Life in Ghorbat

Transcription

Life in Ghorbat

Life in Ghorbat
“Illegality” among Separated Afghan
Children in Greece
Didde Bjørn
!
!
!
!
!
!
Life%in%Ghorbat*
%“Illegality”%among%Separated%Afghan%Children%in%Greece%%
%
%
%
©Didde!Bjørn!Sørensen!
Master!Thesis!
Cultural!Encounters!and!International!Development!Studies!!
Roskilde!University!
!
Spring,!2014!
!
!
Supervisors:!!
Connie!Carøe!Christiansen!
Helle!Stenum!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
*The title of the thesis is from a song written by one of my Afghan informants, Babak (app. E).
There is no exact English translation for the Persian word ghorbat: exile, longing for homeland,
nostalgia, feeling like a stranger is close to the idea.
!
!
!
ABSTRACT'
In$a$world$in$which$the$borders$of$nation3states$have$come$to$form$the$‘natural$order$of$things’,$millions$of$
people$who$cross$these$very$borders$are$classified$as$“illegal”$migrants.$Among$these$“illegal”$migrants$are$
separated$ Afghan$ children$ who$ travel$ through$ precarious$ routes$ in$ search$ for$ a$ better$ future$ in$ Europe.$
Although$we$see$an$increase$in$the$number$separated$Afghan$children,$there$is$a$lack$of$knowledge$about$
them$in$the$existing$research$on$international$migration.$In$particular$research$that$has$explicitly$explored$
the$experiences$of$children$from$the$children’s$own$perspectives$seems$to$be$missing.$Therefore,$in$order$to$
strengthen$ the$ limited$ knowledge$ on$ separated$ Afghan$ children,$ this$ thesis$ adopts$ a$ child$ perspective$
approach$to$investigate$how$“illegality”$is$experienced$by$a$group$of$separated$Afghan$children$in$Greece$3$
a$ country$ in$ which$ the$ children’s$ position$ as$ “illegal”$ migrants$ weights$ higher$ than$ their$ position$ as$
children.$
Through$ ethnographic$ fieldwork$ in$ Greece$ and$ with$ a$ theoretical$ point$ of$ departure$ in$ the$ ontological$
notions$ of$ Giorgio$ Agamben,$ I$ show$ that$ the$ condition$ of$ “illegality”$ leaves$ the$ children$ in$ a$ position$ of$
‘inclusive$exclusion’$3$they$are$included$as$objects$of$sovereign$power$but$at$the$same$time$excluded$from$
the$‘right$to$have$rights’.$Consequently,$the$everyday$life$of$the$children$is$strongly$rendered$by$poverty,$
police$violence,$detention$and$racist$attacks.$
Through$ theoretical$ perspectives$ of$ Sarah$ Willen$ and$ Susan$ Coutin$ I$ further$ show$ that$ the$ condition$ of$
“illegality”$ has$ a$ strong$ impact$ on$ the$ children$ in$ three$ domains:$ first,$ on$ their$ sense$ of$ embodiment;$
second,$on$their$experience$of$space;$and$third,$on$their$experience$of$time.$
Moreover,$ employing$ James$ Scott’s$ notion$ of$ ‘weapons$ of$ the$ weak’$ as$ ‘everyday$ forms$ of$ resistance’,$ I$
analyse$ how$ the$ children$ deploy$ various$ strategies$ to$ overcome$ the$ enormous$ challenges$ and$ obstacles$
that$they$are$faced$with$qua$their$“illegal”$position.$
On$ the$ basis$ of$ my$ ethnographical$ findings$ I$ conclude$ that$ the$ condition$ of$ “illegality”$ has$ a$ profound$
affect$ on$ the$ children’s$ experiences$ of$ everyday$ life$ in$ Greece.$ They$ are$ able$ to$ challenge$ and$ resist$
“illegality”,$ but$ their$ resistance$ are$ not$ geared$ towards$ transformative$ actions$ aimed$ at$ durable$
enhancements$of$their$lives.$$
RESUMÉ'
I$en$verden,$hvor$grænserne$for$nationalstaterne$bliver$betragtet$som$"naturens$orden"$bliver$millioner$af$
mennesker,$der$krydser$netop$disse$grænser,$klassificeret$som$"illegale"$migranter.$Blandt$disse$"illegale"$
migranter$ses$et$stigende$antal$af$afghanske$uledsagede$børn,$som$flygter$gennem$farefulde$ruter$i$søgen$
efter$ en$ bedre$ fremtid$ i$ Europa.$ Til$ trods$ for$ en$ stigning$ i$ antallet$ af$ uledsagede$ afghanske$ børn,$ er$ der$
stadig$stor$mangel$på$viden$om$dem$i$den$eksisterende$forskning$om$international$migration.$Især$synes$
der$at$være$mangel$på$forskning,$som$undersøger$børnenes$erfaringer$ud$fra$børnenes$egne$perspektiver.$
For$ at$ styrke$ den$ begrænsede$ viden$ om$ uledsagede$ afghanske$ børn,$ undersøger$ jeg,$ med$ afsæt$ i$ et$
barneperspektiv,$hvordan$”illegalitet”$opleves$af$en$gruppe$uledsagede$afghanske$børn$i$Grækenland$3$et$
land,$hvor$børnenes$position$som$"illegale"$migranter$vægtes$højere$end$deres$position$som$børn.$
Gennem$etnografisk$feltarbejde$i$Grækenland$og$med$et$teoretisk$afsæt$i$Giorgio$Agamben,$påviser$jeg,$at$
det$ at$ være$ ”illegaliseret”$ efterlader$ børnene$ i$ en$ ’inkluderende$ eksklusion’,$ idet$ de$ både$ er$ inkluderet$
under$ den$ suveræne$ magt,$ men$ samtidig$ er$ udelukket$ fra$ ’retten$ til$ at$ have$ rettigheder’.$ Således$ bliver$
børnenes$hverdag$stærkt$præget$af$fattigdom,$politivold,$tilbageholdelser$og$racistiske$angreb.$$
Endvidere$ viser$ jeg,$ ved$ hjælp$ af$ Sarah$ Willen$ og$ Susan$ Coutin’s$ teoretiske$ perspektiver,$ at$ det$ at$ være$
”illegaliseret”$ har$ stor$ indflydelse$ på$ børnene,$ især$ på$ tre$ følgende$ områder:$ for$ det$ først,$ på$ deres$
oplevelse$af$selvet,$for$det$andet,$på$deres$oplevelse$af$rum$og$for$det$tredje,$på$deres$oplevelse$af$tid.$$
Desuden$analyserer$jeg$ved$hjælp$af$James$Scott’s$begreber$’weapons$of$the$weak”$og$”everyday$form$of$
resistance”$ hvordan$ børnene$ anvender$ forskellige$ strategier$ for$ at$ overvinde$ de$ enorme$ udfordringer$ og$
forhindringer,$som$de$står$over$for$qua$deres$”illegalitet”.$
På$ baggrund$ af$ mine$ etnografiske$ udfald,$ konkluderer$ jeg,$ at$ det$ at$ være$ ”illegaliseret”$ har$ en$ enorm$
indflydelse$ på$ hvordan$ børnene$ oplever$ hverdagen$ i$ Grækenland.$ De$ i$ stand$ til$ at$ udfordre$ og$ anfægte$
”illegaliteten”,$men$deres$modstand$er$ikke$gearet$til$transformerende$handlinger$med$henblik$på$varige$
forbedringer$af$deres$liv.$$
!
'
! 4!
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT''
This!thesis!is!dedicated!to!all!the!struggling!separated!Afghan!children!in!Greece.!Thank!you!for!
sharing! your! time,! your! thoughts,! and! not! least! your! enormous! strength! and! beautiful! humor.!
Without!you!this!thesis!would!not!exist.!!
I!would!also!like!to!express!my!appreciation!to!my!new!friend,!Yasin.!Thank!you!for!lending!me!
your! couch! in! Patras,! sharing! your! own! experiences! as! a! migrant! and! not! least! for! all! your!
information!about!separated!Afghan!children!in!Greece.!
Finally,! big! thanks! to! Helle! Stenum! and! Connie! Carøe! Christiansen! for! your! always! helpful! and!
encouraging!supervision.!!
$
$
!
!
!
'
! 5!
PROLOGUE'
“I$really$love$to$play$volleyball.$Back$home$I$use$to$play$all$the$time,$but$here$I$cannot$play$at$the$
moment”$says$Reza$and$looks$at$his$arm.$I$already$noticed$it$when$he$entered$the$room.$His$right$
arm$is$wrapped$in$gauze.$“Is$it$broken?”$I$ask.$“Yes,$the$wrist$is$broken.$I$might$not$be$able$to$ever$
use$it$again,”$Reza$says.$I$ask$how$it$happened.$“It$was$the$police”$he$explains$and$looks$at$me.$
“One$day$at$the$harbour$I$wanted$to$jump$on$a$truck$to$go$with$the$vehicle$ferry$to$Italy.$But$the$
police$saw$me.$It$was$too$late.$I$couldn’t$escape$so$they$got$me.$One$of$them$hit$my$arm$so$hard$
with$an$iron$stick$so$this$happened.$The$police$here,$they$are$no$good”.$I$am$shocked$by$his$story.$
“Why$would$the$Greek$police$break$a$young$Afghan’s$arm?”$I$think$to$myself.$$
“Look!”$Reza$takes$me$out$of$my$thoughts.$He$shows$me$a$drawing$on$the$gauze$made$in$different$
colours.$Some$of$the$colours$are$almost$gone,$but$when$you$look$closely$you$can$see$what$it$is.$It$
shows$ a$ map$ of$ southern$ Europe.$ Above$ Greece$ there$ is$ a$ drawing$ of$ a$ big$ bird$ flying$ towards$
Italy.$Atop$of$the$map$is$written$with$big$letters:$‘FREE$AS$A$BIRD’.$“A$Spanish$journalist$drew$this”$
Reza$says$and$smiles.$“It$gives$me$so$much$hope$every$time$I$look$at$it”.$I$smile$back$at$him$and$
say$that$I$really$hope$the$best$for$him.$“Yeah,$but$the$only$thing”$he$says,$“is$that$I$am$stuck$here$
for$now.$How$am$I$supposed$to$jump$on$a$truck$to$Italy$with$an$arm$like$this?$I$wonder$how$many$
month$I$have$to$wait$before$I$can$try$my$luck$again$to$get$out$of$this$country”.$$
Extract!from!a!conversation!with!a!young!Afghan!boy!in!Patras!who,!at!the!time!of!this!research,!
had!been!in!Greece!for!3!years!(app.!C).!!!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
! 6!
TABLE'OF'CONTENTS'
Abstract(.........................................................................................................................................................................................(4(
Resumé(..........................................................................................................................................................................................(4(
Acknowledgement(....................................................................................................................................................................(5(
Prologue(........................................................................................................................................................................................(6(
PART!I%........................................................................................................................%10(
THE!FRAME%................................................................................................................%10(
1'6'This'Thesis:'Inspiration'and'Motivation'.................................................................................................'11(
2'6'Introduction'......................................................................................................................................................'12(
‘The(Natural(Order(of(Things’(...........................................................................................................................................(12(
The(Ambivalent(Character(of(Separated(Children(...................................................................................................(13(
“Illegal”(Children(....................................................................................................................................................................(14(
Research(Question(.................................................................................................................................................................(15(
Sub(Questions(....................................................................................................................................................................(15(
Chapter(Outline(.......................................................................................................................................................................(15(
The(Problem(of(Representation(and(Complexities(of(Children(and(“Illegality”(.........................................(16(
Separated(Children(..........................................................................................................................................................(16(
“Illegality”(............................................................................................................................................................................(18(
3'6'Methodological'Reflections'..........................................................................................................................'19(
Social(Constructionist(with(an(Interactive(Perspective(........................................................................................(19(
The(Construction(of(a(Child(Perspective(......................................................................................................................(20(
Ethnographic(Fieldwork(.....................................................................................................................................................(21(
Participant(observations(...............................................................................................................................................(23(
Ethnographic(Conversations(.......................................................................................................................................(24(
Interviews(............................................................................................................................................................................(25(
Choice(of(–(and(access(to(informants(............................................................................................................................(26(
Local(NGO(Representatives(..........................................................................................................................................(26(
Representatives(from(the(Hellenic(Police(Quarter(............................................................................................(27(
Separated(Afghan(children(in(Patras(and(Athens(...............................................................................................(27(
Negotiating(Positionality(and(Power(Structures(......................................................................................................(30(
Ethical(Considerations(in(the(Research(Process(......................................................................................................(31(
4'6'Theoretical'Perspectives'..............................................................................................................................'33(
The(Conceptual(Framework(of(Giorgio(Agamben(...................................................................................................(33(
BioZPolitics(..........................................................................................................................................................................(34(
The(State(of(Exception(....................................................................................................................................................(34(
Homo(Sacer(.........................................................................................................................................................................(35(
Internalizing(Migrant(“illegality”(....................................................................................................................................(36(
Somatic(Modes(of(Attention(and(Spaces(of(NonZexistence(.............................................................................(36(
Coping(Strategies(and(Resistance(...................................................................................................................................(38(
Structure(of(Analysis(............................................................................................................................................................(40(
PART!II%.......................................................................................................................%41(
! 7!
