Violence at the Borders Against Migrant Children and Youth

There is general acknowledgement that children and youth on the move are particularly vulnerable to violence, abuse and exploitation and the interplay between violence and migration is relatively well-studied. Yet, attention to how violence at borders may create new challenges and risks, specifically for children and youth, is limited. In this context, the research “Violence at borders against migrant children and youth”, carried out by a group of four students of the Graduate Institute of Geneva with the technical support of Save the Children and swisspeace, aimed to start filling this gap in knowledge and provide recommendations to practitioners, organisations and policymakers.

To do so, the research focused on three geographical distinct borders: Croatia-Bosnia, Ethiopia-Eritrea and United States-Mexico, with the intention of identifying commonalities and differences between the three case studies, looking at the type of violence perpetuated against children and youth, the normative/policy framework at stake, the protection system available and the level of coordination between stakeholders working in border areas. The research is based on an extensive desk review, which was completed by 12 Key Informant Interviews.