Position statement DATE
19 April 2018 2017-2018/08
COMMITTEE
Committee for Welfare, Public Health and Family Justice Committee
We should make sure that Belgian children from terrorist conflict zones can count on our help Children's rights commissioner Bruno Vanobbergen supports the call from Unicef and children's rights organisations on the ground for the safe and accompanied return of Belgian children of (former) IS wives to Belgium. These children are victims, not perpetrators. Their rights have already been violated multiple times: the right to care, the right to a safe environment and the right to education. We must make sure that we help them. ‘Help’ essentially involves two aspects: 1. Making every effort to repatriate from conflict zones Belgian minors and children born locally who have a Belgian father or mother but whose Belgian nationality has not yet been officially confirmed, where necessary and where possible in collaboration with international organisations (UN, Unicef, Red Cross etc.). 2. Making every effort to reintegrate those children and young people into Belgian society, with all the professional help that is needed to achieve this.
1. Increasingly urgent situation Since the decline of the ‘Islamic State’ terrorist movement in Syria and Iraq, the possible return of Belgian ‘foreign fighters’ to Belgium has been an issue. A number of these returnees are also minors: from teenagers who went to Syria or Iraq themselves to take up arms, to very young children who were taken from Belgium to the conflict zone by their parents or who were born there. According to OCAD/OCAM, the Belgian Coordination Unit for Threat
Analysis, there are about 145 Belgian minors, three-quarters of whom are under 6 years of age. At a recent meeting, Unicef Middle East, led by Belgian Geert Cappelaere, informed us about the particularly insecure situation that could now develop as Kurdish authorities in Northern Syria are seeking to close down the camps in their own region in the near future. These prison camps are also home to Belgian (former) IS wives and their children. They also informed us that a number of mothers and children are still said to be conscripts in what remains of IS. Some women are still with their husbands. In other cases there are strong indications that their husbands have been killed. There are also situations where the family members who have remained behind in Belgium (parents and grandparents) have no idea of their children and grandchildren's whereabouts or their situation.
2. Children in a family situation causing concern The authorities are addressing the problem of returning foreign fighters primarily from the perspective of safety. It is of course understandable that the authorities should still take these safety factors into consideration in the case of children or adolescents who have been trained to use weapons or have actively participated in acts of violence. From a children's rights perspective, however, minors are primarily children and adolescents in a family situation causing concern. The world of war to which they have been exposed and the violent acts that they have witnessed have a serious negative impact on their social, moral, emotional and cognitive development. In many cases they have had all kinds of traumatic experiences and they are particularly vulnerable to malnutrition, neglect and various forms of abuse. There is no doubt from the photographs of children of (former) IS wives that most of the children are in poor condition and they are often housed in dangerous and unhealthy conditions. Article 19 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child makes it quite clear what the government's duty is in such cases: to protect the children from the violence, abuse, neglect or exploitation of which they have been victims. Also, and especially if, it is their parents who have taken them into that situation. Article 38 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child also requires states to take all feasible measures ‘to ensure protection and care of children who are affected by an armed conflict’. Article 39 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child obliges states to take all appropriate measures ‘to promote physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration of a child victim of: any form of neglect, exploitation, or abuse; torture or any other form of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; or armed conflicts’. It makes it clear that this recovery and reintegration ’shall take place in an environment which fosters the health, self-respect and dignity of the child’. Based on these provisions in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, we urge the competent Belgian and Flemish authorities: 1. to make every possible effort to repatriate from conflict zones Belgian minors and children born locally who have a Belgian father or mother but whose Belgian nationality has not yet been officially confirmed,
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2. to make every effort to reintegrate those children and young people into Belgian society, with all the professional help that is necessary for this.
3. Repatriation Tracing and repatriating Belgian children in conflict zones abroad is no easy task, particularly when communication with local authorities is limited or when this is difficult or impossible. Nevertheless, on the basis of the above-mentioned provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, we consider that Belgium must make every possible effort to bring Belgian minors back to Belgium. What appropriate measures are then taken is a decision that must be considered on a case by case basis, here in Belgium, after repatriation. To ensure that this repatriation occurs under the best possible conditions, we propose the following measures: Consultation with international organisations (Unicef, International Red Cross etc.) on how Belgian authorities can collaborate with them to trace, identify and bring back Belgian children. Clarify the procedures and steps involved in the repatriation process. Provide all Belgian minors with the documents needed for a safe return to Belgium, with no age restriction whatsoever. Base the identification process on diverse data available from both Belgium and the foreign conflict zone (photographs, videos, letters, physical characteristics, administrative documents etc.). If the Belgian authority considers a DNA test to be necessary, such a test should not represent a financial obstacle to returning. This information is not only relevant when enabling the child's return to Belgium, but it may also be important later in regard to possible questions about their descent. Inform family members living in Belgium about the steps and procedures in the repatriation process so that they can help by providing information that may speed up their identification and safe return. Ensure that the children's return to Belgium takes place in a child-friendly and non-threatening way. Provide the children and young people with the support they need.
4. Recovery and reintegration We must view all minors in foreign conflict zones as victims, regardless of their age. Given that they were and still are in full development, psychologically, morally and socially, we cannot assume that any recruitment or participation in armed or violent acts has occurred on a voluntary basis. If there are any indications that they were actively involved in ‘acts described as crimes’, it is the responsibility of the competent youth court in Belgium to determine what measures are appropriate to enable their reintegration into Belgian society.
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Determine, on a case by case basis, the measures and professional help that are needed to promote the recovery and reintegration of the children and young people involved. Provide a multidisciplinary approach with sufficient attention to the treatment of symptoms of post-traumatic stress. Allow the children and young people to live a normal life in a supportive (family) environment as much as possible. Support foster families, teachers and other professionals who come into contact with the children and young people, including support to find the best response to any post-traumatic reactions experienced by the children and young people.
Pay particular attention to children whose parent or parents are in custody due to acts committed in the conflict zone. These children may experience additional obstacles to the recovery of their psychological, emotional and social development. Protect the children and young people from acts of revenge and from being re-recruited by extremist groups. They must also be protected from excessive media attention. Ensure that their privacy is respected. Keep in mind that recovery and reintegration of these children and young people requires a long-term process.1
It is clear to us from discussions with the Youth Welfare Agency that the youth care system in Flanders is prepared to offer appropriate support to this group of children and young people. It is very clearly recognised within the agency that this is a diverse target group for whom a diverse range of support therefore needs to be provided. We support the decision by the Youth Welfare Agency to make use of regular support services (foster care, mobile support, OOOC (Centres for Welcoming, Orientation and Observation), Community institutions etc.) and also specialist support (such as intensive short-term contextual guidance pathways).
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A number of these recommendations come from the RAN Manual Radicalisation Awareness Network Manual, Response to returnees: foreign terrorist fighters and their families, July 2017. See also: Handbook on Children recruited and exploited by terrorist and violent extremist groups: the role of the justice system (2017), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
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