ANALYSIS%....................................................................................................................%41(
5'6'Configurations'of'Migrant'“Illegality”'in'Greece'...................................................................................'42(
From(sending(to(receiving(country(................................................................................................................................(42(
Integration(of(the(European(Migration(Policy(..........................................................................................................(44(
Current(Policies(......................................................................................................................................................................(44(
The(Public(Opinion(................................................................................................................................................................(46(
Concluding(Remarks(............................................................................................................................................................(47(
6''6'Life'in'the'`State'of'Exception´'....................................................................................................................'48(
No(Right(to(Have(Rights(......................................................................................................................................................(48(
Arriving(to(Greece(............................................................................................................................................................(49(
Leaving(the(‘System’(........................................................................................................................................................(50(
Outside(the(System(Z(Afghan(Hotels,(Parks(and(the(‘Office’(...........................................................................(51(
Hunger(and(Scarcity(........................................................................................................................................................(51(
Limited(Access(to(Public(Services(Z`You(have(to(be(almost(dying’(..............................................................(53(
Encountering(the(Police(......................................................................................................................................................(54(
‘No(one(takes(responsibility,(this(is(so(hard’(........................................................................................................(54(
‘Don’t(think(that(their(prisons(are(clean’(...............................................................................................................(56(
Racism(and(Xenophobia(......................................................................................................................................................(58(
‘There(are(so(many(fascists(in(this(country’(..........................................................................................................(58(
‘They(change(their(way(when(they(see(me’(...........................................................................................................(59(
Partial(Conclusion(..................................................................................................................................................................(60(
76'Internalizing'“illegality”'.................................................................................................................................'62(
Embodied(Experiences(of(“Illegality”(............................................................................................................................(62(
Bodily(Vigilance(and(Hiding(.........................................................................................................................................(62(
Camouflaged(“Illegality”((–(an(Attempt(to(look(Japanese(and(Korean(.......................................................(63(
Learning(to(become(“illegal”(........................................................................................................................................(64(
Experience(of(Spaces(and(Places(.....................................................................................................................................(65(
Host(Society(Space(...........................................................................................................................................................(65(
`Safe(Places´(in(the(host(society(space(................................................................................................................(66(
‘Inhabitable(Spaces(of(Welcome’(...............................................................................................................................(67(
Permeable(Homes(.......................................................................................................................................................(67(
“Illegality”(and(Cyberspace(.....................................................................................................................................(67(
Experience(of(Time(...............................................................................................................................................................(69(
‘We(are(Caught(Here’(–Life(on(Hold(..........................................................................................................................(69(
‘Everyday(is(the(Same’(–(Quotidian(Boredom,(Routines(and(Restlessness(.............................................(70(
8'–Negotiating'“Illegality”'–Coping'Strategies'and'Resistance'..............................................................'73(
The(Importance(of(Networks(............................................................................................................................................(74(
“Parallel(Institutions”(.....................................................................................................................................................(74(
Utility(Oriented(Friendships(–(‘Everyone(thinks(of(their(own(problems’(................................................(74(
Local(NGOs(and(Church(Organizations(...................................................................................................................(75(
Family(Relations(–(Support(and(Shame(..................................................................................................................(76(
Alcohol/Drugs,(Faith(and(Future(Dreams(...................................................................................................................(77(
‘Many(of(the(Migrants(here(Generally(Smoke(and(Drink(a(Lot’(....................................................................(78(
‘We(Have(to(Believe(in(God’(.........................................................................................................................................(78(
‘But(we(Have(Hope!’(........................................................................................................................................................(78(
! 8!
PART!III%.......................................................................................................................%81(
CONCLUSION%..............................................................................................................%81(
9'–'Conclusion'.........................................................................................................................................................'82(
10'–'Bibliography'..................................................................................................................................................'85(
APPENDIX%..................................................................%ERROR!!BOOKMARK!NOT!DEFINED.(
Appendix(A(–(Consent(Form(.................................................................................(Error!'Bookmark'not'defined.(
Appendix(B.1(–(Interview(Guide,(Separated(Afghan(Children(...............(Error!'Bookmark'not'defined.(
Appendix(B.(2(Z(Interview(guide,(NGO(Representatives(...........................(Error!'Bookmark'not'defined.(
Appendix(B.(3(–(Interview(guide,(the(Hellenic(Police(Representatives(................(Error!'Bookmark'not'
defined.(
Appendix(C(Z(Field(notes(........................................................................................(Error!'Bookmark'not'defined.(
Appendix(D.1(–(Reza(and(Amin(...........................................................................(Error!'Bookmark'not'defined.(
Appendix(D.2(–(NGO(Representative(1(............................................................(Error!'Bookmark'not'defined.(
Appendix(D.(5(–(Representatives(from(the(Hellenic(Police(Quarter(...(Error!'Bookmark'not'defined.(
Appendix(E(–(Babak’s(Song(‘Life(in(Ghorbat’(................................................(Error!'Bookmark'not'defined.(
!
'
'
'
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
! 9!
!
!
!
!
Part!I!
The!Frame!
%
%
%
! 10!
1'6'THIS'THESIS:'INSPIRATION'AND'
MOTIVATION'
Through!ethnographic!fieldwork!this!thesis!aims!at!exploring!the!everyday!life!experiences!of!
separated! migrant! children1!in! Greece! in! connection! to! the! broader! power! structures! that!
places!the!children!in!a!condition!of!migrant!“illegality”.!
During! my! studies! and! as! a! political! activist! I! have! been! engaged! with! migrant! issues! for!
several!years!d!both!in!Denmark!and!internationally.!However,!I!first!came!across!the!issue!of!
separated! children! in! Greece! in! 2012! during! a! six! months! internship! at! the! Danish! Refugee!
Council’s!Youth!Network,!DFUNK!(Dansk!Flygtningehjælps!Ungenetværk).!!
The! last! years! Greece! has! experienced! a! massive! number! of! migrants! entering! the! country,!
but!with!the!deep!financial!crisis!and!a!dysfunctional!asylum!system,!migrants!are!left!on!their!
own!with!no!rights,!no!shelter!and!no!protection!(Alogoskoufis!2012:2,!Human!Rights!Watch!
2012:! 32).! With! focus! on! this! precarious! situation! of! migrants! in! Greece,! DFUNK! initiated! a!
campaign! and! got! engaged! with! a! Greek! NGO! with! whom! a! partnership! was! established.!
Following! this! campaign! I! got! insight! into! the! complex! conditions! of! migrants! in! Greece.!
However,!with!all!this!new!information!about!the!situation!in!Greece!I!could!not!stop!thinking!
about!how!these!precarious!circumstances!are!experienced!from!a!child’s!point!of!view.!!
Full! of! curiosity! I! started! to! read! articles! on! the! issue.! The! field! of! migrants! in! Greece! had!
already! awoken! academic! attention,! but! scholarly! articles! would! almost! invariably! address!
other! issues! than! child! migration.! And! if! they! addressed! the! issue! of! child! migration! it! was!
never!through!the!children’s!point!of!view.!Several!questions!arose!from!reading!article!after!
article,! but! no! answer! was! given.! How! do! these! children! experience! life! and! cope! with! the!
situation!in!a!country!where!they!have!no!rights?!And!how!is!their!everyday!life?!The!wish!to!
find!answers!to!these!questions!and!many!more!has!led!me!to!choose!the!topic!of!separated!
children! in! Greece! for! my! master! thesis.! More! specifically,! I! focus! on! Afghans! who! are!
estimated!to!constitute!the!biggest!group!of!separated!children!in!Greece!(Mougne!2010:2).!!
In! order! to! get! an! insight! into! the! children’s! own! experiences! I! decided! to! go! to! Greece! to!
meet! them.! Knowing! the! Persian! language! would! allow! me! to! communicate! with! them!
directly!without!the!need!of!an!interpreter.!Thus,!empirical!data!was!collected!during!a!12!day!
field!trip!from!middJune!2013!to!the!beginning!of!July!2013.!In!this!period!I!stayed!mainly!in!
Athens! where! I! got! the! opportunity! to! interact! with! separated! Afghan! children! through!
participant! observations! as! well! as! ethnographic! conversations.! Also! in! the! city! Patras! I! got!
the!possibility!to!undertake!interviews!with!two!Afghan!boys.!Furthermore,!the!study!involves!
interviews!with!institutional!actors,!such!as!police!officials!and!NGO!staff.!!
(
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
1
!In!chapter!2!I!will!clarify!the!concept!of!’separated!children’.!!
! 11!
2'6'INTRODUCTION'
!
The$consul$banged$on$the$table$and$said:$$
“If$you’ve$got$no$passport$you’re$officially$dead”:$
But$we$are$still$alive,$my$dear,$we$are$still$alive.$
(Auden!1962:256!in!Malkki!1995:495)!
!
There! are! important! gaps! in! our! knowledge! about! separated! children.! Little! research! has!
explicitly!explored!the!impact!of!migrant!“illegality”!on!the!lives!and!experiences!of!separated!
children!from!the!children’s!own!perspectives!(Øien!2010).!Migration!studies!have!often!been!
criticised!for!having!an!adultdcentric!approach!to!migration!overlooking!the!active!roles!and!
perceptions! of! separated! children! resulting! in! only! partial! understandings! of! children’s!
migration!processes!and!experiences!(Øien!2010,!Wernesjö!2011,!White!et!al.!2011).!Thus,!it!
has! been! recommended! that! further! research! on! separated! children! should! strengthen! the!
focus! on! studies! that! take! a! child! perspective! in! order! to! obtain! a! more! throughout!
knowledge! of! children’s! migration! experience! and! what! effects! this! has! on! their! lives! (Øien!
2010,!Wernesjö!2011,!James!&!Prout!1990).!This!thesis!explores!these!experiences!and!their!
implications! within! the! context! of! Greece! from! a! child! perspective! approach.2!It! focuses! on!
children!who!are!on!the!“wrong”!side!of!the!border!–!the!“illegals”.!!
‘THE'NATURAL'ORDER'OF'THINGS’'
Borders! are! symbols! of! the! sovereignty! of! states.! Borders! define! how! the! world! looks,! not!
only! on! maps! where! each! nation! state! has! its! own! distinct! colour! to! clearly! designate!
difference,! but! also! as! a! reference! of! identity:! “Borders! shape! our! perception! of! the! world!
[and]! is! a! major! component! of! our! consciousness! of! the! world”! (Rumford! 2006:166! in!
Khosravi!2010a:!2).!Only!through!its!borders!a!nation!state!can!be!imagined!(Anderson,!1983:!
6).! Following! Malkki! (1995),! we! live! in! a! world! in! which! the! borders! of! nationdstates! have!
come! to! form! the! “natural! order! of! things”! (Malkki! 1995:5).! By! naturalizing! borders,!
displacement! or! “uprootedness”! becomes! the! unnatural.! With! the! natural! order! of! things!
taken! for! granted,! the! undocumented! migrants! are! being! depicted! as! polluted! and! even! a!
dangerous!threat!that!brings!the!constructed!nation!state!into!crisis!(Malkki!1995:5).!!
!
This! encounter! between! the! sovereign! state! and! the! undocumented! migrant! can! be!
characterised! as! an! encounter! between! the! politicized! human! being! –a! citizen! of! the! state!
made! sense! of! in! terms! of! the! nationdstate! and! the! politically! unidentifiable! ‘outcast’!
(Bauman!2004),!a!‘no!longer!humandbeing’!(Schütz!2000:121)!that!cannot!be!made!sense!of!
in!terms!of!the!nationdstate.!The!undocumented!migrants,!the!“polluted!bodies”!are!excluded!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2
!In!chapter!3!I!will!elaborate!on!the!child!perspective!approach!and!clarify!how!I!intend!to!apply!it!in!
the!thesis.!!!
! 12!
and! become! the! remainder! of! humanity,! leading! wasted! lives! (Rajaram! and! GrundydWarr!
2004:!35).!These!wasted!lives!that!are!the!detritus!of!the!nationdstate!system!are!the!‘homo!
sacer’! of! the! present.! The! political! philosopher,! Giorgio! Agamben! (1998)! borrows! the! term!
‘homo!sacer’!from!ancient!Roman!law!in!order!to!describe!life!stripped!of!political!existence!
without! citizen! rights! –! a! condition! he! describes! as! ‘bare! life’.! According! to! Roman! law,! the!
‘homo! sacer’$ could! be! killed! with! impunity! (Agamben! 1998:8).! Agamben! believes! that! the!
system!of!the!nation!state!functions!through!biopolitics!in!which!a!distinction!between!bare!
(depoliticized)!life$and!political!life$takes!place.$Different!from!the!citizen!leading!a!politicized!
life!the!homo$sacer$is!a!completely!depoliticized!body!(Rajaram!and!GrundydWarr!2004:!38).$$!
Crossing!the!borders!“illegally”!the!‘homo!sacer’!in!the!shape!of!the!undocumented!migrant!is!
seen!to!make!a!criminal!act!towards!the!sovereign!nation!state.!As!a!response,!the!borders!
are!governed!by!criminalization!in!order!to!protect!its!citizens!from!the!‘polluted!body’!of!the!
undocumented!migrant!(Khosravi!2010a:!3).!!
!
With! its! geographical! position! bordering! Turkey,! Greece! has! become! a! major! gateway! for!
undocumented!migrants.!Especially!since!the!early!2000s,!Greece!has!found!itself!on!various!
migratory!routes,!receiving!an!increasing!number!of!migrants!from!the!Middle!East,!Asia!and!
Africa! (Karyotis! 2012:394)! According! to! Greek! authorities,! more! than! 80! percent! of!
undocumented!migrants!in!EU!enter!through!Greece!(Kakissis!2011).!As!in!other!countries!in!
the! EU,! the! increased! migration! to! Greece! goes! hand! in! hand! with! an! increased! focus! on!
migrants! as! a! security! problem! (ibid).! Therefore,! with! the! help! of! the! EU,! Greece! has!
attempted!to!keep!out!undocumented!migrants!that!try!to!make!their!way!to!or!through!the!
country! by! implementing! harsher! border! controls! (ibid).! However,! the! security! measures!
taken! have! not! been! able! to! stop! migration.! As! Khosravi! puts! it:! “where! there! is! borders,!
there!is!also!border!crossing,!legal!as!well!as!illegal”!(Khosravi!2010a:!4).!!
THE'AMBIVALENT'CHARACTER'OF'SEPARATED'CHILDREN'
According! to! the! 1951! Geneva! Convention! and! the! Universal! Human! Rights! Declaration,!
everyone! who! flees! persecution! has! the! right! to! seek! and! enjoy! asylum! in! other! countries!
(Nyers!2006:!44d45).!Nevertheless,!the!economic!crisis!that!Greece!has!been!facing!since!2008!
(Alogoskoufis! 2012:! 2)! has! led! to! a! breakdown! in! the! Greek! asylum! system! with! the! lowest!
refugee! recognition! in! Europe! being! less! than! 1! per! cent! in! 2011! (Human! Rights! Watch!
