Case study # 2 BEST INTERESTS DETERMINATION REPORT 89
SECTION 1: OVERVIEW CAMP / LOCATION: LIBREVILLE, GABON BID FILE NO: 12345 LINKED CASES: NONE REGISTRATION NUMBER: 12345678 CASE REFERRED BY: ASSOCIATE COMMUNITY SERVICES OFFICER, UNHCR STATUS OF THE CHILD PURPOSE OF BID UNACCOMPANIED DURABLE SOLUTION SEPARATED TEMPORARY CARE ARRANGEMENTS ORPHAN SEPARATION NONE OF ABOVE OTHER PRIORITY OF THE CASE (MENTION REASONS) URGENT X MINOR WILL SOON HAVE NO PLACE TO LIVE, HAS NO SIGNIFICANT SUPPORTIVE RELATIONSHIPS IN COUNTRY OF REFUGE, POSSIBLE MENTAL HEALTH NEEDS NORMAL SPECIFIC NEEDS OF THE CHILD X SPECIFY: FOOD, SHELTER (CURRENTLY INADEQUATE, SOON WILL HAVE NO SHELTER), SCHOOL, EMOTIONAL SUPPORT, MEDICAL ATTENTION NEEDED FOR HERNIA. CHILD S BASIC BIO-DATA (REFER TO REGISTRATION FORM) FULL NAME ALIAS N/A AGE 16 GENDER MALE DOCUMENTED (INDICATE IF IT IS AN ESTIMATE) PIERROT RAZUGU MAHENDWA DATE OF BIRTH OCTOBER 25, 1991 PLACE OF BIRTH KISANGANI, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO DATE OF ARRIVAL IN THE COUNTRY MARCH 2006 DATE OF ARRIVAL AT CURRENT LOCATION SAME NATIONALITY CONGOLESE ETHNICITY RELIGION CURRENT ADDRESS REGISTERED ADDRESS M CHRISTIAN FRANCEVILLE, GABON SAME CURRENT CAREGIVER NONE, LIVING WITH 3 YOUNG MEN, AGES 18,19 & 20 RELATED CASE (S) LINKED BID(S) NAME OF FATHER NAME OF MOTHER SIBLINGS NA NA PIERRE MAHENDWA, DECEASED MARIE MAHENDWA, WHEREABOUTS UNKNOWN GISELLE MAHENDWA, WHEREABOUTS UNKNOWN TRACING STARTED ON STATUS INFORMAL ONLY, CURRENT COUNTRY CONDITIONS CONTRAINDICATE FORMAL EFFORTS 90
INTERVIEWS PERSON INTERVIEWED NO. OF DATE OF INTERVIEWS INTERVIEWS PRA 3 (1 HOME VISIT) ROOMATES 1 DURING HOME VISIT INTERVIEWER REVIEWING OFFICER INTERPRETER NAME ICMC/UNHCR UNHCR UNHCR ORGANIZATION DOCUMENTATION ATTACHED 1 UNHCR REGISTRATION 2 3 SECTION 2: OPTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Part I - BRIEF SUMMARY OF INFORMATION ON THE CASE Please briefly summarize key issues, such as current care arrangement, information on parents and family, and the options under consideration. Pierrot Mahendwa is a 16 year old Congolese child who is currently separated from family members. It is not clear if his mother and sister are still alive. According to Pierrot, he witnessed the murder of his father and the abduction of his only sister. Pierrot has been living in Franceville, Gabon with two other refugees in a one room shelter. The shelter does not meet the standard of proper living accommodations and he will soon be without shelter of any type. Medical attention is indicated due to a report of a possible hernia. Additionally, the minor shows signs of emotional distress, reporting frequent nightmares, displaying sad affect, and expressing a sense of hopelessness about his future prospects. Pierrot requires immediate assistance with his living situation as he will soon lose the housing situation he currently is in. In addition, he is in need of a more durable solution that will allow him to go to school and live within a more normal family situation. Pierrot s return to his home country does not appear possible in the foreseeable future as the conflict continues, whereabouts of his mother and sister are unknown, and tracing is not possible under current country conditions. 91
Part II - HISTORY PRIOR TO FLIGHT/SEPARATION Please record the child s recollections about the flight/separation, and evidence provided by persons close to the child (if interviewed). Indicate how this information has been verified. Pierrot Mahendwa is a 16-year-old boy from North Kivu, DRC. His father was a high ranking official of the national Army of Laurent Kabila, but in 1999 he joined the RCD in Goma, which he left in 2001. His mother was a trader and periodically traveled throughout East Africa to buy goods and sell them in DRC. PRA s mother left to go to Kenya about three weeks before his flight and he has not heard from her since. Pierrot has one sister, Giselle Mahendwa, who would now be about 24 years old. He does not know her whereabouts since the time of his flight in 2004. Pierrot explains that he is an ethnic M as both parents are M s. In 2001, there were ethnic conflicts between his ethnic group and another in his village. During the fighting, his father moved the family to a neighboring village, where they stayed until December 2004. Pierrot explains that there were rebel groups recruiting children in DRC to be their soldiers. In the area where they lived, there was a man who was recruiting children, with the support of several rebel leaders. Although he was not in the army any longer, Mr Mahendwa went and reported this to the army. According to Pierrot, the soldiers came to the village, but the rebels managed to fight them back. The rebels said that Pierrot s father was a traitor because he was the one who reported their presence. Under pressure, the chief of the village confirmed that it was Mr. Mahendwa who had gone to the army to report the rebel s recruitment of children. After that, the soldiers forced Mr. Mahendwa to admit what he did. They did this by pretending they were going kill him (and shot several times close to his head), until the he confessed to reporting the recruiting. After his admission, they killed him in front of Pierrot, his sister, and many people from the village. They also killed the chief of the village. After that the rebels took about eight of the young girls, includinggiselle Mahendwa, and Pierrot has not seen his sister since. Being too scared to stay, Pierrot left the village with many other people. They left on foot and by bicycle for several days until they reached the DRC and Congo border. PRA stayed there for about two months with a woman from the Republic of Congo (RoC), who was a fish trader and was traveling between Republic of Congo and and Democratic Republic of Congo. Pierrot went with her to a small village in (RoC), which took several weeks. He was helping her in the fish trade but she eventually had to travel and he was unable to go with her. She arranged for him to get a ride to the Gabon border with a friend. After arriving near the border, Pierrot states that he worked for him a bit, but was treated as a slave, so he left. He worked for a number of different people trying to earn money, eat and find a place to stay. Finally, in January 2006, Pierrot met a Gabonese truck driver who said that he would help him. Pierrot accepted and they came together to Franceville, Gabon. Once in Franceville, a Congolese woman helped him apply for assistance with UNHCR. Pierrot appears credible in his reporting of the events. The reported events are consistent with the country of origin reports for his region. 92
