Children’s problems [مشاكل]: A mixed-methods study on physical violence experienced by children living in the Sahrawi refugee camps near Tindouf, Algeria

Background: Physical violence towards children is quite common in refugee camps, and also in the Middle East and North Africa region in general. Hardly anything is known about physical violence towards and between Sahrawi children living in refugee camps near Tindouf, Algeria. These camps are unique in that they are semi-permanent, and are ruled by their own government. Objectives: Analyzing the occurrence of physical violence experienced by children living in the Sahrawi refugee camps, and the cultural/normative factors that determine this occurrence. Methods: The study employed a mixed-method strategy, combining qualitative interviews with n = 93 participants (who held the following, sometimes combined, roles: 36 children, 18 parents, 13 teachers, 8 young persons, 9 (I)NGO employees/youth workers, 5 government employees, 3 legal professionals/police, 6 journalists/doctors/nurses/imams), and quantitative data from a questionnaire filled in by n = 172 children. Results: Physical violence against and between children occurs often (e.g. 52.9% of children have seen or heard children seriously fighting with each other “lots of times”, 38.1% have been hit, punched or slapped by an adult family member at least once; 40.6% of children have been hit, punched or slapped by a teacher “a few times” or “lots of times”). Severe physical violence from adults against children is rare (e.g. 5.5% of children reported that an adult family member tried to hurt them with a knife/other sharp object at least once; 5.6% reported that a teacher did this at least once). (Light) beating by adults is considered normal and educational, and fighting between peers is considered normal by adults, while it is considered problematic by children. Conclusions: The child's right to protection from physical violence is violated regularly in the camps. There are several factors that contribute to this situation, namely: 1) a lack of child-friendly spaces and materials, 2) the normalization of certain forms of violence, and 3) the lack of effective protection/enforcement mechanisms.