2012:32).!The!central!Police!Headquarters!in!Athens!accepted!in!2012!only!between!20!to!30!
asylum!applications!per!week!(ibid).!According!to!2012!estimates!from!the!Greek!authorities,!
this!has!left!as!many!as!one!million!migrants!undocumented!(Ibid:!31).!Not!having!any!legal!
documents! they! are! perceived! as! “illegals”! and! thereby! stripped! of! any! kinds! of! rights! or!
protection!from!the!state.!Many!of!them!live!in!poverty,!occupying!abandoned!buildings,!stay!
in! parks! and! even! forests! in! constant! fear! of! detention! and! deportation! (ibid:! 32).! Among!
these,!and!with!increasing!occurrence,!are!to!be!found!separated!children!of!whom!Afghans!
are! estimated! to! constitute! the! biggest! group! (Mougne! 2010:2).! Similar! to! adult!
undocumented!migrants!in!Greece,!the!separated!children!are!exposed!to!lack!of!rights!and!
protection.!They!further!fail!systematically!to!be!received!in!the!spirit!of!the!Convention!on!
! 13!
the! Rights! of! the! Child! (CRC),! which! the! Greek! state! ratified! in! 1997! (Human! Rights! Watch!
2013a:!20).!!
!
This!profound!contradiction!of!policies!about!separated!children!is!evident.!On!the!one!hand!
the!Greek!state!is!committed!to!endorsing!children’s!rights!and!social!inclusion!by!agreeing!on!
a! set! of! legal! norms! without! any! kind! of! discrimination! regardless! of! the! child’s! nationality,!
immigration! status! or! statelessness.! On! the! other! hand,! Greece! is! approaching! the! children!
with!restrictive!policies,!border!controls,!welfare!restrictions!and!in!some!cases!detention!of!
the!children!(Dimitropoulou!and!Papageorgiou!2008,!Human!Rights!Watch!2008)!These!two!
opposite!logics;!children’s!rights!on!the!one!hand!and!the!restrictive!immigration!policies!and!
deviance! on! the! other! produce! their! deeply! ambivalent! character! (Vitus! &! Lidén! 2009:63,!
Bhabha!2011:196,!Boyden!and!Hart!2007:!242).!!
!
While! acknowledging! the! particularities! of! the! situation! for! separated! children! in! Greece,!
there! is! no! intention! to! suggest! that! Greece! is! the! only! country! that! presents! such!
contradiction.! On! the! contrary,! in! spite! of! the! specific! political,! economic! and! geographical!
challenges! that! Greece! is! facing,! there! are! similar! situations! in! other! countries! as! well! (i.a.!
Vitus!&!Lidén!2009,!Bhabha!2011,!Watters!2008).!!
“ILLEGAL”'CHILDREN'
Hannah!Arendt!was!the!first!to!highlight!the!contradiction!between!human!rights!declarations!
and!state’s!sovereign!claims!to!control!their!borders.!According!to!Arendt,!the!fundamental!
problem!with!conventions!is!that!they!depend!solely!on!the!nation!state!system,!which!means!
that!they!can!only!be!applied!to!citizens!(Arendt!1967:267).!Although!legality,!in!itself,!is!not!a!
guarantee! of! protection! and! security,! being! politically! constructed! as! “illegal”! means!
exclusion!from!the!contract!linking!citizens!to!the!state!and!thereby!from!fundamental!rights!
and! social! protection.! According! to! Sarah! Willen! (2007),! not! only! formal! exclusion! from! for!
example! health! care! and! social! services,! but! also! informal! exclusion,! for! instance! police!
protection,! is! involved! (Willen! 2005:66).! Thus,! being! constructed! as! “illegal”! the! Afghan!
children!are!expelled!from!entitlements!that!are!defined!both!in!the!language!of!the!Universal!
Human! Rights! and! the! CRC.! How! does! this! configuration! of! migrant! “illegality”! affect! and!
shape! the! Afghan! children’s! everyday! lives! in! Greece?! What! possibilities! do! they! have! to!
create!a!livelihood!in!a!state!that!offers!them!no!rights?!And!how!do!they!resist!and!cope!with!
the!situation?!These!are!among!the!questions!that!have!guided!this!research.!
!
In! her! ethnographic! study! with! undocumented! migrants! in! Israel,! Willen! (2007)! argues! that!
“illegality”!is!also!a!sociodpolitical!condition,!which,!just!like!citizenship,!is!not!a!mere!juridical!
status,!but!also!includes!a!social!condition!that!frames!and!confines!relation!with!citizens!of!
the!host!country!and!other!migrants.!In!addition!to!these!two!dimensions!(the!juridical!status!
and!the!sociodpolitical!condition)!Willen!adds!a!third!dimension;!that!illegality!also!influences!
how! migrants! think! about! and! perceive! their! bodies! as! well! as! time! and! space! –! not! only!
including!how!the!migrants!are!being!defined!as!“illegals”,!but!also!“made!to!feel”!like!“the!
outcast”,!“the!Others”!and!“criminals”!(Willen!2005:66d67).!In!seeking!to!understand!how!the!
! 14!
Afghan! children! experience! migrant! “illegality”! in! Greece! this! study! will! build! on! Willen’s!
three!dimensions!!–!the!juridical!status,!the!sociodpolitical!condition!and!the!modes!of!being!
in!the!world,!but!adds!a!fourth!dimension!connected!to!‘everyday!forms!of!resistance’!(Scott!
1985).! Although! I! wish! to! apply! Agamben’s! theories! as! a! framework! for! understanding! the!
plight!of!the!Afghan!children!the!focus!on!everyday!resistance!should!draw!our!attention!to!
the! agency! of! the! children,! as! they! are! not! passive! receptacles! of! control! that! determines!
their!status!and!position.!Rather!they!act!and!have!the!ability!to!resist.!!
Using!a!social!constructionist!approach!with!an!interactionist!perspective!my!aim!is!not!to!get!
‘under!the!skin’!of!the!children!and!unravel!their!lifedworlds.!Rather!I!acknowledge!that!the!
research! is! an! outcome! of! the! interaction! between! the! children! and! me! as! the! researcher.!
Thus,!drawing!on!ethnographic!research!conducted!in!Greece!I!seek!to!understand!how!the!
Afghan!separated!children!experience!migrant!“illegality”.!This,!in!order!to!understand!some!
of! the! reactions! of! the! children! I! met! during! my! fieldwork.! More! precisely,! my! aim! is! to!
answer!the!following!research!question:!!
RESEARCH'QUESTION'
!
How*is*the*configuration*of*migrant*“illegality”*experienced*in*the*daily*life*of*separated*
Afghan*children*in*Greece?*
'
SUB'QUESTIONS''
To!be!able!to!answer!the!research!question!I!have!formulated!the!following!sub!questions:!!
1. How$is$migrant$“illegality”$configured$in$Greece?$
2. How$does$the$condition$of$“illegality”$shape$and$affect$the$children’s$everyday$life?$
3. How$do$the$children$embody$migrant$“illegality”$and$how$does$it$affect$their$subjective$
experiences$of$time$and$space?$
4. How$do$the$children$cope$with3$and$resist$“illegality”?$
CHAPTER'OUTLINE'
This!thesis!is!divided!into!three!parts.!Apart!from!the!introduction!and!research!questions,!
Part% I!contains!a!section!on!clarification!of!terminology.!In!chapter% 3!I!begin!by!presenting!
my!socialdconstructionist!approach!with!an!interactionist!perspective!together!with!the!child!
perspective!approach.!Then!I!proceed!to!introduce!the!ethnographic!methods!that!I!applied!
throughout! the! research.! Finally! I! focus! on! positionality,! power! relations! and! ethical!
considerations!in!doing!fieldwork!among!children.!
! 15!
In! chapter% 4! I! outline! the! theoretical! perspectives! against! which! the! empirical! data! will! be!
analysed.!First!I!introduce!theoretical!concepts!of!Giorgio!Agamben,!which!will!be!applied!as!
the!framework!in!analysing!how!the!condition!of!“illegality”!affects!the!children’s!everyday!
life.!Thereafter!I!present!theoretical!perspectives!able!to!grasp!how!the!children!internalize!
“illegality”.! These! include! ethnographic! findings! of! Sarah! Willen! (2007)! and! Susan! Coutin!
(2000,! 2003).! The! final! section! presents! James! Scott’s! (1985)! ‘weapons! of! the! weak’! as!
‘everyday! forms! of! resistance’! as! well! as! theoretical! perspectives! that! will! be! applied! in!
order!to!analyse!how!the!children!cope!withd!and!resist!the!condition!of!“illegality”.!Finally!in!
the!last!section!of!chapter!4!I!show!how!theory!and!methodology!will!be!set!in!action!in!the!
analysis.!!
Part%II!comprises!the!analysis!and!it!is!divided!into!four!chapters.!In!chapter%5!I!present!the!
Greek!context!and!show!how!migrant!“illegality”!has!been!constructed!in!Greece.!With!this!
context!in!mind,!I!draw!on!my!ethnographical!fieldwork!among!the!children!in!chapter!6,!7!
and! 8.! In! chapter% 6! I! analyse! how! “illegality”! shape! and! affect! the! children’s! daily! life.! In!
chapter% 7! I! will! take! a! step! further! and! examine! how! the! children! embody! “illegality”! and!
how!it!affects!their!subjective!experiences!of!time!and!space.!The!last!part!of!the!analysis,!
chapter%8,!provides!an!analysis!of!how!the!children!cope!withd!and!resist!“illegality”.!Finally!
in!Part%III!I!sum!up!my!conclusions!and!ask!what!this!thesis!contributes!with.!!
THE'PROBLEM'OF'REPRESENTATION'AND'COMPLEXITIES'OF'
CHILDREN'AND'“ILLEGALITY”'
Terminology! and! representation! are! not! only! part! of! a! methodology,! but! also! comprise! an!
epistemological!problem!with!political!end!ethical!consequences!(Khosravi!2010b:96).!!
How! people! are! labelled! can! have! serious! consequences! because! it! is! how! people! are!
represented,!they!are!treated.!Especially!terms!concerning!the!legal!status!of!a!person!have!
political! consequences,! meaning! that! the! term! applied! in! order! to! refer! to! undocumented!
separated!children!will!expose!a!political!stance!on!the!issue!(De!Genova!2002:!423,!Khosravi!
2010b:!96).!Thus,!before!preceding!any!further,!a!clarification!of!terminologies!is!in!order.!
SEPARATED'CHILDREN'
The!categories!used!to!describe!children!who!migrate!alone!without!their!parents!are!many.!
As! we! have! already! seen! on! the! previous! pages,! I! use! the! term! ‘separated! children’! to!
describe! the! Afghan! children! in! focus! preferable! to! ‘unaccompanied! minors’! as! it! better!
captures!the!complexity!of!child!migration!experiences.!In!the!Separated!Children!in!Europe!
Programme!(SCEP)!the!term!‘separated!children’!refers!to!individuals!who!are:!!
“under$18$years$of$age,$outside$their$country$of$origin$and$separated$from$both$parents,$or$
their$previous$legal,$or$customary$primary$caregiver”!(SCEP!2009:3).!!
In!contrast!to!‘unaccompanied!minors’!this!term!offers!a!more!nuanced!definition.!First!of!all!
it!suggests!that!children!may!be!‘accompanied’!by!adult(s)!when!they!arrive!in!Europe,!but!
that!the!adult(s)!may!not!be!the!parent!or!the!primary!caregiver!suitable!for!their!protection!
(Ibid:!4).!Many!of!the!Afghans!whom!I!met!in!Greece!had!migrated!with!adults!that!they!did!
! 16!
not! know! beforehand! and! who! were! not! responsible! for! their! care.! Others! had! travelled!
with!their!parents,!but!had!been!left!behind!and!had!to!wait!in!Greece!for!the!parent(s)!and!
younger!siblings!who!had!gone!to!other!European!countries!in!which!they!applied!for!asylum!
and!expected!reunification!with!their!child!left!in!Greece!(app.!C).!Second,!the!term!includes!
not! only! children! who! apply! for! asylum,! but! also! children! who! may! not! apply! for! asylum!
(SCEP!2009:5).!In!Greece,!many!of!the!separated!children!have!either!not!applied!for!asylum!
as!they!may!be!in!transit,!passing!through!Greece!en!route!to!another!European!country!or!
they!have!applied,!but!are!not!treated!accordingly!and!are!left!on!their!own.!In!either!case!
they!are!left!without!rights,!exposed!to!detention!and!other!risks!(app.!D.4).!!
Although! much! of! the! recent! literature! and! policy! work! on! child! migration! is! starting! to!
reflect!on!the!terminology,!the!term!‘unaccompanied!minors’!is!still!applied!officially!in!the!
EU!and!European!governments!(Furia!2012:3).!Also!in!article!20.1!in!the!Convention!on!the!
Rights!of!the!Child!(CRC)!the!term!“unaccompanied!minors”!is!used!and!described!as:!!
“A$ child$ temporarily$ or$ permanently$ deprived$ of$ his$ or$ her$ family$ environment,$ or$ in$ whose$
own$ best$ interests$ cannot$ be$ allowed$ to$ remain$ in$ that$ environment,$ shall$ be$ entitled$ to$
special$protection$and$assistance$provided$by$the$State”!(UNHR:!2012).!!
This!definition!indicates!an!idea!about!childhood!as!a!phase!free!from!political!blemish.!One!
would!therefore!think!that!the!children!would!be!treated!the!same!everywhere.!However,!
when! we! look! at! how! they! are! treated! in! Greece! –and! other! European! countries! for! that!
matter! things! look! different.! Often! the! term! ‘unaccompanied! minors’! is! used! in! political!
arguments! in! ways! that! undermine! the! very! rights! of! the! children.! In! her! research! on!
separated!children!in!the!UK!and!Italy,!Furia!(2012)!gives!an!example!of!how!children’s!rights!
are! often! being! overlooked! in! policy! measures! concerning! migrant! children.! Instead! of!
leaning!on!the!Convention!on!the!Rights!of!the!Child,!the!policies!are!highly!informed!by!a!
criminalising! discourse,! as! the! focus! is! very! often! on! child! migration! as! an! outcome! of!
trafficking! and! is! therefore! treated! as! a! criminal! justice! issue,! which! excludes! the! children!
from!their!very!basic!rights!(Furia!2012:4).!
