Unaccompanied refugee minors in Belgium A confrontation of perspectives

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Unaccompanied refugee minors in BelgiumA
confrontation of perspectives

• Ilse Derluyn
• Department of Orthopedagogics
• Ghent University

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General Belgian policy towards migrants refugees

• Too many strangers (vreemdelingen)
• All measures to lower the influx
• Distinction real ( political) versus
  non-real ( economic) migrants/refugees
• For those allowed to stay integration (read
  assimilation) obliged

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Unaccompanied refugee minors

• Separated children are children under 18 years
  of age who are separated from both parents or
  from the previous legal or customary primary
  caregiver (UNHCR, 2001)
• Every citizen of a country not belonging to
  the E.E.R, who has not attained the age of 18
  years old, and enters or resides on Belgian
  territory without father, mother, legal guardian
  or husband/wife (DVZ/CGVS/Voogdij)

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Heterogeneity
Unaccompanied minors
Out of asylum procedure
On the way
Procedure victim of trafficking
Street children
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Some numbers
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International declaration of childrens rights

• Central idea
• Protection for unaccompanied refugee minors
• Documents until their 18th birthday ? different
  possibilities
• Care and protection

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1) Asylum procedure

• Geneva Convention (1951)
• A refugee is every person who out of a
  grounded fear for persecution, left his country
  and cannot ask anymore for the protection of this
  country. He/she can be persecuted because of
  his/her race, religion, nationality, political
  ideas or membership of a soial group

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Asylum procedure

• Asylum procedure
• Subsidiary protection
• For unaccompanied refugee minors
• Cf. adults
• Guardian
• Special interviewers

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2) Procedure NBM

• Central looking for a long-lasting solution
• Reunification with family
• Return to the home country
• Stay in Belgium
• Different phases
• Generally at least 3 years in this procedure
  before possible right in this procedure on
  definitive residence documents

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3) Procedure victim human trafficking

• Different types of exploitation
• Seksual exploitation
• Economic exploitation
• Smu
• Smuggling
• Conditions
• Being a victim of human trafficking
• Leaving milieu of exploitation testimonies
• Counseling (Payoke, Pag-Asa of Sürya)

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4) Regularisation

• Art 9 bis / ter residence documents on basis of
  
• Long asylum procedure
• Medical reasons
• Humanitarian reasons

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4) 18 years old what now?

• Most URM
• no residence documents
• Living without legal documents in Belgium
• Return to their home country
• Forced return
• Other country

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Guardianship

• 1 mei 2004
• Guardianship Service
• Volunteers Professionals
• Tasks
• Long-lasting solution
• Interests of minors in all aspects of live
• Procedure
• All life domains

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Trajectory and care
AIRPORT
INTERCEPTION
ALIENS OFFICE
GUARDIANSHIP OFFICE
CRISIS CARE CENTRE
non-asylum
asylum
REGIONAL AUTHORITY
FEDERAL AUTHORITY
ASYLUM CENTRUM
YOUTH CARE - SPECIAL
YOUTH CARE
gt 18 years old
other
AWW
adult reception
LOI AMAs
undocumented
other
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Education

• Languages classes
• Regular education

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Dreaming of the west
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Zeebrugge case-study
Analysis of 1,093 files participant observations
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Demographic characteristics

• Eastern Europe 56.3
• Asia 42.9

Former Yougoslavia (19.7) Afghanistan
(18.6) Macedonia (11.8) Albania
(10.7) Moldavia (10.5)
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Trajectory

• 64.6 two times intercepted, 18.6 three times
• mean period in between two interceptions 7.2
  days
• Documents DVZ (n 1 093)
• Document without obligation to leave Belgium
  (899, 82.9)
• Leaving Belgium immediately (126, 11.6)
• Leaving Belgium within 5 days (40, 3.7)
• Repatriation (8, 0.7)
• Closed centre for undocumented people (2, 0.2)
• Asylum application7, 0.6)
• Voluntary return (3, 0.3)

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Observations

• Living circumstances during the flight
• A group of eight people is intercepted, six
  Albanians, two Indians two of the Albanians are
  unaccompanied minors. A police man tells that
  they entered a lorry trailer at a parking place
  somewhere in Belgium, but at the port of
  Zeebrugge, the trailer was parked because there
  is no sea traffic on Saturday. So, because of
  hunger and cold, the migrants left the trailer
  and were intercepted by a security service of the
  shipping company. I talk to one of the adults I
  think you are tired, I say. Yes, very, very
  tired. We did not sleep whole night. It was very,
  very cold. Thats why we came out, and then, they
  members of the security service saw us. () We
  did not sleep, we did not drink, we did not
  eat. (field notes, January, 10, 2004).
• Human trafficking / smuggling
• Interception
• What has Belgium to do with the fact that I want
  to go to England? () What does Belgium earn with
  this (interview, 28.08.04)

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Observations (2)

• Reasons for fleeing
• An Albanian adult asks me How is London? I
  reply It is a beautiful city, with beautiful
  buildings, but the weather is bad. I ask him how
  he learned about England. By television, he
  answers. () Some time later, one of the
  unaccompanied minors asks me How do you have to
  apply for a job? I dont understand the question
  directly, but after a while I understand he is
  asking which words, which sentence you have to
  say if you want to apply for a job. After I have
  done some suggestions, he continues exercising to
  remember the sentence I said to him. (field
  notes, January, 10, 2004).
• Transfer to centre
• I already was in a centre in Brussels, a centre
  for children. But I didnt want to stay there. I
  had to behave there like the other ones, but I
  dont want to stay in Belgium, I want to go to my
  brother in England (field notes interview,
  August, 28, 2004).

