(THIS ARTICLE IS MACHINE TRANSLATED by Google from Norwegian)
Of: Ann-Magrit Austenå and Jon Ole Martinsen
The situation of women in flight was recently discussed at a conference at the Swedish-Norwegian Cultural Center Voksenåsen in Oslo. Maybe it took a Swedish initiative to put the topic on the agenda. With a declared feminist foreign policy and Europe's clearest humanitarian-based policy towards refugees and asylum seekers, both politicians and authorities in Norway have every reason to listen to Swedish issues and experiences in this area.
In the Norwegian Organization for Asylum Seekers (NOAS), we meet women on the run both immediately after arrival in Norway and some of them again after they have been denied their applications for protection. On behalf of the Directorate of Immigration, NOAS provides all newly arrived asylum seekers with information and guidance on the Norwegian asylum process and their rights and obligations. Many of those who have been denied their applications for asylum in Norway contact the NOAS secretariat for free legal aid and counseling.
Men decide. Between 20 and 30 percent of adults on the run are women. Given the cultural and social norms in the areas that many refugees come from – and also dangerous escape routes – this is a fairly high proportion of women. In many cultures, men have income and control over what is property. There will be men who decide who in the family embarks on the escape. Often the decision will be justified by the fact that it is too dangerous for the women to travel, whether alone or with the family. The escape routes to Europe for many of the largest refugee groups now arriving in Norway – Syrians, Eritreans and Afghans – are itineraries that go through areas controlled by militia groups, Islamists and other criminals, where women are particularly vulnerable to abuse.
They are different, the women who come to Norway now. While Somali women mostly come alone, most Syrian women come with their husbands and children. Eritrean women are reluctant to talk about their background and flight. Several Somali women have placed children with others in the family and left a man or family who could not or would not protect them against the Islamists from al-Shabaab. They tell of men who force themselves on the women they may want. It can be women in their own extended family. If the woman is married to a man who is not affiliated with al-Shabaab, he is considered an infidel, and al-Shabaab fighters can rob his wife.
Must count on rape. Eritreans are strongly influenced by growing up in the totalitarian, thoroughly militarized surveillance society the country has developed into under the former liberation warrior Isaias Afewerki. Several tell of fleeing to avoid reactions and arbitrary imprisonment after other family members have fled – and thus deserted – from the compulsory national service indefinitely for everyone between 18 and 50 years. Many have fled via Sudan and on through completely lawless areas in Libya before crossing the Mediterranean in small boats. The chances of being raped and abused along the way are high. One of the most important pieces of advice Eritrean women give each other is to take birth control pills with them on the run. Then they will at least avoid getting pregnant.
Coercion against unbelieving women. From women from Syria we hear different stories. Throughout, Arab women tell the stories of their husbands and children. They flee because the man was imprisoned, tortured or threatened. Or for fear that the children will be kidnapped by armed groups demanding ransom. Christian women and Kurds talk about raw brutality from Islamists. The Islamist terrorist organization IS considers both Kurds and Christians infidels, and believes in its full right to take Kurdish and Christian Syrian women as slaves or kill them, if they do not obey the orders of IS fighters.
In guidance conversations with NOAS 'information program, the women are informed about Norwegian laws and regulations. Forced marriage, polygamy, child marriage and female genital mutilation are prohibited. Women have the right – and are expected – to tell their own story and about their situation before and during the escape. In such conversations, it sometimes appears that someone has been married off as teenagers, or that some men are engaged or married to a teenager they have left behind in their home country. Some men react to the ban on multiple wives. Many women have questions about the possibility of education and work. Both for their daughters and themselves. The dream of education and a more independent life lives on in many of these women.
Still insecure. In the conversations, there is also unrest. It may be their own husband they are not completely confident in when they come to themselves. Or it could be living so close to many unknown men without security in their own situation. Such stories and such unrest are confirmed by women who have previously come to Norway as refugees. They feel no security after arriving in Norway.
One of the most important pieces of advice Eritrean women give each other is to take birth control pills with them on the run. Then they will at least avoid getting pregnant.
Others struggle with shame and trauma after abuse and abuse they may have been subjected to both before, during and after the escape. There are violations and experiences that are difficult to talk about. Many women are unable to report abuse until long after they have arrived in Norway. Then the following paradox often arises: Instead of strengthening their basis for residence, this weakens their credibility. Why did you not tell about this before? Men can also feel ashamed and feel great guilt for not being able to defend their wife, daughter or sister against abuse. Therefore, they do not always tell what would have clarified the reason for the flight and strengthened the need for protection.
Abuse is privatized. In NOAS 'legal aid work, we also see many examples of sexual abuse of women being privatized and referred to as isolated criminal acts, committed by officials who have gone beyond their powers, instead of being defined as torture. We have never experienced abuse of men in the same way. Rape and sexual abuse of women by uniformed men in connection with their own or family members' political activity are most often part of a systematic persecution of political opposition, or a recognized repression of minority groups.
For lesbian women, it may be impossible to seek protection from the authorities or the community around them. For that, the cultural or religious norms are too strong.
Therefore, it is fundamentally important to have a gender perspective in all stages of asylum and refugee work. In reception and registration, in case processing, in settlement and in the integration work. Women must be seen, met and understood in order to end their flight and start a new and safe life in Norway.
Austenå and Martinsen are Secretary General and Senior Adviser at the Norwegian Organization for Asylum Seekers (NOAS), respectively.