However,! I! understand! that! applying! the! term! ‘separated! children’! also! has! several!
implications.!First!of!all,!referring!to!the!subjects!in!focus!as!being!‘separated’!I!risk!inscribing!
myself! into! the! discourse! of! ‘the! national! order! of! things’! in! which! the! takendfordgrantedd
way!of!thinking!about!identity!implies!that!we!belong$to!or!are!rooted$in!a!particular!place!as!
a!‘homeland’!or!a!‘nation’!(Malkki!1992:!24d25).!To!become!uprooted$“outside!their!country!
of! origin! and! separated! from! both! parents”! (cf.! the! definition! of! separated! children,! SCEP!
2009:3)!the!subjects!in!focus!thus!become!the!“unnatural”.!!
This! leads! me! to! the! next! implication! relating! to! the! term! separated! children.! Apart! from!
separated,!I!refer!to!the!subjects!as!children.!But!what!exactly!is!a!child?!According!to!SCEP!a!
child! is! someone! who! is! under! the! age! of! 18! (SCEP! 2009:! 3).! The! same! goes! for! CRC’s!
definition!of!a!child!(UNHCR!2012)!and!most!other!western!perceptions!of!childhood.!Being!a!
child!is!thus,!to!quote!Watters!(2008)!“an!ascribed$identity!temporarily!defined!as!relating!to!
the!age!0d17!years!based!on!Western!conceptions!of!childhood”!(Watters!2008:!7).!As!such,!it!
is!based!on!a!universalised!Western!notion!of!the!child!although!the!definition!may!be!quite!
different!in!the!children’s!country!of!origin!(ibid).!!
! 17!
Is! it! then! appropriate! that! I! employ! the! term! ‘separated! children’?! Labelling! is! indeed!
inevitable!for!humans!in!general!and!also!for!scientific!abstraction!in!particular,!but!no!matter!
how!I!label!the!subjects!in!focus!there!is!always!a!risk!that!I!will!redproduce!unequal!power!
relations.! Nevertheless,! I! want! to! emphasize! that! I! see! ‘separated! children’! as! a! highly!
dynamic!and!heterogeneous!group!of!people!consisting!of!competent,!active!beings.!!
“ILLEGALITY”'
When! referring! to! the! legal! status! of! the! separated! children! I! join! De! Genova! (2002)! in! not!
applying!the!term!illegal!for!two!reasons.!First,!using!the!term!includes!a!risk!supporting!the!
naturalization! of! the! category! established! by! the! discursive! power! of! the! authorities! and!
immigration! law.! Second,! it! contributes! to! the! notion! of! migration! as! a! criminal! act! (De!
Genova! 2002:! 420,! Khosravi! 2010b:! 96).! Instead,! whenever! the! term! “illegality”! or! “illegal”!
appear!I!will!use!quotes.!Doing!this,!I!echo!the!contention!of!De!Genova!in!arguing!that!this!
strategy!allows!the!researcher!to!problematize!the!naturalization!of!these!categories!(ibid).!!
According!to!De!Genova!“illegality”!is!“(much!like!citizenship)!a!juridical!status!that!entails!a!
social!relation!to!the!state;!as!such!migrant!‘illegality’!is!a!predeminently!political!identity”!(De!
Genova! 2002:! 422).! This! means! that! both! theoretically! and! practically! “illegality”! is! a! social!
relation,! which! is! fundamentally! not! possible! to! study! separate! from! citizenship.! Therefore,!
De! Genova! argues,! to! study! undocumented! migrants! as! an! epistemological! object! as! an!
isolated!entity!the!researcher!might!unwillingly!reproduce!the!everyday!production!of!those!
migrants’! “illegality”! –thereby! contributing! to! the! discursive! power! of! immigration! law! (De!
Genova! 2002:! 423).! In! order! to! avoid! this! pitfall! and! sustain! what! Coutin! (1993)! calls!
“alienation”!that!is!the!act!through!which!someone!is!being!defined!as!“illegal!aliens”,!I!will!
follow! her! suggestion! to! research! on! “illegality”! as! a! sociodpolitical! condition! rather! than!
researching! on! separated! Afghan! children! as! “illegal! aliens”! (Coutin! 1993:! 89,! De! Genova!
2002:!423).!To!elaborate!a!critical!perspective,!which!does!not!support!the!naturalization!of!
“illegality”!I!intend!to!examine!the!historical!genesis!of!the!contemporary!Greek!“economy!of!
‘illegality’”!(De!Genova!2002:!428),!thereby!producing!migrant!“illegality”!as!an!ethnographic!
object! that! can! help! me! to! take! a! critical! approach! to! the! Greek! nationdstate! and! its!
immigration! policies! and! be! able! to! analyse! how! it! is! experienced! by! the! separated! Afghan!
children.!!
!
(
(
(
(
(
! 18!
3'6'METHODOLOGICAL'REFLECTIONS'
In! this! chapter! I! will! begin! by! introducing! my! socialdconstructionist! approach! with! an!
interactionist!perspective!together!with!the!child!perspective!approach.!
These! will! be! referred! to! throughout! the! next! section! in! which! I! present! the! ethnographic!
methods!of!the!research,!in!order!to!ensure!concordance!between!research!approach!and!
methods!applied.!!!
Eventually! I! will! discuss! positionalities! and! power! structures! and! account! for! ethical!
considerations!in!my!research.!!
SOCIAL'CONSTRUCTIONIST'WITH'AN'INTERACTIVE'PERSPECTIVE''
Inspired! by! the! two! sociologists! Nanna! MikdMeyer! and! Margaretha! Järvinen’s! anthology!
Kvalitative$ Metoder$ i$ et$ Interaktionistisk$ Perspektiv$ (2005)! [Qualitative! methods! in! an!
interactionist!perspective]!my!scientific!approach!is!social!constructionist!with!an!interactive!
perspective.!!
MikdMeyer! and! Järvinen! (2005:7)! wish! to! explore! the! methodological! consequences! of!
constructionism.! They! argue! that! in! absolute! terms! it! is! not! possible! to! distinguish!
constructionism! from! phenomenology! and! hermeneutics,! but! that! the! key! distinction! is! to!
be!found!in!the!perception!of!the!analytical!object.!The!phenomenological!and!hermeneutic!
traditions! see! the! analytical! object! to! be! “a! more! or! less! stable! entity”! and! assume! the!
possibility!to!get!‘under!the!skin’!of!the!analytical!object!as!a!natural!aim!of!the!researcher!
(MikdMeyer! and! Järvinen! 2005:9d10,! my! translation). 3 !Following! the! constructionist!
approach! I! will,! in! contrast! to! phenomenology! and! hermeneutics,! perceive! the! analytical!
object! as! “a! fluent,! unstable! and! ambiguous! phenomena,! which! is! shaped! in! the! meeting!
with! the! researcher”! (MikdMeyer! and! Järvinen! 2005:9).! It! is! in! this! sense! that! the! term!
‘interactionism’! should! be! understood.! Thus,! meaning! is! not! an! independent! entity,! which!
the!researcher!should!identify!(ibid).!!
With! inspiration! from! Meads! and! the! Chicago! School,! MikdMeyer! and! Järvinen! argue! that!
“meaning! is! a! relational! phenomenon,! which! can! only! be! determined! situationally! with!
involvement! of! the! context”! as! the! individual’s! ‘self’! is! created! through! social! interaction!
between! people! or! between! people! and! objects! (MikdMeyer! and! Järvinen! 2005:10d11).!
Meaning! is! thus,! according! to! the! Chicago! School,! produced! through! concrete! social!
interaction!(Ibid).!!
I! approach! the! analytical! object! in! accordance! with! the! constructionist! tradition! and!
methodologically! I! position! myself! as! an! interactionist.! My! research! is! not! an! attempt! to!
“uncover”! a! more! or! less! stable! lifedworld! of! my! informants,! but! rather! I! study! the!
production! of! meaning! through! which! my! informants! understand! the! world! and! how! they!
interact! in! the! world! around! them.! As! MikdMeyer! and! Järvinen! point! out:! “It! is! (…)! about!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
3
!Throughout!the!thesis,!translation!from!both!Danish!and!Farsi!are!my!translations.!!
! 19!
researching!how!networks!or!societal!discourses!materialized!in!subjects!and!things,!and!set!
the!frame!for!peoples’!actions”!(MikdMeyer!and!Järvinen!2005:14).!!
Another! element! that! has! a! great! influence! on! the! outcome! is! the! theoretical! pred
understandings!and!certain!assumptions!that!we!carry!with!us!when!entering!the!empirical!
field.!In!opposition!to!the!phenomenological!approach,!which!states!that!the!researcher!can!
approach! the! research! object! free! of! any! theoretical! reference! frame! (MikdMeyer! and!
Järvinen!2005:13),!I!entered!the!field!with!several!theoretical!predunderstandings!that!I!have!
gotten! throughout! my! studies! on! migration.! I! did! not,! however,! fully! decide! on! certain!
theories!on!beforehand,!but!was!highly!inspired!by!readings!of!Arendt!and!Agamben.!This!of!
course,!affected!the!outcome!of!my!fieldwork.!These!two!theorists!have!a!very!critical!view!
on!the!role!of!the!sovereign!state!in!relation!to!migrants,!which!I!relate!to.!The!outcome!of!
my!study!shows!this!critical!standpoint.!Furthermore,!in!an!interactionist!view,!my!empirical!
material! is! an! outcome! of! the! interaction! between! the! informants! and! the! researcher,!
myself.! In! the! meeting! between! the! informant! and! the! researcher! different! preconditions,!
positions!and!interests!influence!the!outcome!(MikdMeyer!and!Järvinen!2005:!29).!!
I! carried! with! me! certain! assumptions! and! prejudices! about! the! field! and! the! people! I!
studied,!both!due!to!my!background,!culture!and!environment,!but!also!due!to!my!role!as!an!
activist.!The!influence!of!those!facts!should!also!not!be!denied.!I!will!elaborate!on!that!point!
on! page! 30! where! I! discuss! my! own! role! as! a! researcher! and! an! activist! as! well! as! the!
different!positions!and!interests!that!influenced!the!research.!!!
For!now,!I!will!shortly!present!the!child!perspective!approach,!which!has!been!applied!both!
during!my!fieldwork,!but!also!in!the!writings!of!the!thesis.!!
THE'CONSTRUCTION'OF'A'CHILD'PERSPECTIVE'
As! mentioned! in! the! introduction,! I! will! apply! a! child! perspective! approach! in! my! focus! on!
the!separated!Afghan!children.!My!wish!to!bring!a!child!perspective!is!motivated!by!the!fact!
that! children's! position! in! the! social! order! implies! that! their! perspectives! and! experiences!
have!normally!been!devaluated!both!in!research!and!everyday!life!(Warming!in!MikdMeyer!
and! Järvinen! 2005:150).! I! also! wish! to! challenge! the! adultdcentric! approach! to! migration,!
which!have!often!been!criticized!for!overlooking!the!active!roles!and!experiences!by!migrant!
children.!!
In! contrast! to! the! traditional! idea! that! children’s! perspectives! and! experiences! should! be!
seen!as!invalid,!a!new!paradigm!has,!since!the!midd1990’s,!gained!a!footing!in!child!research!
(Greene! and! Hogan! 2005:3,! Gulløv! and! Højlund! 2003:! 57).! ! This! paradigm! is! called! “a! new!
paradigm!of!childhood”!and!emphasizes!that!“children's!knowledge!is!valid!in!its!own!right,!
that!children!should!be!seen!as!social!actors!and!competent!interpreters!of!their!own!lives!
[and]!that!childhood!must!be!studied!as!a!social!construction,!which!is!cultural!and!historical!
variable”!(Gulløv!and!Højlund!2003:!57).!!
Applying! this! approach! I! allow! the! separated! Afghan! children! to! be! seen! as! competent,!
active!beings!and!important!players!in!the!politics!of!social!change!in!the!world!they!inhabit.!
! 20!
However,! being! loyal! to! the! constructionist! approach! I! find! it! crucial! to! emphasize! that! I!
relate! critically! to! a! conceptualization! of! the! child! perspective! as! something! essential.!
Children’s!perspectives!are!fluent!and!performative!and!not!essential!and!fixed.!!
In! their! book! Feltarbejde$ blandt$ børn$ –$ Metodologi$ og$ etik$ I$ etnografisk$ børneforskning$
(2003)![Fieldwork!among!children!–!methodology!and!ethics!in!ethnographic!child!research]!
Eva! Gulløv! and! Susanne! Højlund! question! the! concept! of! a! child! perspective.! The! child!
perspective,! they! argue,! should! not! be! seen! as! an! empirical! entity,! which! emerges! by!
studying! children’s! actions! and! statements! alone.! Rather! it! should! be! understood! as! the!
product! of! the! research! process! created! in! the! interaction! between! theory! and! empirical!
data!(Gulløv!and!Højlund!2003:28d29).!!
In!line!with!the!constructionist!approach,!I!do!not!intend!to!give!an!unmediated!picture!of!
the!children’s!perceptions!and!everyday!life.!To!think!that!I!would!be!able!to!identify!myself!
with! the! children! would! to! me! be! an! absurd! ambition.! Rather! I! aim! at! giving! a! “researchd
made! representation! whose! scientific! merit! lies! in! loyalty! to! the! coexisted! perceptions!
encountered,!and!the!systematic!reflection!on!data!and!concepts”!(Gulløv!and!Højlund!2003:!
29).!!
Finally,!it!is!important!to!mention!that!the!emphasis!on!the!children’s!agency!does!not!mean!
that!I!deny!their!vulnerablility!and!the!impact!of!the!hostile!conditions!in!which!the!children!
exist.! Rather! I! wish! to! encourage! attention! to! be! directed! at! the! ways! in! which! these!
conditions!are!interpreted!and!experienced.!!!
With!these!reflections!in!mind,!I!will!now!turn!to!the!next!section!of!this!chapter,!in!which!I!
present!my!ethnographic!methods.!!
ETHNOGRAPHIC'FIELDWORK''
In! his! book! Being$ Ethnographic$ (2010)! the! Australian! anthropologist! Raymond! Madden!
defines! ethnography! as! “writing! about! people”! or! more! specific:! “writing! about! particular!
groups! of! people”! (Madden! 2010:16).! In! ethnographic! research! the! researcher! should! be!
immersed!in!the!same!social!setting!(commonly!referred!to!as!“the!field”)!as!the!members!of!
that! setting! and! build! relations! to! the! members! in! order! to! get! an! understanding! of! the!
study!object!(ibid,!Bryman!2004:293).!!!
