The Klaman Family's Tragedy: How Poland Betrayed Its Own Citizens

The Klaman Family's Tragedy: How Poland Betrayed Its Own Citizens

The Klaman family’s heartbreaking ordeal is a stark reminder of the dangers of unchecked state power, bureaucratic indifference, and the failure of governments to protect their own citizens. Their case is not just about a custody dispute—it is a shocking violation of fundamental human rights, national sovereignty, and the principles of family unity. While Swedish authorities have shown an appalling disregard for parental rights and due process, the Polish government’s passive response and its reliance on EU law amount to a betrayal of its own nationals.

The Unjustified State Abduction of Four Polish Children

Ewa and Robert Klaman moved to Sweden in 2014 with their four daughters—Kinga, Tarja, Aurora, and Diana. Nine years later, they found themselves trapped in a nightmarish ordeal orchestrated by Swedish social services. Over the years, Swedish authorities repeatedly harassed the family over allegations of domestic violence and neglect—claims that were never substantiated by police investigations or medical examinations. The only “evidence” against them was based on subjective assessments of their parenting style, deemed by Swedish officials as too authoritarian and emotionally distant.

The situation escalated in December 2023 when the Klamans’ 14-year-old daughter, Kinga, rebelled against household rules. Frustrated by her parents’ insistence on discipline—such as limited smartphone use and household chores—she falsely accused them of psychological abuse. Despite later admitting that she fabricated the allegations, Swedish authorities wasted no time in seizing her and placing her in foster care.

Fleeing Persecution: A Desperate Escape to Poland

Fearing for the safety of their other three daughters, the Klaman parents made the difficult decision to flee Sweden in February 2024. At the time of their departure, there was no legal ruling barring them from taking their children out of the country, and a formal procedure to take their three remaining daughters away had yet to be launched. They left everything behind in Sweden with the firm intention to keep fighting from Poland to bring their older daughter home. Robert Klaman, the girls’ father, was to continue dividing his time between Poland and Sweden, including for work, while his wife, Ewa, was to remain in Poland with their three youngest daughters.

However, instead of recognizing the parents’ right to protect their family, Swedish “child protection” authorities launched an aggressive campaign to reclaim the children. Even more disturbingly, Poland—a country that should have stood firmly behind its own citizens—allowed itself to become complicit in this grave injustice.

Poland's Shameful Betrayal

One would expect the Polish government to fiercely defend its own citizens from foreign overreach, as it usually did until recently. Protection was given to other foreign families from Scandinavia - such as in the case of Silje Garmo and her baby daughter, Eira, who were granted asylum by Poland in 2019. Likewise, Den Hertog fled from the Netherlands with their autistic son, Martin, and obtained the right to stay in 2021 after an assessment of their case by a Polish court. In both cases, the families were defended by lawyers from the Ordo Iuris Institute’s litigation department and could also count on the support of Poland’s Ministry of Justice and prosecution service.

In the Klaman family’s case, however, the Polish Ministry of Justice effectively washed its hands of the matter, and a Polish court shockingly ordered the immediate removal of the Klaman children from their parents and facilitated their forced return to Sweden despite no clear legal justification for such an extreme action.

The Nysa District Court ignored expert assessments confirming that there were no grounds for intervention, and yet, in an act of unforgivable submission to Sweden’s demands, the Polish judge ordered the handing over of three Polish children and the Polish authorities executed the court order as if they were property.

To add insult to injury, Poland’s Minister of Justice, Adam Bodnar, outright refused to intervene, stating that Sweden has full jurisdiction over the case. His passive stance and lack of action are nothing short of disgraceful. It is an abdication of duty to protect Polish citizens from unlawful foreign persecution. By refusing to seek the children’s return to Poland, Bodnar has effectively endorsed the kidnapping of these girls by a foreign government.

A Cruel and Unjust Fate for the Klaman Children

The outcome of this horrifying ordeal is nothing short of tragic. All four children are now scattered across different foster families in Sweden, isolated from one another and from their parents.

Worse still, reports indicate that they are being prohibited from speaking their native Polish language—an egregious violation of their cultural and identity rights. The Swedish state is not only denying these children their family but also erasing their heritage.

The so-called “child protection” system in Sweden has effectively destroyed the Klaman family, turning a baseless accusation into a permanent separation. The emotional and psychological damage inflicted on these children by the Swedish state is immeasurable.

The Shift in Poland’s Family Policy Since December 2023

The Klaman case highlights a troubling shift in the Polish government’s approach to defending families since the political change in December 2023. Under the previous government, Poland was known as a safe haven for families fleeing unjust interventions by Scandinavian child protection agencies. However, since the new administration took office, a return to pre-2015 policies has seen a dramatic erosion of these protections.

According to Ordo Iuris legal expert advocate Bartosz Lewandowski, “Poland has ceased to be a safe harbour for families escaping from Scandinavia. We are witnessing a return to the policies of passive compliance with foreign demands, rather than active protection of Polish families.”

The Klaman case is a clear example of this dangerous reversal. Instead of defending its own citizens, the Polish Ministry of Justice has actively facilitated Sweden’s unlawful actions. The following key failures demonstrate the extent of this policy shift:

To make matters worse, the Swedish authorities decided that the locations where the Klaman daughters had been placed in foster care should remain secret, depriving Robert and Ewa Klaman of any visitation rights.

After their daughters were deported to Sweden last July, Robert and Ewa Klaman turned to the Ordo Iuris Institute for help. Providing legal support to the Klaman family, Ordo Iuris is exposing the grave violations committed by Swedish authorities and the shameful inaction of the Polish government. However, with the four girls already on Swedish soil, there is little the Polish NGO can do on the legal front. It has been trying to pressure the Polish government to change its stance and intervene at the political level, demanding that Sweden return the children to their home country.

Violation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child

It should be noted first and foremost that Sweden’s actions are a blatant violation of Article 8 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which guarantees children the right to maintain their family identity, nationality, and relations. The forced separation of the Klaman sisters, their isolation from each other, and the refusal to place them with relatives in Poland directly contradict these fundamental principles.

Recognising this grave injustice, Ordo Iuris has called for the immediate placement of the four girls with their extended family in Poland, namely an aunt and uncle whom the children know well and with whom they feel comfortable and who have confirmed their willingness to take care of them for the duration of the proceedings. This would not only align with international legal standards but also provide the children with a familiar and loving environment, mitigating the trauma they have suffered at the hands of Swedish authorities.

The Fight for Justice

The institute has launched a petition urging both the Polish and Swedish prime ministers to intervene immediately. Their demand is clear: Poland must stand up for its own citizens and fight for the reunification of the Klaman family. Anything less is a failure of duty and a moral disgrace.

The lawyers of the Ordo Iuris Institute are also preparing a petition to the Commissioner for Children's Rights and the Commissioner for Human Rights to file an extraordinary complaint with the Polish Supreme Court, demanding a revision of the Nysa court’s decision in the hope that this will force Donald Tusk's government to take action at the political level.

The Klaman family has been torn apart by a ruthless and unjust system. Sweden’s social services have acted as an unchecked authority, forcibly separating children from their parents without any real justification. Meanwhile, the Polish government’s failure to protect its own citizens has allowed this tragedy to unfold. The fight for the Klaman children is not just their parents' battle; it is a battle for all of us who believe in the fundamental right of a family to stay together.

Olivier Bault

Oliver Bault | Communications Director at the Ordo Iuris Institute for Legal Culture