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Observations (3)

• I rather want to swim to England I rather want
  to be dead than to stay in this situation (field
  notes, February, 13, 2004).
• What would you do if you were in our situation?
  If there is nothing in your country? Wouldnt you
  escape? And if you know that you cannot stay
  forever in a certain country, like Belgium that,
  if you are 18 years of age, you will be send back
  to your country. Wouldnt you then also go to
  England like we want to do? (field notes
  interview, August, 28, 2004).
• After the interview, I want to leave the room.
  An apparently old man, also intercepted during
  night, approaches me and takes me by my arm. He
  says a lot of things, but I can only understand
  some words Me, Afghanistan London
  London England. He rolls up his sleeves,
  demonstrates how somebody shoots at him, and
  shows the wounds of the bullets on his left arm
  and right leg. A police man enters the room
  This is your paper. You have to leave Belgium
  within five days. The man nods and leaves the
  room, with only a pullover, and sandals on his
  feet. He wouldnt ask for nothing better than
  leaving Belgium as soon as possible to
  England. (field notes, August, 28, 2004).

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Implications/perspectives

• Reception during interception
• Reception support
• Psychosocial support and information
• Interpretors
• Role and position police social services?
• Placement in centre for all URM?
• trafficking/smuggling?
• voice of the minor?
• Long-term solution?

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Juridical perspectiveversuspsychological
perspective
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URM
Multiple losses - uprooted Traumatic
experiences Acculturation integration
Without parents (In)dependence Loyalty mission
secret
Identity development
Unaccompanied
Adolescents
Refugees
There are many things that you lose if you leave
your country. You lose a lot of things.
Everything you have in your country, and if you
are outside your country, you dont have
anything. Because nobody knows what you had. It
is very difficult to just say yes. You know
everything, your parents, your school, your
friends, and just at once, you have to leave this
all. You dont have anything left in fact. And
then, it is difficult to find the things you have
now good. It is a little bit difficult to just
say yes. If you look back, you see you have
lost many things.
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Normal children in special situations
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Emotional well-being
Self-questionnaires (HSCL-37A, SDQ-self, SLE en
RATS)
Prevalence study
In-depth study Research with URM in centres,
foster care and living alone
Zelf-rapportage Rapportage begeleider (CBCL,
SDQ-parent) Interviews
Perspectives adolescents vs perspective social
worker
Influence type of care
Perspective adolescent on past, present and future
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Demografic characteristics
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Demografic characteristics
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Emotional well-being migrants

• Migrant adolescents versus Belgian adolescents
• Belgians
• More anxiety symptoms (HSCL-37A)
• More externalising problems (HSCL-37A)
• More hyperactivity (SDQ)
• Migrants
• more peer problems (SDQ)
• Highere avoidance scores (RATS)
• Other subscales no significant differences

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Traumatic experiences
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Emotional problems
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Individual characteristics
EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING
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Adolescents perspectives

• Interviews
• Opvangcentra (n 44)
• Begeleid zelfstandig wonen (n 15)
• Pleeggezinnen (n 11)
• Visie op
• Verleden
• Heden
• Toekomst

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What makes you happy? At school. So, you are glad
if you can study? Yes, and if I could see my
family once again.
I didnt know it would be so hard, I knew it
would be a little hard, but not like this
To be with people that are there for me, people
that I love. To be with people that I understand
and that understand me.
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Yes, I would like to stay here for ever. If I
have papers, if I have no papers, I also can
stay, but this is very difficult to stay without
papers.
I want to have good papars. That is why school is
so important. I really need to have good papers.
What is your greatest wish? To realize my dreams
and to regain my life.
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• Until one year ago, everything was very beautiful
  everything was new for me. But after one year, I
  started to miss my family. That is why I hate it
  to be here and Im wondering Why do I stay
  here?

• I still think a lot about it, but I try to forget
  it, because I want to concentrate on the future,
  I try to forget the past.

But I miss my mama. This is the most important
thing. This makes me unhappy. I try to make
myself happy through not thinking about my mum.
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Psychosocial support
CENTRAL huge needs enormous appeal to social
workers, guardians,

• Focus on problems/stressors?
• ? Focus on protective factors?
• Well-being of the minor?
• Well-being of the social worker?

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Confrontation of perspectives
Juridical versus social psychological
perspectives
??

• Interest of the child
• ? who decides?
• Participation?

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GEWONE KINDEREN IN ONGEWONE SITUATIES
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• Ilse Derluyn
• Vakgroep Orthopedagogiek
• Universiteit Gent
• H. Dunantlaan 2
• 9000 Gent
• Belgium
• Tel [phone]
• Fax [phone]
• Mobile [phone]
• E-mail Ilse.Derluyn_at_UGent.be