In!order!to!understand!how!separated!Afghan!children!in!Greece!experience!their!everyday!
life! in! “illegality”! I! follow! De! Genova’s! call! for! ethnographic! research! of! the! daily! life! of!
undocumented! migrants! as! the! best! way! of! getting! insight! into! migrants! experiences! of!
being!“illegalized”!(De!Genova!2002:426).!!!
Ethnographic! fieldwork! is! also! regarded! by! the! “new! paradigm! of! childhood”! as! a! key!
approach! when! studying! children.! Through! research! that! engages! ethnographic! fieldwork!
the! researcher! acknowledge! children! as! active,! competent! beings! (Gulløv! and! Højlund!
2003:57,!Greene!and!Hogan!2005:124).!At!the!same!time,!ethnography!is!seen!as!one!of!the!
most! challenging! approaches! to! the! study! of! children.! In! line! with! the! interactionist!
perspective,!it!requires!the!researcher!to!reflect!both!on!the!use!of!self$within!the!field!and!
! 21!
her!(adultdcentric)!predunderstandings!(Greene!and!Hogan!2005:124).!This,!I!will!come!back!
to!later!on!in!this!chapter.!!
Inspired! by! the! Chicago! School,! the! interactionist! approach! sees! a! broad! spectrum! of!
qualitative!methods!and!materials!as!desirable!(MikdMeyer!and!Järvinen!2005:11)!The!same!
is! in! evidence! in! the! child! perspective! approach! in! which! the! researcher! must! be! open! to!
different! methods! that! are! suited! to! children’s! level! of! understanding,! interests! and!
knowledge!(Greene!and!Hogan!2005:8,!Gulløv!and!Højlund!2003:19)!Thus,!this!research!will!
comprise! a! triangulation! of! ethnographic! methods! in! order! to! gain! a! “thick! description”!
(Geertz!1973)!enabling!a!deeper!insight!into!the!children’s!experiences!of!being!“illegalized”.!
The! primary! source! of! empirical! data! collected! during! my! stay! in! Greece! is! through!
participant! observations,! ethnographic! conversations! and! interviews! with! the! children.!
These! are! supported! by! semidstructured! interviews! with! other! relevant! actors! in! the! field,!
such!as!NGO!staff!and!representatives!from!the!Hellenic!Police!Headquarter.!!
Talking! about! the! ethnographic$ field$ in! which! the! researcher! choses! to! gather! data! it! is!
important! to! state! that! there! is! no! predexisting! field! waiting! to! be! discovered! (Maddens!
2010:38d39).!Gupta!and!Ferguson!sees!the!field!as!a!social!construction!(Gupta!and!Ferguson!
1997:35)!whereas!Maddens!sees!it!both!as!a!mix!of!a!social!construction!and!a!geographic!or!
social!space:!“An!ethnographic!field!is!not!equivalent!to!a!simple!geographic!or!social!space,!
nor! is! it! a! mental! construct! of! the! ethnographer,! but! it! requires! both! these! elements”!
(Maddens!2010:54)!!
As! for! my! research,! my! intention! was! to! make! an! urban! ethnography! (Empez! 2009)! in!
Athens,!to!meet!the!children!in!public!spaces,!thereby!making!the!city!my!field.!Many!of!the!
children!decide!not!to!go!to!reception!centers!for!children,!or!in!case!that!they!have!been!
there!many!have!chosen!to!run!away.!This,!due!to!several!reasons,!as!for!example!the!bad!
conditions!in!the!centers,!boredom!or!simply!for!the!reason!that!they!find!it!meaningless!to!
stay!there,!not!being!able!to!move!on,! as!Babak,!one!of!my!informants!explained:!“All$the$
people$that$I$know$are$here$in$Athens.$I$wanted$to$be$with$them.$There$was$nothing$to$do$
there$[in$the$reception$centre]$and$it$was$far$from$everything”!(app.!C).!Therefore!I!decided!
to! limit! my! fieldwork! among! the! children! mainly! to! public! spaces! in! which! the! children!
navigate!thereby!only!showing!a!fragmentary!experience!of!some!of!them.!!
Choosing!Athens!as!my!main!ethnographic!field!is!caused!by!several!reasons.!One!of!them!is!
that!Athens,!being!the!capital!city!of!Greece,!attracts!many!migrants!and!therefore!makes!it!
easier!to!locate!the!Afghan!children!compared!to!other!Greek!cities.!Especially!two!central!
parks!are!the!main!gathering!point!for!the!children!and!other!migrants!wherefore!I!decided!
primarily!to!use!the!site!selection!strategy!(Dahinden!2009).!The!site!selection!strategy!was!
ideal!for!my!fieldwork!in!Athens!as!I!could!go!directly!to!the!sites,!the!parks,!to!get!in!contact!
to! potential! participants.! Apart! from! Athens,! I! also! had! a! short! stay! in! Patras,! the! biggest!
port!in!Greece.!Here!many!of!the!children!would!daily!attempt!get!on!a!ferry!to!Italy!either!
by!finding!a!container!in!which!they!would!hide!or!attach!themselves!under!a!truck!hoping!
to! make! their! way! out! of! Greece.! Thus,! I! should! quickly! find! out! that! Patras! would! be! the!
place!to!go!for!those!who!do!not!have!money!to!pay!a!smuggler!to!get!out!of!the!country,!
whereas! if! you! have! money,! you! would! go! to! Athens! to! find! a! smuggler.! Therefore,! both!
! 22!
having! Patras! and! Athens! as! my! ‘fields’! enables! me! to! show! differences! and! similarities! in!
how!the!children!experience!“illegality”!in!the!two!cities.!!!
In!opposition!to!“traditional”!ethnography!where!researchers!would!live!with!communities!
for!years,!my!ethnographic!project!was!conducted!over!a!much!shorter!period!of!time.!One!
can!argue!that!to!get!a!deeper!understanding!of!the!field!and!my!study!object,!a!longer!time!
in!the!field!would!be!appropriate,!but!due!to!funding!constrains!and!time!pressure!I!decided!
to!carry!out!a!form!of!microdethnography!(Bryman!2004)!over!a!period!of!12!days.!!
In!the!following!I!will!present!the!different!methodological!tools!applied!and!reflect!on!the!
manner!of!data!gathering!in!this!research.!!
PARTICIPANT'OBSERVATIONS'
For!my!fieldwork!among!the!Afghan!children!in!Athens!I!followed!the!principles!established!
by! the! Chicago! School.! In! their! theories! direct! and! spontaneous! contact! is! the! key,!
wherefore!the!term!participant!observation!was!invented!(Empez!2009:159).!To!follow!this!
principle!I!always!tried!to!spend!as!much!time!as!possible!in!the!parks.!!
Apart! from! the! parks! I! had! a! daily! routine! in! a! soup! kitchen! in! Athens! where! around! 300!
migrants,! both! documented! and! undocumented! came! to! eat! every! day.! After! maild
correspondence!with!the!leader!of!the!soup!kitchen!it!was!decided!that!I!could!come!every!
morning!for!a!couple!of!hours!in!order!to!observe!and!talk!to!the!Afghan!children.!From!day!
one!I!was!asked!to!work!as!a!volunteer,!which,!according!to!the!leader,!would!make!me!a!
part!of!their!team!and!thereby!make!my!presence!less!odd!and!more!natural.!To!my!benefit,!
this!‘strategy’!worked!and!I!easily!got!into!conversations!with!many!of!the!migrants.!!
It!turned!out,!though,!that!only!a!few!Afghan!children!took!advantage!of!the!opportunity!to!
get! a! free! meal! in! the! soup! kitchen! resulting! in! not! so! many! new! acquaintances! for! me.!
However,!I!decided!to!continue!my!routine!in!the!soup!kitchen!as!it!proved!to!be!a! useful!
occasion!to!become!‘known’!among!the!adult!Afghans!who!would!also!come!to!the!parks!on!
a!daily!basis.!I!quickly!found!out!that!the!more!people!who!knew!who!I!was!the!easier!it!was!
to! get! involved! in! conversation! with! other! people! in! the! parks,! including! the! children.!
Furthermore!it!allowed!me!to!observe!and!talk!to!those!few!children!who!actually!used!the!
soup!kitchens.!!
During!my!time!in!the!parks!interacting!with!many!of!the!children!on!a!daily!basis!gave!me!
the!opportunity!to!get!to!know!some!of!them!and!the!physical!places!in!which!they!navigate!
in!a!way!that!would!not!have!been!possible!had!I!not!applied!participant!observation!as!one!
of!my!methods.!!
As!many!of!the!children!spend!most!time!during!the!day!in!their!rooms!(many!of!them!share!
a! room! with! 4d5! others)! and! would! not! come! out! in! public! until! late! afternoon,! I! was! not!
able! to! follow! them! constantly,! but! I! always! went! to! the! public! parks! and! tried! to! be!
accessible! enough! so! they! could! invite! me! to! share! some! time! with! them! –! either! in! the!
parks,!the!centre,!cafes,!or!church!organizations.!
! 23!
When! being! with! the! children,! it! was! important! for! me! to! create! a! relaxed! and! natural!
atmosphere!as!possible.!However,!I!always!explained!them!the!purpose!of!my!stay,!which!of!
course! meant! that! both! them! and! I! were! aware! that! ‘being! together’! was! not! simply! a!
matter!of!‘being’!in!an!ordinary!sense!or!some!sort!of!unstructured!‘hanging!out’!(Maddens!
2010:78)!Maddens!argues!that!ethnographic!‘hanging!out’!is!saturated!with!instrumentality;!
“It!is!a!deliberate!form!of!association!that!is!targeted!at!gathering!information!germane!to!
the!research!project!in!question”!(ibid).!!!
Being! invited! to! follow! d! and! ‘hang! out’! with! the! children! in! their! daily! life! allowed! me! to!
observe! how! they! positioned! themselves! and! interacted! with! each! other! and! with! other!
people!around!them,!including!myself!as!a!researcher.!Also,!as!the!interactionist!approach!
suggests,!it!helped!me!to!see!how!identities!are!constructed!through!social!conditions!and!
practices!and!how!different!‘selves’!unfold!and!interact!(MikdMeyer!and!Järvinen!2005:102).!
ETHNOGRAPHIC'CONVERSATIONS'
During! participant! observations! I! naturally! fell! into! conversations! with! the! children,! which!
together! with! the! observations! constitute! the! primary! source! of! my! empirical! data.! Of!
course! talking! with! people,! being! with! people! and! observing! people! are! not! divisible!
ethnographic!actions!as!it!all!happens!simultaneously!(Maddens!2010:78).!Nevertheless,!for!
clarity! purposes! I! will! in! the! following! focus! separately! on! the! ethnographic! conversations!
with!the!children.!
According! to! Maddens,! “talking! to! people! is! the! crucial! first! ethnographic! task”! (Maddens!
2010:59).! This! can! be! done! in! several! ways,! but! for! my! part! I! decided! very! early! in! the!
process!that!I!wanted!to!base!most!of!my!empirical!data!on!conversations!with!the!children!
rather!than!doing!interviews.!However,!in!the!very!beginning!of!my!stay!in!Greece!I!went!to!
Patras.! Through! a! gatekeeper! I! managed! to! conduct! semidstructured! interviews! with! two!
Afghan! boys.! Although! the! interviews! were! fruitful! for! my! research,! some! ethical!
considerations,! which! I! will! come! back! to! later! in! this! chapter,! convinced! me! that!
ethnographic! conversations! would! be! both! more! ethical! when! dealing! with! children! and!
more!effective!in!terms!of!finding!out!my!participants’!production!of!meaning!and!how!they!
talk!about!their!experiences!in!their!everyday!lives.!
The! character! of! ethnographic! conversations,! Maddens! says,! “lies! in! the! tension! between!
the! ‘naturalness’! of! good! conversation! and! the! ‘instrumentality’! embedded! in! the!
ethnographic! endeavor”!(Maddens!2010:65).!!Just!like!the!“hanging!out”!with!the!children!
had! a! particular! instrumentality! also! ethnographic! conversations! should! be! recognized! as!
very!deliberate!methods!of!gathering!information!(Maddens!2010:75).!!
Although! the! conversations! would! feel! ‘natural’! in! the! moment! I! always! had! my! scholarly!
ethnographic! instrumentalities! in! mind,! which! my! participants! were! well! aware! of.! One! of!
the! conversations! with! a! group! of! three! Afghan! boys! emerges! as! a! clear! example! of! this:!
They! had! invited! me! to! “hang! out”! with! them! in! the! evening! so! that! I! could! see! how! a!
“normal!day”!would!be.!While!sitting!in!a!park!talking,!one!of!the!boys!asked!the!two!others!
if! they! had! other! things! to! say! that! could! be! interesting! for! me! to! know,! referring! to! my!
! 24!
thesis.!Both!this!question!and!the!invitation!to!follow!their!daily!routines!clearly!show!that!
they!were!well!aware!of!my!instrumentalities.!!
On!the!other!hand,!though,!it!became!clear!that!all!of!the!boys!I!spoke!to!were!eager!to!get!
information! from! me! too! –! mainly! about! where! they! would! have! the! best! chances! to! get!
asylum!and!about!the!differences!between!the!Scandinavian!countries.4!Also!questions!were!
asked!about!Danish!girls,!how!they!look,!what!they!like,!how!to!get!a!girlfriend!in!Denmark!
etc.! In! that! way! we! found! a! way! to! make! our! individual! instrumentalities! complementary!
and! in! most! cases! the! obvious! acknowledgement! of! the! involved! instrumentality! often!
resulted! in! more! easydgoing! forms! of! conversations.! However,! for! me,! sharing! information!
with!them!was!not!only!a!methodological!tool!of!getting!information!it!was!also!a!moral!and!
ethical!choice.!As!they!shared!their!perspectives!and!information!with!me!I!found!it!fair!to!
give!them!back!parts!of!the!information!that!I!possess.!!
Although! the! ethnographic! conversation! equates! to! unstructured! interviews! (Maddens!
2010:67),! I! always! had! a! series! of! key! ! questions! or! themes! in! mind! in! the! course! of! a!
conversational! exchange.! Both! direct! questions! about! their! life! in! Greece! but! also! more!
general!topics!related!to!my!research!question,!which!we!then!would!talk!about!and!discuss!
(app.!B.1).!!
In!accordance!with!the!interactionist!perspective,!this!approach!has!not!been!so!much!of!a!