Part III - CURRENT SITUATION Please describe the current living situation of the child, to include: - Current care arrangement, living conditions, safety, relationships with foster parents/siblings/care-givers/other family members; - Community networks, education and school attendance; - Assessment of child s age and maturity, physical and mental health and any specific needs assessment. Please state who has been contacted and who provided information, e.g. child, family, persons close to child, care-givers, teachers, neighbours, social workers/ngo staff. Pierrot is a 16 year old boy, who has no family members with him. He lives in a precarious situation in Franceville. In a recent report from a home visit, it is noted: PRA lives in one room which he shares with 3 other refugees; all young adult males. The room has no furniture and they sleep on mats on the floor. The house does not have electricity, as the inhabitants have no money to pay for it. The rent has been paid for the next month, after which time, Pierrot and others will have to leave. Pierrot faces difficulties in finding gainful employment in Gabon. The local market is saturated, and the unemployment rate very high, which are further obstacles to obtaining a job. Pierrot witnessed the killing of his father and abduction of his sister, all of which happened in public. He was only 13 years old at the time. With no other family members left, he was forced to find his way through and out of DRC, being helped by unknown people. Pierrot says that he often feels isolated and lonely. He appears sad when discussing his situation and admits to frequent nightmares. The minor s roommates state that Pierrot is withdrawn and does not interact much with them. He is not sure whether his mother and sister are alive or not. He has not been able to hear any news of them through informal tracing. Formal tracing has not been initiated due to continuing active conflict and other insecurities in home country. Pierrot claims that he has a hernia that hurts him when he sleeps on the floor. He does not go to school. Pierrot appears his stated age of 16 and is able to verbalize his history and current situation in a manner consistent with his age. He has developed strong survival skills as evidenced by his ability to flee across borders, occasionally enlisting assistance from others. While he continues to function at a basic level independently, it is apparent that he is in need of emotional and other support from a caring adult. Part IV - AVAILABLE OPTIONS & ANALYSIS Please indicate all the available options and follow-up mechanisms and analysis of each. Please refer to all the factors included in the Annex 9 checklist in recommending what is in the child s best interests, under the following headings: - Views of child - Family and close relationships - Safe environment - Development and identity needs There are very limited laws protecting refugees in Gabon; the status of asylum seekers is determined by UNHCR and refugees are placed under the UNHCR mandate. This legal vacuum increases the risk of refoulement. In addition, because of the absence of law, refugee rights are often infringed, rendering integration prospects of refugees very remote. Pierrot is a foreigner in possession of a refugee attestation as the only identification document. Being a M by ethnicity, and a minor whose father was killed in the war in DRC, it is estimated 93
that repatriation to DRC is not an appropriate solution forpierrot. The current situation in North Kivu remains volatile, and not conducive to return. Pierrot states that he misses his family and home life. He wishes that he could attend school and that he could feel secure in his living situation. There is a sense of sadness and hopelessness about him and he is unable to further verbalize what he would like to happen at this time. PRA appears to be a normally developed adolescent. He has been separated from his family for approximately 3 years and would likely benefit from being cared for in a family-like environment. He states that he did attend school in his home village and that he would like to be able to do so again. FINAL RECOMMENDATION Please provide the final recommendation and reasons. NAME OF THE CHILD WELFARE OFFICER: SIGNATURE OF THE CHILD WELFARE OFFICER: DATE: NAME OF REVIEWER: COMMENTS BY REVIEWER TO THE REPORT: SIGNATURE OF REVIEWER: DATE: SECTION 3: PANEL DECISION This section should be completed and signed at the BID panel sessions. The signed page should then be scanned in order to protect the information included, attached to sections 1 and 2 of the form and converted into a pdf document. THE PANEL Approves the recommendations Defers decison (please explain why) Does not approve the recommendations (please explain why and provide the panel s recommendation) Reopens the case (please explain why, and who requested the reopening) Closes the case FULL REASONS FOR DECISION 94
FOLLOW UP ACTIONS REQUIRED (TICK AND SPECIFY ) None Provide counselling to the - Child - Biological parents - Foster parents/care-giver Undertake formal tracing Refer child for - Alternative care arrangements - Protection measures - Educational assistance - Psychosocial assistance - Material assistance - Medical assistance Other (explain) COMMENTS 95
SIGNATURE OF PANEL MEMBERS NAME ORGANIZATION SIGNATURE DATE: 96