Zambian mother defends kidnapping her Irish born sons

A Zambian woman is facing criminal charges in Ireland after she lost custody of her Irish born sons and moved them back to Africa without informing their two fathers.

Now Elizabeth Daka's Irish ex-husband and another Irish ex-partner are reportedly fundraising to travel to Africa so they can mount a legal challenge in the Zambian courts to bring their sons, Ethan, 7, and Troy, 2, back to Ireland.

But Daka says she will not willingly allow her children to return to Ireland.

Meanwhile there is little the Irish courts can do to return the two boys to Ireland as Zambia has not signed up to the Hague Convention on Child Abduction.

Daka managed to taker her son Ethan Quarry out of Ireland without his passport last April, even though a court order was in place forbidding her from taking him from the country.

Since he was two years old Zambia-born Ethan had reportedly lived with his father Richard Quarry from Kinsale, County Cork, who had been granted full custody of the boy by Cork Circuit Court.

Daka said she was shut out of her son’s life after the custody was granted: 'When Richard got custody of Ethan in 2008 he chased me away from his house and I was living in Cuanlee refuge in Cork City. Since then it was a nightmare to see Ethan. I often rang Kinsale police but they can only say go back to court.'

According to the Irish Examiner, Elizabeth's other ex-partner, Patrick Beary, who she met following the breakdown of her marriage to Richard reportedly kicked her out of their home days after their son, Troy, was born. She also said he had only wanted access to Troy for two hours per week.

Patrick, from Douglas in Cork, denied these allegations and said he wanted to desist from 'mud-slinging.'

He reportedly told the Irish Health Service Executive that Daka would attempt to take Troy to the Zambian capital, Lusaka, without his permission but was told there was little he could do as he did not have custody of the boy.

'I had wanted joint custody of Troy but was advised it was pointless and settled for weekend access. All I can say is that if I thought she would take good care of Troy in Zambia and that he could have a good life there, I would not be so concerned. But the children don’t come first,' he said.

In July, both men travelled to the township where the boys are living and grew increasingly concerned for their sons' welfare because of the lack of health and safety, sanitation and education.

Meanwhile Daka said she would not allow her sons to go back to Ireland because they were still young and needed her.

“I am not crazy. I can't bring my children here to suffer. It is not true that we are staying in Lilanda. This issue should be between me and the two fathers and not between Zambia and Ireland. The problem is that this issue has become so big that it is everywhere, even on Facebook. As far as I am concerned, I am keeping the children,' Daka said.