Swedish child abuse trial: Second son gives muddled statements

STOCKHOLM: The second son of the Malaysian couple on trial for allegedly hitting their children seemed to raise more questions than answers with his addled description of the alleged abuse.

Adam Azizul Raheem, 11, attempted to describe an incident when his mother Shalwati Nurshal supposedly beat him with a hanger for not doing the laundry correctly.

When asked to describe the event in chronological order, Adam suddenly brought up an incident where his brother Ammar was hit, before going back to the event in question, then bringing up a memory where he got lost in a mall when he was six.

Adam, who is diagnosed with learning disabilities, struggled to answer questions posed during a pre-recorded interview, often slumping over and going silent for a moment.

In one interview, Adam went silent for over four minutes before the court cut short the video.

Recalling an incident involving his mother, Adam called a glove that was used to beat him a "muffin" before futher questions from the interviewer revealed it to be a "mitten".

His parents, Shalwati and Azizul Raheem Awalluddin, are facing their sixth day of trial in the Solna district court here, over charges of hitting their children.

The policewoman asked Adam if he had been beaten for not praying, claiming that Azizul had told investigators that Muslim parents are allowed to hit their children for not praying.

"If we don't pray, Dad gets us to pray with him. But if he finds out we lied (about not praying), he sometimes get mad," said Adam.

When asked what happens when their father gets mad, Adam said he would shout at him and his elder siblings but would always "talk nice" to his youngest brother, Ariff.

The interviewer asked Adam how he felt about speaking to the police, prompting Adam to say he was bored.

"But I'm happy today, broke a new record in finishing the interview quickly," added Adam happily, causing Azizul to break into a grin seeing his child laugh.

Interviewers were forced to cut short several sessions after Adam became reluctant to speak, asking "how much longer" and "when will the questioning be over".

Towards the end of one interview, Adam was seen leaving the room, even while the policewoman was asking if there was anything else he would like to talk about.

"Nope, nope, nay, nope," said Adam, as he got up.

On Feb 10, Shalwati and Azizul were charged with multiple counts of gross violation of a child's integrity, by hitting and abusing their children.

The alleged offences took place in the family's home in Spånga, a Stockholm suburb, between September 15, 2010 and December 17, 2013.

The trial continues March 3.