When unaccompanied minors or families with minor children obtain a negative decision on their asylum application in Belgium, they can appeal. Several hundreds of children and young people each year get an oral hearing with a judge. The (lack of) interaction between asylum-judges and young people brings about significant challenges and opportunities, in particular as to balancing children’s rights to protection (from harm), provision (of child-friendly services) and participation (being heard). Little is known about what children and young people themselves understand to include a child-friendly approach.
This presentation is an illustration of how research can include children’s own perspectives on their lived experiences of an asylum appeal. The combination of ethnographic observations, in-depth conversations with children and young people and action-research with children and judges, provides a unique foundation for the development of new pathways towards age-sensitive justice in appellate asylum cases involving minors. Children seeking international protection are vulnerable and agentic at the same time, and both aspects should be attended to.
https://www.ru.nl/en/about-us/events/wine-and-discussion-meeting-with-sara-lembrechts