Gabriella home but mum still in prison
Gabriella Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 5, said one word in front of the world’s press on Saturday. As she sat on her father Richard Ratcliffe’s lap cutting a ‘‘welcome home’’ Victoria sponge under the glare of television lights, she was asked in Farsi what kind of cake she liked best. She answered shyly – also in Farsi – ‘‘chocolate’’.
After 3 and a half years in Iran living with her maternal grandparents, Gabriella has lost her ability to speak English – and her father cannot speak Farsi. But some key phrases have stayed with her. ‘‘I love you so much’’ is one of them.
This weekend Ratcliffe acknowledged the scale of the challenge facing his daughter. Gabriella had been with her mother, Nazanin, at Tehran airport in April 2016 on the day she was arrested. Since then Gabriella has not seen her father, who said yesterday that he was ‘‘squeezing her a bit too tight’’ now they have finally been reunited.
Relearning English is top of Gabriella’s to-do list. She also wants to meet her grandmother’s dog, see her cousins, visit the London toy store Hamleys and – above all – start school straight away in London so she can make friends.
She is grappling with British food, too. ‘‘On the first morning back she had Coco Pops. She didn’t want them at first but then she decided they were OK,’’ said Ratcliffe.
‘‘She’s a bit shy, a bit traumatised, she hasn’t seen Daddy for a long time. And there is a language problem, so she takes a while to feel safe. She has been holding my hand but she becomes frustrated.
‘‘Sometimes she can’t explain
things to Daddy ... Daddy’s not getting it. She can still say ‘‘hello’’, ask ‘‘how are you?’’ and has said ‘‘I love you so much’’. She can also say ‘cheers’ in English.
Nazanin, 40, is serving a fiveyear sentence in Evin prison on security charges related to allegations of spying, denied by all but Tehran.
There had been an anxious few days waiting to see whether Iran would grant an exit visa for Gabriella. But finally Gisou, as she was called in Iran, was reunited with her father on Saturday.
Ratcliffe made a Skype call every day to Gabriella while she was living with her grandparents in Tehran, with relatives helping to interpret for the two of them.
He hopes that starting school near their home will help his daughter to regain her English quickly. Until then there are English-Farsi dictionaries, sign language and hugs. Her uncle, who flew from Tehran with her, is also on hand for the next few days to help interpret. ‘‘It’s lovely to see her again. I realised I was squeezing her a bit too tight. She is now five and has her own views. It’s clearly a vulnerable time. We will take it a day at a time,’’ Ratcliffe said.
– Sunday Times