“find! and! uncover! mission”,! but! rather! an! interaction! between! the! informants! and! the!
researcher!as!the!researcher!highly!affects!what!is!told!in!the!conversations!(MikdMeyer!and!
Järvinen!2005:15).!!!
INTERVIEWS'
Finally,! to! support! empirical! data! collected! through! participant! observation! and!
ethnographic!conversations!I!conducted!interviews.!!
As!already!mentioned!I!interviewed!two!Afghan!boys!in!the!city!Patras!whom!I!got!in!contact!
with!through!a!local!gatekeeper.!Apart!from!those!two!interviews!and!my!fieldwork!among!
the!children!in!Athens!I!also!found!it!necessary!to!collect!empirical!data!elsewhere!in!order!
to!get!a!contextual!understanding!of!the!situation!of!separated!Afghan!children!in!Greece.!
Therefore! interviews! were! made! with! staff! from! two! local! NGOs! in! Athens! as! well! as! two!
representatives!from!the!Hellenic!Police!Head!Quarter!in!Athens.!!
What!was!common!for!all!the!interviews!was!their!ethnographic!character.!An!ethnographic!
interview! is,! in! opposition! to! a! fully! structured! interview,! very! similar! to! a! conversational!
exchange!(Maddens!2010:67d68).!However,!for!each!interview!I!had!an!interview!guide!with!a!
series! of! topics! or! key! questions.! Therefore! the! interviews! can! be! characterized! as! semid
structured!(app.!B).!Conducting!semidstructured!ethnographic!interviews!allowed!me!to!ask!
further!questions!in!response!to!what!I!saw!as!significant!replies!and!not!only!to!stick!to!the!
my! interviewdguides! (Bryman! 2008:113).! At! the! same! time,! caused! by! the! conversational!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
4
!The!information!I!gave!on!asylumdprocedures!was!always!general!information.!Especially!on!the!
question!about!where!it!would!be!best!to!apply!for!asylum!in!Scandinavia!I!always!sticked!to!facts!
about!the!differences!between!the!countries,!not!relating!to!private!cases!in!order!not!to!give!them!
false!hope.!!
! 25!
character,! it! allowed! a! dialectic! interaction! between! the! interviewees! and! the! interviewer,!
myself.!This!goes!hand!in!hand!with!the!interactionist!perspective!in!which!the!interview!is!
seen! as! a! social! interaction! between! the! informants! and! the! interviewer! (Järvinen! in! Mikd
Meyer! and! Järvinen! 2008:28).! As! with! ethnographic! conversations,! the! outcome! of! the!
interviews!should!not!be!taken!out!of!the!social!context!in!which!it!is!produced,!as!it!reflects!
how!the!informants!and!also!the!interviewer!will!position!him/herself!in!a!way!that!is!most!
desirable! in! the! situation! (Järvinen! in! MikdMeyer! and! Järvinen! 2008:30d31).! Especially! my!
interview! with! the! representatives! from! the! Hellenic! Police! Quarter! stands! as! a! clear!
example!of!how!I!positioned!myself!in!a!way!that!I!found!most!suitable:!Despite!my!position!
as! a! politically! motivated! activist! and! my! subjective! scepticism! towards! the! Greek! police,! I!
chose! to! stay! as! neutral! as! possible.! In! this! way! I! hoped! to! get! more! out! of! the! interview!
than!had!I!presented!myself!as!a!critical!activist.!!
CHOICE'OF'–'AND'ACCESS'TO'INFORMANTS''
In! the! following! I! will! introduce! my! choice! of! informants! and! how! I! got! access! to! them.!
Afterwards! I! will! discuss! positionality! and! power! relations.! However,! before! going! any!
further! I! find! it! important! to! mention! that! the! people! involved! in! this! study! are! potential!
subjects! to! persecution! by! various! antidimmigrant! groups.! Thus,! revealing! information! that!
would! make! them! identifiable! can! have! serious! consequences.! Therefore! I! have! provided!
confidentiality! and! anonymity! to! all! informants! in! this! study! –both! the! children,! the!
gatekeeper,!NGOd!and!police!representatives!as!well!as!locations!and!organizations.!!
As!such,!my!informants!from!the!NGOs!and!the!police!will!throughout!the!thesis!be!referred!
to!as!‘NGO!representatives’!and!‘police!representatives’,!respectively.!As!for!the!children!as!
well! as! the! gatekeeper! I! have! used! pseudonyms! for! the! their! names.! To! give! the! children!
more!involvement!in!the!research!I!offered!them!to!pick!their!own!names.!Only!one!of!my!
participants! insisted! on! picking! a! name.! The! rest! I! have! provided! with! ‘typical’! Afghan!
names.!!
LOCAL'NGO'REPRESENTATIVES'
Apart! from! the! Afghan! children,! my! intention! was! to! get! in! contact! with! authorities! that!
work!closely!with!the!children.!However,!I!quickly!found!out!that!it!would!be!necessary!to!
address! my! attention! to! local! NGOs! as! they! have! the! closest! contact! to! the! children! and!
have!to!a!great!extent!taken!over!the!job!of!the!Greek!state!in!terms!of!offering!assistance!
and!services.!Therefore,!before!going!to!Greece!I!got!in!contact!with!two!local!NGOs!based!
in!Athens!with!whom!I!managed!to!set!up!interviews.!!
I! got! in! contact! to! both! NGOs! through! DFUNK,! where! I! did! an! internship! in! 2012.! In!
connection!to!a!campaign!about!migrants!in!Greece,!DFUNK!got!engaged!with!the!two!NGOs!
and!I!therefore!knew!about!their!work!and!engagement!with!the!separated!Afghan!children.!!
Common!for!both!NGOs!is!their!focus!on!protecting!and!improving!the!rights!of!migrants!in!
Greece.! Both! organisations! primarily! assist! with! juridical! and! material! assistance! in! the!
shape!of!free!legal!advice!and!consultation!as!well!as!provision!of!food!and!clothes!for!the!
children!(app.!D.2,!D.3).!!
! 26!
In!the!first!NGO!that!I!visited!I!conducted!interviews!with!two!representatives:!The!first!was!
with!the!manager!who!contributed!with!basic!information!about!the!organization!as!well!as!
the!situation!of!migrants!in!Greece,!with!particular!focus!on!separated!children.!The!second!
interview!was!with!a!representative!who!added!more!detailed!information!about!their!work!
and!challenges!with!separated!children.!!
In! the! other! NGO! I! interviewed! a! representative,! who! provided! information! about! the!
organization!and!the!work!they!do!for!separated!children!and!the!overall!challenges!both!for!
the!organization!and!the!Greek!state!regarding!the!children.!!!
There! are! of! course! a! lot! of! other! NGOs! in! Greece,! especially! in! Athens,! that! work! with!
separated!children,!but!I!decided!to!stick!to!the!two!NGOs!due!to!the!ease!in!gaining!access!
as!well!as!their!wide!profiles,!which!indicates!that!they!have!knowledge!about!the!children!
in!several!aspects.!!
REPRESENTATIVES'FROM'THE'HELLENIC'POLICE'QUARTER'
As! before! mentioned! I! also! decided! to! take! contact! to! the! Alien! Division! in! the! Hellenic!
Police!Quarter.!Although!the!NGOs!work!closer!with!the!children!and!thereby!have!a!closer!
understanding!of!the!children’s!situation!and!everyday!life!I!found!it!necessary!also!to!talk!to!
someone!who!could!represent!the!Greek!State!in!order!to!get!a!more!nuanced!picture!than!I!
would!get!by!only!talking!to!NGOs!who,!in!most!cases,!were!critical!to!the!state.!!
Within!the!state!authorities!I!decided!that!representatives!from!the!Hellenic!Police!Quarter!
in! Athens! would! be! the! best! choice! for! an! interview! as! they! are! in! charge! of! all! migrant!
related!issues!in!Greece.!!
Through!edmail!contact!an!interview!was!set!up!with!a!representative.!It!turned!out,!though,!
that!the!person!who!was!supposed!to!translate,!also!a!police!officer,!engaged!just!as!much!
as!the!officer!I!was!supposed!to!interview.!They!will!throughout!the!analysis!be!referred!to!
as!‘the!police’!as!none!of!them!wanted!their!names!or!rank!to!appear!in!the!report.!
SEPARATED'AFGHAN'CHILDREN'IN'PATRAS'AND'ATHENS''
As! for! the! separated! Afghan! children,! I! have! in! total! 16! informants,! all! of! them! males.5!
Although!efforts!were!made!from!the!beginning!of!the!study!to!identify!females!among!the!
separated! Afghans,! I! neither! met! nor! heard! about! any! Afghan! girls! in! Greece! during! my!
fieldwork.!There!are!however,!cases!of!young!girls!travelling!with!an!older!brother!(Mougne!
2010:!11),!but!at!the!time!this!study!was!undertaken,!none!were!encountered.!!
Concerning! age,! my! informants! were! between! 15! and! 18! years! old! at! the! time! of! the!
research.!I!only!met!one!person!who!gave!his!age!as!15!and!who!arrived!in!Greece!at!the!age!
of!12.!Most!of!the!boys!claimed!to!be!16!or!17!years!old.!Two!of!them!were!18!years!old,!but!
as! they! had! stayed! most! of! their! time! in! Greece! as! separated! children! I! chose! to! include!
them!in!the!study!as!well.!Except!from!two!informants!who!had!been!in!Greece!for!5!and!6!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
5
!Between!my!16!informants!some!will!appear!throughout!the!analysis!more!than!others.!This,!due!to!
the! fact! that! some! of! them! I! met! only! once! or! a! few! times! whereas! those! who! appear! more!
frequently!throughout!the!analysis,!are!informants!whom!I!met!regularly.!!!!
! 27!
years!and!three!informants!who!had!just!arrived,!most!of!my!informants!had!been!in!Greece!
for!2d3!years.!
All!informants,!except!from!one,!were!either!born!in!Iran!or!had!migrated!with!their!family!
to!Iran!at!a!very!young!age.!That!I!got!in!contact!almost!solely!with!Afghans!from!Iran!can!be!
caused! by! several! factors.! I! assume! that! one! of! the! major! reasons! was! because! the! boys!
tended! to! befriend! and! walk! around! with! peers! from! the! same! area! or! hometown! as!
themselves.!I!noticed!that!many!of!those!who!had!lived!in!Tehran!most!of!their!lives!would!
walk!around!with!other!Afghans!from!Tehran!and!those!from!the!city!of!Qom!would!be!in!a!
group!with!others!from!Qom.!Thus,!when!I!got!in!contact!with!one!person!I!would!normally!
meet! his! friends! as! well.! Moreover,! the! fact! that! I,! a! Persian! speaking! Dane! was! doing!
research!among!Afghans,!spread!quickly!among!the!migrants!in!the!parks!and!could!also!be!
an! explanation! for! why! Persian! speaking! Afghans! were! interested! in! talking! to! me! rather!
than!Dari!or!Pashtu!speaking!Afghans6.!!!
Finally,!that!I!mainly!got!in!contact!with!Afghans!from!Iran!is!also!caused!by!the!fact!that!Iran!
is! host! to! around! 2! million! Afghan! migrants! whereof! 50! percent! are! undocumented!
(Adelkhah!&!Oszewska!2007:141d146).!Being!undocumented!leaves!the!Afghans!with!almost!
no!rights!as!well!as!the!risk!of!deportation.!Therefore,!many,!adults!as!well!as!children,!flee!
to!Europe!in!search!for!a!better!future.!Although!it!has!not!been!possible!for!me!to!find!data!
on!how!many!Afghans!from!Iran!are!to!be!found!in!Greece,!I!assume,!on!the!background!of!
my!fieldwork,!that!they!constitute!a!big!group!of!migrants!in!Greece.!!!
As!noted!earlier,!I!conducted!interviews!with!two!of!my!informants!in!Patras,!but!did!neither!
chose! the! informants! or! set! up! the! interview! myself.! From! home! I! had! a! few! phone!
conversations! with! an! Afghan! man,! Jasin,! whom! I! got! in! contact! with! through! an! Afghan!
acquaintance!in!Denmark.!Jasin!devotes!his!time!to!help!separated!children!and!invited!me!
to!Patras!for!two!days!in!the!beginning!of!my!stay!in!Greece,!as!he!was!interested!in!helping!
with! my! research.! Apart! from! introducing! me! to! the! situation! for! separated! children! in!
Patras! he! should! turn! out! to! be! my! gatekeeper! in! order! to! gain! access! to! the! children.! He!
therefore! contacted! some! of! the! Afghan! children! that! he! knew! and! asked! them! if! they!
would!come!to!participate!in!an!interview!with!me.!Two!boys!showed!up!for!an!interview!–!
Reza!and!Mehdi.!
In! their! book! The$ Ethics$ of$ Migration$ Research$ Methodology$ –Dealing$ with$ Vulnerable$
Immigrants$ Veronica! Bilger! and! Ilse! van! Liempt! (2009)! discuss! the! advantages! and!
disadvantages! of! using! the! gatekeeper! strategy.! They! argue! that! one! needs! to! critically!
review!the!samples!provided.!First!of!all!gatekeepers!might!choose!interview!partners!who!
already!have!a!certain!experience!in!interview!situations,!someone!they!think!would!provide!
information! that! the! researcher! likes! to! hear! and! finally,! the! respondents! might! only!
participate!because!they!feel!obliged!to!do!so!(Bilger!and!van!Liempt!2009:125).!By!using!the!
gatekeeper!strategy!I!realized!that!the!examples!given!by!Bilger!and!Liempt!appeared!in!my!
case.! I! am! convinced! that! Jasin! had! the! best! intentions! and! really! wanted! to! help! me,! but!
without!his!recommendation!I!am!not!so!sure!that!the!two!boys!would!have!been!willing!to!
participate.!I!was!supposed!to!interview!four!boys,!but!two!of!them!did!not!show!up.!They!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
6
!Pashtu!and!Dari!are!the!official!languages!in!Afghanistan.!!
! 28!
cancelled,! as! they! were! tired! of! telling! their! stories! to! journalists! and! social! researchers.!
From! this,! I! assume! that! Jasin! picked! out! informants! that! had! experiences! in! telling! their!
stories! and! therefore! might! have! information! that! I! would! be! interested! in! hearing! too.!
