The suffering of unaccompanied child refugees who have made their way toSweden has been laid bare in a report detailing the horrific abuse some have been subjected to at home and on their journeys north.
Interviews conducted by Human Rights Watch (HRW) with 50 unaccompanied child refugees aged nine to 17 reveal the scale of trauma suffered by many making the perilous voyages from Afghanistan, Eritrea, Syria and other countries.
Sweden accepted 35,000 unaccompanied child refugees last year and is the most popular destination for lone children on the move. HRW said it conducted the research in order to better understand the needs of young people fleeing by themselves to Europe.
From beatings and rapes to witnessing people dying in the Mediterranean and being held captive by Islamic State, the children’s testimonies reveal a litany of abuses and tragedy.
Nadia J, 16, from Afghanistan, said she was repeatedly raped by a people smuggler in Turkey. “[I told] the smuggler that I was alone and didn’t have any money. He told me: ‘No problem, I can help you.’ The same smuggler arranged for a place where he could keep me. He kept me for 12 days. I didn’t have any other choice. I didn’t know the way. He had sex with me,” she told the researchers.
Karam B, 16, from Syria, said Isis held him captive for five months and forced him to watch as others were tortured and killed. Abed D, 16, from Afghanistan, said he had gone to the police after his parents died and his uncle tried to make him jointhe Taliban. But rather than helping him, the police jailed Abed for four days, he said.
Several other children from Afghanistan said they fled to avoid being forced to join the Taliban or other armed groups.
Many of the horrors were inflicted on the children during their journeys toEurope. Abroon N, 13, from Somalia, said Libyan authorities imprisoned him and beat him around the head with a metal rod.
Rasoul D, a nine-year-old Afghan boy, recalled watching others die in the Mediterranean. “On the way we saw many problems. I saw people who are drowning,” Rasoul said. “I was scared and I felt really bad. Still I have problems. I have nightmares about it.”
Four children said they were separated from their families and had to travel on alone. “You have no choice. If you stay in Libya, they can kill you,” said Saare V, 16, from Ethiopia.
Using interpreters, HRW researchers interviewed 53 asylum seekers and refugees, of whom 50 were unaccompanied children. Three were 18-year-olds who had arrived alone in Sweden as children. They were housed in 17 asylum centres across the country.
Of those interviewed, 37 were from Afghanistan, four from Eritrea, four from Syria, three from Somalia, two from Iraq, two from Ethiopia and one from Yemen. Nine of the interviewees were girls. The interviews were all voluntary and conducted so as not to risk further traumatising the children.
“We recognise Sweden’s leadership in this area, and a lot of children are understandably relieved to be here – Sweden ensures they are in homes not detention centres, it guarantees access to school and healthcare, it provides a model to other EU countries,” said Rebecca Riddell, a Human Rights Watch fellow and author of the report, the organisation’s first on Sweden.
“But that doesn’t mean the system is perfect. Serious shortcomings are leading to delays and difficulties, but a few key reforms will help ensure children get the care and protection they need.” The number one issue for children is the long wait they face for decisions on their asylum applications, Riddell said.
“The fear of return is very powerful. They have fled such horrors … Extended periods of insecurity can have a particularly strong effect on children, which adds to the stress they experience,” she said.
The report finds that, amid a broader backlog of asylum cases owing to the 160,000 applications received in Sweden last year, there is “a lack of prioritisation” of applications by unaccompanied children. As a result, 34 of those interviewed in late January had yet to have their asylum determination interview, including 12 who had been in Sweden for five months or more.
HRW also found some children, including those who said they had experienced sexual violence, had not received adequate mental and physical care. Nadia, for example, had told her social worker she wanted to be in a group home without boys because of the rape and harassment she had experienced – yet she ended up in a camp with 15 boys, and had not been referred for post-rape care, gynaecological examination or psychological support.
The report also raises concerns about accommodation and the effectiveness of Sweden’s guardianship system for young refugees.
A spokesperson for Sweden’s Inspectorate for Health Care (IVO), which is responsible for standards in asylum accommodation, said a sharp reduction in the number of unaccompanied children arriving in Sweden would now enable their needs to be better assessed and understood.
“During the extraordinary situation that occurred in the autumn of 2015, the inspectorate’s ambition was to see to the immediate needs of the refugee children that arrived to Sweden without legal guardians,” the spokesperson said.
“These unaccompanied refugee children were given shelter and food to start with. The children`s welfare and security has never been compromised. Now that the situation no longer calls for any extraordinary measures can we embark in getting to know the children and their needs better.”
the guardian
