Singer Rokia Traoré to be released from prison in custody dispute
Malian singer Rokia Traoré will be released from prison, her lawyers said on Wednesday after a court hearing in Brussels. Traoré had previously been sentenced to two years in prison in a child custody dispute.
In October 2023, Traoré was sentenced in absentia for failing to comply with family court rulings. The dispute concerned the singer's child with Belgian theatre maker Jan Goossens.
Lawyers for Traoré and Goossens said an agreement had now been reached between the parents. In light of this, the Brussels criminal court on Wednesday declared the singer's appeal against her prison sentence admissible.
Arrested in Rome
Traoré and Goossens had a daughter in March 2015 and separated about four years later. Since then, Goossens has not seen his daughter, despite two rulings by the Brussels family court granting him visitation rights and establishing the child's main residence in Brussels.
After Traoré failed to comply with both rulings, the Brussels criminal court sentenced her in absentia in 2023. She was arrested at Rome airport in June 2024.
After months of legal wrangling, Traoré was extradited to Belgium at the end of November, where she lodged an appeal against her conviction. The appeal had been postponed several times, partly because of ongoing talks between the two parties.
"I am very pleased that a solution has been found that is in the best interests of the child"
"These talks under professional guidance led to an agreement on the future of their daughter," said Dimitri de Béco, Traoré's lawyer.
"The court has now declared the appeal admissible and my client can be released today," he said. "I am very pleased that a solution has been found that is in the best interests of the child."
Behind closed doors
Neither Traoré's nor Goossens' lawyers would comment on the nature of the solution or the exact terms of the agreement.
"All parties have been constructive and we leave the past for what it is," said Sven Mary, Goossens' lawyer. "The further processing of this agreement should now be allowed to take place in discretion, in the best interest of the child."
A new hearing at the correctional court is scheduled for June to review the implementation of the agreement. A date is also likely to be set for a hearing on the merits of the case.
Lawyers for both parties have requested that the case be held behind closed doors to protect the privacy of both Traoré's daughter and Goossens.
Rokia Traoré at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival © PHOTO ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT / AFP
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