However,!the!advantages!of!having!Jasin!as!my!gatekeeper!was!that!he!did!not!only!manage!
to!arrange!contact!between!the!boys!and!I,!but!the!fact!that!the!contact!was!established!by!
him,! a! person! that! the! boys! knew! well! and! trusted,! automatically! reduced! the! amount! of!
mistrust!towards!me.!!
Nevertheless,!I!decided!that!for!the!rest!of!my!fieldwork!back!in!Athens!I!would!only!make!
use!of!ethnographic!conversations!(together!with!participant!observations)!both!in!order!to!
avoid!the!gatekeeper!dilemma,!but!also!to!make!the!meeting!as!comfortable!as!possible.!!
Thus,!choosing!not!to!have!a!gatekeeper!in!Athens!I!had!to!find!my!informants!on!my!own.!
Yet,! gaining! access! turned! out! to! be! an! easier! task! than! expected.! The! common! access!
strategy! of! ‘hanging! around’,! which! typically! entails! “loitering! in! an! area! until! you! are!
noticed! or! gradually! becoming! incorporated! into! or! asking! to! join! a! group”! (Bryman! 2008:!
298)!appeared!to!work!well!for!me.!During!the!first!days!I!would!go!to!the!parks!and!find!a!
place!to!sit!near!a!group!of!young!Afghans!whom!I!would!assume!to!be!separated!children.!
Here! I! would! wait! for! ‘the! right! moment’! to! approach! them! or! simply! wait! for! them! to!
approach!me.!When!contact!was!established!to!one!group!it!was!easy!to!get!in!contact!to!
other! groups.! After! some! days,! when! coming! to! the! parks! I! would! go! and! sit! with! those! I!
already! knew! or! some! of! the! older! Afghan! men! whom! I! knew! from! the! soup! kitchen! and!
then!automatically!get!to!talk!to!the!children.!
However,!during!my!fieldwork!it!became!clear!that!trust!and!mistrust!represented!significant!
factors! accompanying! the! children! throughout! their! migration! process.! My! contextual!
knowledge!should!turn!out!to!play!a!crucial!role!in!gaining!trust.!The!fact!that!I!have!lived!in!
Iran!for!a!couple!of!years!turned!out!to!be!of!great!importance!as!most!of!the!children,!as!
mentioned!earlier,!were!either!born!and/or!grew!up!in!Iran.!That!I!have!visited!most!of!the!
cities!in!which!they!lived!and!have!an!insight!in!the!situation!of!Afghans!in!Iran!through!my!
previous!research!on!Afghan!migrants!in!Iran!influenced!the!fieldwork!among!the!children!in!
a! positive! manner.! First! of! all,! when! talking! about! their! situation! in! Iran! and! reasons! for!
migrating! my! familiarity! with! the! country! eased! the! need! for! deep! and! complicated!
explanations,! which! the! children! would! typically! express! as! a! relief! as! one! of! them! said:!!
“You!know!a!lot!about!our!situation![in!Iran].!That!is!really!good”!(app.!C).!
However,! the! key! attribute! was! my! language! skills.! As! before! mentioned! I! speak! Farsi!
(Persian),!which!was!a!great!advantage!for!several!reasons.!First,!it!allowed!me!to!converse!
with!the!boys!in!their!own!tongue!and!to!participate!in!social!situations!without!depending!
on! an! interpreter.! In! this! way! I! was! able! to! connect! with! them! faster! and! decrease! the!
distance! between! researcher! and! respondents,! which! is! often! evident! when! using! an!
interpreter! or! when! the! respondents! have! to! express! themselves! in! languages! other! than!
their!mother!tongue.!Second,!whenever!someone!found!out!that!I!spoke!Farsi,!the!rumour!
would!quickly!spread!and!others!would!come!to!talk!–most!of!all!because!they!were!curious!
to! hear! a! Danish! woman! speak! Farsi.! Thus,! the! language! in! itself! was! a! key! element! in!
gaining! access.! Third,! by! knowing! their! language! I! could! easily! overhear! the! conversations!
! 29!
between!the!boys!and!thereby!better!understand!their!interactions!with!each!other.!Fourth,!
humour!turned!out!to!be!a!very!crucial!element!in!connecting!with!the!boys.!That!we!could!
joke! and! use! Persian! ‘street! language’! together! both! made! the! connection! stronger,! but!
humour! was! also! a! useful! tool! in! loosening! up! after! an! intense! conversation! about! their!
precarious! situations! in! Greece.! Finally,! the! language! was! a! crucial! element! in!
counterbalancing! the! asymmetrical! power! relations! between! us.! This! I! will! elaborate! on! in!
the!following!section.!!
NEGOTIATING'POSITIONALITY'AND'POWER'STRUCTURES'
Before! turning! to! the! ethical! considerations! in! research! among! children! I! find! it! crucial! to!
introduce!my!position!in!relation!to!the!field!and!the!consequences!hereof.!!
My!positions!as!a!woman,!as!white!and!Danish,!as!an!activist!and!as!a!student!all!affected!
how! I! presented! myself! and! indeed! how! I! was! received! in! the! field! as! well! as! how! the!
writings! of! my! research! have! taken! shape.! In! order! to! understand! how! these! positions!
influence! the! research! reflexivity! is! a! necessity! (Bryman! 2008:! 500).! In! line! with! the!
interactionist!perspective!that!underlines!the!importance!of!the!role!of!the!researcher!in!the!
outcome! of! the! empirical! material,! the! concept! of! reflexivity! stresses! that! subjectivity! and!
positionality!of!the!researcher!highly!influence!the!creation!of!the!text.!As!a!researcher!it!is!
thus!necessary!to!pay!attention!to!the!impact!of!my!own!cultural,!political!and!social!context!
(ibid).!!
!
De! Genova! as! well! addresses! the! position! of! the! researcher! in! his! ethnographic! study! on!
“illegal”! Mexican! migrants! in! Chicago,! he! states:! “My! “anthropological”! aspirations! were!
inextricable!from!the!politics!of!my!social!location!–!as!U.S.!citizen,!as!someone!racialized!as!
white,!as!an!intellectual!educated!in!elite!schools,!with!the!luxury!of!having!the!pretension!
to! write! books,! and! thus! regardless! of! my! working! class! family! background! or! my! radical!
politics,! as! an! objectively! privileged! and! effectively! middledclass! person”! (De! Genova!
2005:14).!De!Genova!thus!contributes!to!the!importance!of!acknowledging!the!asymmetrical!
power! relations! that! can! occur! in! the! encounter! between! the! ‘privileged’! researcher! and!
people!at!the!margins!of!society.!Taking!these!aspects!into!account,!doing!fieldwork!among!
the! separated! Afghan! children! was! clearly! a! meeting! of! asymmetrical! positions! mainly!
according! to! ethnicity,! resident! status,! class,! gender! and! age.! The! asymmetry! was!
manifested!through!my!position!as!a!white!Danish!middledclass!female!researcher!holding!a!
Danish!citizenship!contra!the!children’s!positions!as!nondwhite!Afghan!boys!“illegalized”!and!
therefore!excluded!from!any!rights.!!
!
As! De! Genova,! my! position! as! a! researcher! was! inextricable! from! my! position! as! a! Danish!
citizen,! white,! middledclass! and! ‘adult’.! However,! in! order! to! counterbalance! these!
asymmetrical!power!relations!in!the!best!ways!I!could!it!became!important!for!me!to!make!it!
clear! why! I! was! there! and! why! I! wanted! to! talk! to! them.! I! clarified! that! I! was! there! as! a!
researcher!to!conduct!fieldwork!for!my!master!thesis.!In!contrast!to!my!encounter!with!the!
police,! where! I! only! presented! myself! as! a! researcher,! I! added! the! fact! that! I! was! also! a!
political! activist.! Telling! the! children! that! through! activism! and! my! previous! internship! at!
! 30!
DFUNK! I! had! contact! to! many! young! Afghans! in! Denmark! who! had! also! been! to! Greece,! I!
indirectly! indicated! that! I! was! familiar! with! the! situation! of! separate! Afghan! children! and!
that!I!was!on!‘their!side’.!Thus!positioning!myself!as!an!activist!expressing!solidary!with!the!
migrants!turned!out!to!be!a!great!advantage!in!gaining!trust!among!the!children.!!
Concerning! our! different! gendered! positions! often! led! to! situations! in! which! the! boys!
wanted!to!‘take!care’!of!me.!Despite!the!age!difference!they!would!often!tell!me!that!as!a!
woman!I!should!not!walk!around!alone!at!night,!especially!not!in!the!parks.!As!a!result!they!
would!sometimes!accompany!me!all!the!way!to!the!door!of!my!hotel!at!night!to!ensure!my!
safety.!My!gendered!position!as!a!woman!also!challenged!our!asymmetrical!class!positions.!
Whenever! we! went! to! buy! food! or! drinks,! I! was! not! allowed! to! pay! although! I! insisted.! I!
would!in!most!cases!get!answers!like:!“Whenever!girls!are!out!with!boys,!the!boys!will!pay.!
That!is!just!how!it!is!”!Only!in!Patras!I!paid!for!lunch!after!interviewing!the!two!boys.!!
According! to! our! different! age! positions! I! would! mostly! attempt! to! even! out! by! adopting!
their! ways! of! talking,! ‘hang! out’! with! them! in! groups! only! of! teenagers,! drink! beers! and!
smoke!cigarettes!with!them.!!
!
Finally,! befriending! some! of! the! boys! on! Facebook! turned! out! to! be! an! opportunity! to!
reduce!many!of!the!asymmetrical!positions.!Here!positions!of!residentdpermit!and!thereby!
“legality”!versus!“illegality”!became!less!visible.!Thus,!Facebook!turned!out!to!be!a!second!
space!for!interacting!after!I!returned!back!to!Denmark.!In!the!analysis!I!will!further!elaborate!
on! Facebook! as! a! space! through! which! the! Afghan! children! challenge! the! structures! of!
control!and!their!position!as!“illegal”!migrants.!For!now,!I!will!turn!to!the!last!section!of!this!
chapter!in!which!I!present!my!ethical!considerations!in!the!research!process.!!
ETHICAL'CONSIDERATIONS'IN'THE'RESEARCH'PROCESS'
I! have! already! touched! upon! some! of! the! ethical! considerations! that! I! have! taken! into!
account!in!my!fieldwork!among!children.!However,!there!are!still!some!ethical!aspects!that!I!
would!like!to!clarify.!!
One! of! the! key! principles! of! conducting! ethnical! research! is! to! get! informed! consent! from!
the! participants! (Hopkins! 2008:41).! As! for! the! NGOs! and! the! Police! each! participant! was!
informed!about!the!research!and!asked!to!sign!a!consent!form,!in!which!they!were!offered!
anonymity!(App.!B).!!
Concerning! the! children! I! decided! not! to! write! a! consent! form,! as! I! wanted! to! avoid! being!
too!formal.!Instead!I!always!made!clear!the!intention!and!direction!of!the!research!before!
any! engagement.! According! Hopkins! one! must! always! explain! the! research! in! terms! the!
participants! can! fully! understand! in! order! to! obtain! informed! consent! (Hopkins! 2008:41).!
Therefore! I! would! normally! spend! a! great! amount! of! time! explaining! my! research! and!
discuss!it!with!the!children.!Most!of!them!would!ask!questions!about!it,!which!allowed!me!to!
further!elaborate!on!the!purpose!of!the!research.!Others!did!not!show!much!interest!in!the!
particular! research,! but! were! well! aware! –and! accepted! that! my! conversations! with! them!
would!become!a!part!of!the!research.!!
! 31!
Another! important! issue! in! research! with! children! is! that! there! should! be! a! clear! balance!
between! getting! information! from! the! children! and! avoiding! the! possibility! of! ‘emotional!
harm’! and! distress! (Hopkins! 2008:40).! As! for! the! two! interviews! in! Patras,! I! made! it! clear!
from!the!beginning!that!they!could!refuse!to!answer!particular!questions!or!opt!out!of!the!
interview! at! any! time.! However,! I! was! very! aware! that! they! might! have! felt! obliged! to!
maintain!their!participation!due!to!several!assumptions!around!issues!such!as!adult!power,!
race! and! privileges.! Therefore! I! found! it! very! important! to! check! with! the! participants!
throughout! the! interviews! if! they! were! still! comfortable! participating! and! reminded! them!
that!we!could!stop!the!interview!at!any!time.!!
!
An!ethnographer!can,!according!to!Maddens,!be!both!an!asset!and!a!burden!to!a!group!of!
participants!(Maddens!2010:90).!Therefore,!in!my!research!among!the!children!in!Athens!I!
would! often! ask! them! how! my! presence! appeared! to! them.! The! response! was! generally!
positive.! Most! of! them! argued! that! my! presence! was! a! great! change! in! their! otherwise!
monotone! everyday! lives.! Some! would! even! refer! to! me! as! their! khohaar$ (sister)$ or! dust$
(friend),! carefully! trying! comfort! me! in! their! company.! Others! were! more! reluctant! and!
normally!stayed!in!the!background!or!would!leave!when!I!approached!a!group.!!
!
Finally,!due!to!the!informal!character!of!the!ethnographic!conversations!with!the!children!in!
Athens! as! well! as! their! precarious! life! situation! recording! seemed! inappropriate.! Instead! a!
detailed!research!diary!was!kept!in!which!I!would!write!up!the!conversations!together!with!
the! observations7.! As! an! ethical! choice! I! never! wrote! down! my! field! notes! in! front! of! the!
children.!Instead!I!would!normally!use!the!excuse!of!going!to!toilet!in!order!to!write!down!
key!words!and!then!later!on!I!would!write!down!my!findings!in!details.!Seen!in!retrospective,!
choosing! to! neither! record! the! conversations! nor! write! down! my! field! notes! ‘on! the! spot’!
has!had!its!consequences:!Mainly!in!the!writings!of!the!analysis!it!became!clear!that!the!field!
notes! were! far! more! challenging! to! work! with! than! the! transcribed! interviews.! From! my!
transcribed! interviews! I! have! been! able! to! use! specific! sentences! and! expressions! of! my!
informants! whereas! my! field! notes! did! not! include! equivalent! details! and! have! therefore!
been!less!straightforward!to!work!with.!Yet,!the!ethnographic!conversations!and!participant!
observations! have! contributed! with! something! that! you! cannot! easily! get! out! of! an!
interview,!namely!that!of!how!the!children!interact,!how!they!move!around!in!the!city!and!
how!they!embody!migrant!“illegality”.!!
