilities for their child, to take care of them properly because children are a “gift from God”, even if they are adopted. We’re a bit confused as to how exactly this is supposed to help locate Angeline, or what purpose his statement serves, but it was apparently important enough to be reported in Tribun Bali this morning.
Local media sources have reported a number of developments. Not content to drop their allegation of abuse, the police has announced that they are planning to conduct an investigation into the health of Angeline’s adoptive mother, Margareith (including her “psychological” state). This will form the base of their on-going investigation, reports Tribun Bali. Over the weekend, Angeline’s adopted mother was paid a visit by KOMNAS PA representative, Arist Sirait, who reportedly requested the police to “look more into Margareith”. KOMNAS PA reportedly determined that the conditions of her home was “inhabitable” and “unfit” for a child of her age to live in. KOMNAS PA also claimed, according to Tribun Bali, that Margareith made a spontaneous comment that Angeline is still in Denpasar, which surprised Arist Sirait and left him more suspicious. When he suggested that they go and pick up Angeline together, Margareith refused.
KOMNAS PA also discovered that Margareith has not completed all of the necessary procedure for a proper and legal adoption. She possesses a notary’s certificate, as well as a signed consent form from Angeline’s birth parents, but did not possess court documents or recommendation letters from social services – which are supposedly required for Angeline’s adoption to be “legal”.
This discovery, along with allegations of abuse, led KOMNAS PA to claim temporary custody over Angeline, to which Margareith reportedly responded by threatening to “kill anyone who takes away her child”, according to Tribun Bali. KOMNAS PA insist that they are only acting in the best interest of Angeline and will make the final decision regarding her custody once she is found. If the investigation shows that there is no proof of abuse, Margareith may be able to resume custody. However, if there is proof of abuse, KOMNAS PA will make a recommendation that Margareith’s custody be lifted, with a great chance that custody will be returned to her birth parents (who have notably been absent from the “he said she said” battle).
To add to the narrative, Angeline’s adoptive family has been very vocal about the ordeal on Facebook, insisting that they were treated unfairly by KOMNAS PA during their unannounced visit. Christina, one of Angeline’s adopted sisters, asserted that they took advantage of her mother’s lack of emotional state and made unfounded accusations about her fitness as a mother, which led her to breaking point.
Christina’s full statement can be found below:
Photo: Facebook
