Thesis (M.A.)--York University, 2004. Graduate Programme in Film and Video. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 33-34). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL:http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url%5Fver=Z39.88-2004&res%5Fdat=xri:pqdiss&rft%5Fval%5Ffmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&rft%5Fdat=xri:pqdiss:MQ99298

This thesis is concerned with a 'problem' in a humanitarian context: an identified gap between the rhetoric and 'reality' of refugee children's participation in their protection and a refugee protection process that is thought not particularly participatory for the child. Through directly engaging with refugee children and humanitarian practitioners - in Kyaka II Refugee Settlement, Uganda - it seeks to explore empirically the extent to which this is the case and whether refugee children's increased participation in refugee protection procedures might produce a better, safer alternative for children. From a theoretical perspective, this thesis engages critically with a significant body of academic literature on the theory and practice of children's participation as well as related literature on the conceptualisation of 'childhood' and 'the child'. It explores the ambiguity and tensions in children's participation, particularly in relation to their protection, and responds to debates surrounding participation, agency and power. It engages with the literature on forced migration, refugee camps and the construction of the refugee (child). Linking these to the debate on children's participation in protection, it explores notions of 'vulnerability' and 'agency' and the transformative potential of participation for a reconstruction of refugee children with consequences for their everyday spaces and lives.

The study is an examination of issues with implementing international law pertaining to refugee children, with particular reference to South Africa. The study provides some selected outcomes with implementation and undertakes an analysis of the factors that influence those outcomes. While South Africa like many other countries provides a comprehensive legal regime in the protection of refugee children, there are still gaps with compliance. Also, whilst the norms of international law demand obedience and compel behaviour, there is no doubt that there still exists some degree of disparity between actual national behaviour and the behaviour prescribed by the rule of international law. If it were possible or meaningful to conduct a quantitative study of obedience to the rules of international law, it might be expected to show that most states obey most agreed rules of international law most of the time. In this particular case study, rules of law are in some instances violated or disregarded but these cases do not in themselves provide evidence that international law is without efficacy in South Africa.

This thesis is about the situation and possibilities in a refugee situation. The aim is to deepen the understanding of the situation for Colombian refugee children and how they are able to handle the adjustments related to a refugee situation, both in a neighbouring country like Venezuela and in a foreign country like Sweden. First, quantitative data were collected and analyzed in order to obtain a general picture of the situation for the refugee children. Further, grounded theory was used to analyze some of the interviews, which resulted in a generated theory. During the process of developing the theory, a case study was carried out with a Colombian refugee family in Sweden. The interviewed persons are fifty Colombian refugee children (boys, girls, and teenagers) who lived in the border states of Venezuela, and a Colombian refugee family (the parents and their two children) who now live in Sweden. The generated theory deals with how the refugee children are able to relate to and manage the new refugee situation. The core concept is possibility-finding: the developed ability to find possibilities in the refugee situation. It is a way of thinking as well as practical action. The latter is evident in the way the refugee children see the possibilities and deal with the challenges and problems they are facing. By the solutions they find and the results that are developing into growth. All of this influences and helps to build up their personal stability. The foundations that emerge, and which support or strain possibility-finding, are peace, culture, language, and networks like familyship and friendship. There is an emphasis on the importance of peace and dreams in order to handle times of huge challenges.

This study discloses Swedish human service organizations and their methods of integrating unaccompanied children into the Swedish society. The purpose of the study is to investigate how social workers at HVB-homes for unaccompanied children depict their experience in and knowledge of how the unaccompanied children are integrated into Swedish society. The method of investigating the questions raised by the purpose of this thesis has been qualitative analysis of answers derived from interviewing personnel at HVB-homes for unaccompanied children. In doing so we have made use of a semi-structured method of interviewing the above-mentioned personnel. The data derived from these interviews has thereafter been analysed and filtered through the concept of integration and the theoretical formations human service organizations and street-level bureaucrats. A result shown in this thesis is that personnel at the HVB-homes strive towards integrating the unaccompanied children into society. The personnel has, however, experienced problems in describing the integration process, since they feel that they lack in understanding of the concept of integration. The HVB-homes have different methods of integrating the children and they feel confident in their approaches, as they perceive that the children are well integrated into society. The personnel describe numerous factors both promoting and obstructive, which affect each other and influence the integration of the unaccompanied children.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Ohio University, August, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 114-119)

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Boise State University, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 150-160). Also available online via the ProQuest Digital Dissertations database.

Master of Public Health - MPH / The worsening humanitarian situation in Angola and the great lakes due to protracted wars, led to an influx of refugees in Namibia since 1992. The peak of the influx was between 1999-2002 when the camp population reached 25,000 people. Among the many challenges faced by these refugees was their health and nutrition. Malnutrition accounted for high levels of morbidity and mortality among the refugees. This study covered a review of health and nutritional situation of children less than five years of age in Osire refugee camp. It proposed that prevalence of malnutrition among this age group is a proxy for the nutritional status of the refugee population. It also considered the factors prevalent in the camp that affect the nutrition of the children. / South Africa

The aim with this study is to examine and analyze how the employees at two residential care homes for unaccompanied refugee children work with the children during their pending decision for asylum in Sweden. The purpose is to gain insight into the employees’ daily work with the target audience and how they handle decisions with the children. The method to collect data is to carry 6 interviews with the employees at the residential care home. The interviews were semi-structured with purpose of letting the interviewee lead the content of the interview. The results of the interviews show that the employees have very varied types of duties within their profession. The employees must also maintain many different roles, for example family, teacher and friend. The employees do often have to face very difficult situations with the children during their wait for a residence permit decision. The result was analyzed with theories as Integration Theory and Coping theory. The conclusions of this study are that the employees at the residential care homes for refugee children have very multifaceted work tasks with a very important target group. The increased amount of unaccompanied refugee children and adolescents escaping to Sweden has led to a situation that the Swedish society haven’t had time to adjust to. Clarifying how the employees work and treat the unaccompanied children can contribute to spreading this knowledge to other community stakeholders.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka ensamkommande barns upplevelser och erfarenheterav integrationsprocessen bland ensamkommande som har erfarenhet av att bo på ett HVB-hem.Semistrukturerade intervjuer gjordes med fem unga vuxna män som kommit till Sverige somensamkommande barn från Afghanistan. Materialet utmynnade i sju teman: boende ochutslussverksamhet, relation, språk och utbildning, integration, känslan av ensamhet ochutanförskap, psykisk ohälsa under asylprocessen samt i väntan på uppehållstillstånd.Resultaten visar att respondenterna upplevde att språket var viktigt för att komma in i detsvenska samhället och att det blev lättare att få ett arbete. Andra faktorer som de upplevdeviktiga för en lyckad integration är bland annat att skaffa svenska vänner, lära sig regler, densvenska kulturen och ett bra mottagande. Resultatet visar även det att respondenterna uppleveratt det har varit svårt att få svenska vänner både i skolan och i samhället, vilket bidrar tillutanförskap och ensamhet. Vidare visar studien att respondenterna tycker att socialarbetarebehöver mer utbildning i arbetet med ensamkommande barn för att få en bättre förståelse förderas kultur och vad barnen bär med sig. Intervjupersonernas upplevelser ger en beskrivning avhur de har haft det som ensamkommande barn, men det går inte att dra generella slutsatser tillen större population av ensamkommande. Sammanfattningsvis kan denna studieförhoppningsvis bidra till att förbättra förståelsen för ensamkommande barns behov undervistelsen vid HVB-hem.