Lawyer: Shalwati has been accused of abusing children numerous times

Kristofer Stahre, the lawyer of Shalwati Nurshal, one half of the couple detained in Sweden for allegedly abusing their son, explains to Astro AWANI that she has been accused of abusing her children several times over a specific period of time. He added that she would not have been detained if it was just a single incident.

Stahre also explained that Shalwati would face two different cases. The first is a criminal case related to the physical abuse, while the second is a matter of the children's custody and whether she is fit to be a parent.

The hearing for Shalwati and her husband, Azizul Raheem Awaluddin, is scheduled for January 30, 2014, and Stahre predicts two possible outcomes. The first outcome is that her detention under remand is extended for another 14 days while the second is that she is freed.

He does add that if she were to be freed, it would not automatically mean that she will then be able to meet her children, as that would be determined by the Swedish Department of Social Welfare.

However, Stahre said the fact of a clash in cultures may cause the courts to be on humanitarian grounds in being more lenient towards the case.

Stahre added that there are three factors why Shalwati is being held under remand, and that is because she may pose a flight risk if she were free, the possibility of her tampering with evidence and that she might continue abusing her children.

He also informed Astro AWANI that he is scheduled to meet with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Datuk Hamzah Zainuddin, on January 29 at the Malaysian embassy in Stockholm.

Shalwati Nurshal and her husband, Azizul Raheem Awaluddin, have been detained since mid-December 2013 for allegedly abusing their son. Their four children has since been living with a Swedish foster family, but will be transferred under the care of a Muslim-Malaysian family residing in Sweden this week.