Mrs Boudiaf outside the Old Bailey with the Tottenham Journal report of the trial

Haringey mother in poetic ‘justice’ plea for murdered son

by Flora Drury Saturday, June 30, 2012
7:00 AM

A heartbroken mother has vowed to read her poems aloud outside the Old Bailey every week until she gets justice for her murdered son.

Wahiba Benamara Boudiaf began reading her poems outside the iconic court last Thursday, on what would have been oldest son Abdul Karim Boudiaf’s 22nd birthday.

It is the fourth year she has marked his birthday without the aspiring lawyer since he was fatally shot in Tottenham in March 2009. Another teenager charged with his murder was found not guilty in December that same year.

Since then, the family has been left in limbo as they wait for justice; the case is still open but no-one else has been charged since with the shooting - believed to have been a case a mistaken identity.

Mrs Boudiaf said: “It never occurred to me that one day I would be in this situation. In the newspapers, it is normal to read that somebody has been killed on the street, but we never talk about the parents.

“We read about Katie Price and her shoes but not about the families who have been destroyed.”

The words of comfort offered to Mrs Boudiaf - who left the Tottenham family home for another part of Haringey, and had to quit her job as a French teacher in a nursery school in the wake of her son’s death - were of little use.

“I was told, ‘Even if we put your son’s killer in prison, he is not coming back’. But then, at least another mother is not going to suffer.”

Mrs Boudiaf was left feeling betrayed on the back of such comments and a failure to win support through official channels, and was inspired her to find another way of highlighting her cause.

She said: “I have been let down for three years. I have been bullied but I believe with my poems I can get justice.”

Mrs Boudiaf now intends to recite her poetry outside the Old Bailey each week until she finally gets justice for Abdul - and hopes her example will inspire other women too.

“Mothers who do not speak the language, mothers who are still suffering behind their doors, I just want to tell them; if you do not speak, you can write.”

- You can contact Mrs Boudiaf by emailing wahiboudi@hotmail.co.uk.