!
From!these!methodological!reflections!I!will!now!turn!to!chapter!4!in!which!the!theoretical!
perspectives!of!the!thesis!will!be!presented.!!
(
!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
7
!Apart!from!primary!research!findings!the!diary!includes!own!concerns,!feelings,!understandings,!
expectations!and!positionalities!during!the!research!process!(see!app.!C).!
! 32!
4'6'THEORETICAL'PERSPECTIVES'
In! this! chapter! I! present! the! theoretical! perspectives! that! I! will! draw! on! in! the! analysis! in!
order!to!get!a!deeper!understanding!of!the!empirical!data.!!
The! first! section! introduces! Agamben’s! theoretical! perspectives! that! will! function! as! the!
main! conceptual! framework! for! analysing! how! the! condition! of! “illegality”! shapes! and!
affects!the!children’s!everyday!life.!Thereafter!I!introduce!theoretical!concepts!that!will!be!
helpful! in! analysing! more! directly! how! the! children! embody! “illegality”! and! how! it! affect!
their! subject! experience! of! time! and! space.! Here! Willen’s!(2007)! use! of! ‘somatic! modes! of!
attention’! together! with! Coutin’s! (2003a)! concept! of! ‘spaces! of! nondexistence’! will! be!
presented.!!
Finally,! the! last! section! based! on! Scott’s! ‘weapons! of! the! weak’! as! the! ‘everyday! forms! of!
resistance’! as! well! as! a! short! outline! of! other! theoretical! perspectives! concerning! migrant!
children’s!agency!should!offer!a!theorization!to!understand!the!children’s!coping!strategies!
and!resistance.!!
THE'CONCEPTUAL'FRAMEWORK'OF'GIORGIO'AGAMBEN''
In!the!following!I!introduce!concepts!of!Giorgio!Agamben.!I!will!not!only!draw!on!Agamben’s!
own!work!but!also!on!the!work!of!other!scholars!who!have!applied!his!ideas!in!relation!both!
to!children!(Vitus!2011)!and!“illegal”!migrants!(Rajaram!&!GrundydWarr!2004)!in!ways!that!I!
find!relevant!for!this!thesis.!!
Agamben’s! work! is! strongly! influenced! by! Hannah! Arendt.! In! particular! one! chapter! in! her!
much! celebrated! book,! Origins! of! Totalitarianism:! “The! Decline! of! the! NationdState! and! the!
End! of! the! Rights! of! Man”.! In! this! chapter,! Arendt! clearly! analyses! what! it! means! to! be!
“illegalized”! by! emphasizing! the! position! of! the! stateless! subjects.! Drawing! on! her! own!
experiences! as! a! refugee! during! the! First! World! War,! Arendt! describes! how! human! rights!
show!to!be!impossible!to!execute!when!undocumented!migrants!enter!another!state.!Loosing!
national! rights! is! identical! with! loss! of! human! rights! she! writes,! arguing! that:! “the! moment!
human!beings!lacked!their!own!government!and!had!to!fall!back!upon!their!minimum!rights,!
no! authority! was! left! to! protect! them! and! no! institution! was! willing! to! guarantee! them”!
(Arendt!1967:!292).!!
The!stateless!subjects!were!forced!to!live!under!‘the!law!of!exception’!excluded!by!‘the!Rights!
of!Man’.!(Arendt!1967:269).!In!this!sense,!the!meeting!between!the!sovereign!state!and!the!
undocumented!migrant!becomes!an!encounter!between!the!interiorized!of!humanity!and!the!
detritus!of!humanity!(Rajaram!&!GrundydWarr!2004:35).!
'
'
! 33!
BIO6POLITICS''
Looking! at! the! encounter! in! that! way! brings! into! focus! several! essential! aspects! of!
Agamben’s!view!on!the!undocumented!migrants.!The!first!one!is!that!he!sees!the!migrant!as!
a!part!of!the!system!of!the!nation!state,!not!excluded!from!it.!The!system!of!the!nation!state!
is,! according! to! Agamben,! a! regularizing! process! of! what! it! is! to! be! a! human! being,! the!
meaning!of!the!human!being,!is!politicized!(Ibid).!
In! order! to! explain! the! way! in! which! the! system! of! the! nation! state! works! and! rule! people!
through! various! technologies,! Agamben! uses! the! concept! of! biodpolitics! borrowed! from!
Foucault.!At!the!threshold!of!the!modern!era!the!focus!shifts!from!the!“territorial!State”!to!
the! “State! of! population”! as! the! individual! as! a! simple! living! body! begins! to! be! included! in!
society’s!political!strategies!–turning!into!biopolitics!(Agamben!1998:3).!!
Agamben!uses!the!concept!of!bio!power!to!show!how!undocumented!migrants!are!caught!up!
in! the! calculations! and! technology! of! the! sovereign! power.! Departing! from! Foucault,!
Agamben! suggests! that! including! the! human! life! within! the! political! realm! of! the! sovereign!
state! is! not! only! a! modern! phenomenon,! but! stems! back! to! the! Ancient! Greek.! Aristotle!
distincts! between! two! forms! of! life! –that! of! zoē! –the! ‘bare! life’,! the! biological! existence,!
which! we! have! in! common! with! all! living! creatures! and! that! of! bios! dthe! good! life! also!
understood!as!the!political!way!of!life!(Agamben!1998:7).!
THE'STATE'OF'EXCEPTION'
The!second!aspect!of!Agamben’s!view!on!undocumented!migrants!is!that,!apart!from!being!a!
part!of!the!nation!state,!the!migrant!is!also!central!to!the!sovereign!law.!This!becomes!most!
apparent! when! undocumented! migrants! are! held! in! what! Agamben! calls! the! ‘state! of!
exception’! in! which! the! sovereign! law! is! exempt! from! operating! (Agamben! 1998:15d29).!
Agamben!builds!upon!the!German!political!philosopher!Carl!Schmitt’s!idea!that!the!structure!
of!sovereignty!is!based!on!the!notion!of!the!exception.!Schmitt!defined!the!sovereign!as!“he!
who! decides! on! the! state! of! exception”! (Carl! Schmitt! in! Agamben! 1998:11).! In! this! view,!
modern! sovereign! power! has! the! capacity! to! create! the! state$ of$ exception! where! the!
otherwise!prevailing!rules,!laws!and!rights!cease!to!operate!(Agamben!1998:15d29).!However,!
the! state! of! exception! should! not! be! seen! as! a! zone! outside! the! law.! Instead,! Agamben!
argues:!!
“What$ is$ outside$ is$ included$ not$ simply$ by$ means$ of$ an$ interdiction$ or$ an$ internment,$ but$
rather$ by$ means$ of$ the$ suspension$ of$ the$ juridical$ order’s$ validity$ –$ by$ letting$ the$ juridical$
order,$that$is,$withdraw$from$the$exception$and$abandon$it”$(Agamben!1998:18).$$
!
Thus,!sovereign!power!includes!a!much!more!crucial!ability!than!only!keeping!out!people!who!
are!not!considered!a!part!of!the!nation,!namely!the!ability!to!‘abandon’!people,!keeping!them!
at!the!borders!in!a!way!that!they!are!neither!inside!nor!outside!the!nation!state,!but!‘caught’!
in!a!juridical,!social!and!political!threshold!d!the!state!of!exception!(Agamben!1998:19,!Vitus!
2011:! 98).! The! state$ of$ exception! in! which! the! zone! between! the! external! and! internal!
becomes! blurry! and! distinctions! between! categories! that! normally! form! modern! politics!
become! deactivated! is! what! Agamben! characterizes! as! ‘zones! of! indistinction’! (Agamben!
1998:18).!This!indistinction!that!rules!within!the!state$of$exception!comes!from!a!mechanism!
! 34!
that! Agamben! calls! an! ‘inclusive! exclusion’.! By! this,! he! means! that! those! people! who! are!
placed!in!the!realm!of!the!zones!of!indistinction!are!included!as!objects!of!sovereign!power,!
but!at!the!same!time!excluded!from!the!normal!law.!Thus,!they!are!included!in!the!political!
sphere!because!of!their!exclusion!(Vitus!2011:99).!
HOMO'SACER'
One!way!to!capture!this!“inclusive!exclusion”,!and!one!of!the!most!characteristic!elements!of!
Agamben’s! idea! of! sovereign! power,! can! be! linked! to! what! he! defines! as! the! sovereign’s!
power! to! decide! on! the! “human! victim! that! may! be! killed! but! not! sacrificed”! (Agamben!
1998:83).!This!human!victim!is!illustrated!through!the!obscure!concept!of!ancient!Roman!law,!
the!‘homo!sacer’.!The!‘homo!sacer’!(the!sacred!man)!was!a!form!of!‘bare!life’!that!suffered!
from!a!paradoxical!condition!in!that!his!inclusion!in!the!legal!framework!occurred!through!his!
exclusion! within! it.! The! ‘homo! sacer’! could! be! killed! with! impunity! but! not! sacrificed! in! a!
religious!ritual!(Agamben!1998:8).!!!
Today,! especially! in! Western! countries! a! growing! number! of! subjects! are! vulnerable! to! this!
particular! form! of! violence! when! the! ‘state! of! exception’! becomes! the! rule! and! the! law! is!
suspended!(Owens!2009:572).!With!the!rise!of!the!nation!state,!biological!existence!evolved!
into! political! existence! in! the! form! of! citizenship.! Drawing! on! Arendt,! Agamben! argues! that!
existing!without!citizenship!rights!people!are!placed!in!‘bare!life’!without!political!subjectivity!
as! the! ‘homo! sacer’! d! the! outlawed! (Vitus! 2011:99).! This! person! stripped! of! his! political!
existence! and! simply! reduced! to! biological! life! –the! zoe! is! most! evidently! reflected! in! the!
status!of!the!denationalized!Jews!in!the!Nazi!Third!Reich,!who!found!themselves!deprived!of!
citizenship!rights!and!protections!(Ibid).!!
!
Agamben’s! concepts! have! been! criticized! for! suffering! several! shortcomings.! Especially! his!
exaggeration! of! the! level! of! the! control! mechanism! of! the! state! has! been! condemned! by!
several! scholars! (i.e.! Papastergiadis! 2006,! Owens! 2009,! Willen! 2010).! According! to!
Papastergiadis!no!state,!not!even!the!totalitarian!state!with!‘closed’!borders,!will!succeed!in!
creating!a!space!of!absolute!isolation!controlling!their!societies.!The!state!can!never!confine!
the! migrants! completely,! Papastergiadis! argues! (Papastergiadis! 2006:! 438).! He! further!
criticizes!Agamben’s!notion!of!the!‘homo!sacer’!as!it!appears!to!devalue!human!agency.!The!
state$ of$ exception! he! states,! will! not! only! inspire! resistance! and! leak,! as! no! action! can! exist!
without! reaction! (Ibid)! or! with! Foucault’s! famous! dictum! “Where! there! is! power,! there! is!
resistance”! (Foucault! 1978).! Yet,! having! these! shortcomings! in! mind,! I! find! it! important! to!
explicate! that! I! do! not! intend! to! apply! Agamben’s! concepts! in! showing! that! the! separated!
children!have!no!agency.!On!the!contrary,!as!I!stated!in!chapter!3,!the!children!have$agency!
and! as! the! analysis! will! reveal,! they! do$ resist! the! control! and! the! circumstances! they! are!
exposed! to.! Nevertheless,! Agamben’s! concepts! are! still! crucial! in! understanding! the!
conditions!under!which!the!children!live!and!the!positions!they!are!being!placed!in.!!
Moreover,!having!in!mind!that!Greece!is!suffering!a!deep!breakdown!both!in!regards!to!the!
country’s! economic! situation! and! the! dysfunctional! asylum! system! it! would! be! incorrect! to!
claim! that! the! state! has! full! control! over! the! migrants! (cf.! Agamben’s! focus! on! the! control!
mechanism! of! the! state).! Still,! I! will! argue! that! Agamben’s! concepts! are! relevant! as! the!
! 35!
migrants! are,! after! all,! assigned! to! various! structures! of! control! by! state! agents! who! act! as!
sovereign.!!
Having! shown! my! intentions! in! regards! to! Agamben,! I! will! now! turn! to! theoretical!
perspectives! that! will! be! necessary! in! grasping! what! Agamben’s! theory! is! not! capable! of,!
namely!that!of!agency,!resistance!and!internalization!of!“illegaltity”.!!
INTERNALIZING'MIGRANT'“ILLEGALITY”'
As! mentioned! in! the! introduction,! the! experience! of! “illegality”! in! migrants’! everyday! lives!
can,! according! to! Willen,! be! analysed! in! three! different! domains,! because! “illegal”! status!
involves! a! particular! sort! of! relation! first,! to! the! host! state,! second! to! the! host! society! and!
third!to!the!self!(Willen!2007:67).!While!the!theoretical!perspective!above!should!be!helpful!
in! analysing! the! political! and! social! implications! of! migrant! “illegality”,! the! following!
comprises! theoretical! tools! helpful! in! further! analysing! the! third! domain,! the! Afghan!
children’s!relation!to!the!self!and!how!they!embody!the!condition!of!“illegality”.!!
As! already! mentioned,! “illegality”! is! not! a! natural! condition,! but! a! condition! produced!
through!multiple!processes!of!control!as!exemplified!in!Agamben’s!theory.!Rather!than!being!
a!static!position,!people!become!“illegal”!or!“illegalized”!when!they!become!target!of!control!
(Peutz!&!De!Genova!2010:14).!!
How! “illegality”! affects! migrants,! is! described! by! Peutz! and! De! Genova! as! a! “practical,!
materially!consequential,!and!deeply!interiorized!mode!of!being”!(Ibid)!Several!scholars!such!
as!Willen!(2007),!Coutin!(2000,!2003a,!2003b)!and!Khosravi!(2010a,!2010b)!have!looked!into!
how!migrants!experience!being!“illegal”.!In!the!following!I!will!present!ethnographical!studies!
by! Willen! and! Countin,! respectively! as! useful! theoretical! tools! in! analysing! how! the! Afghan!
children!internalize!migrant!“illegality”.!!
SOMATIC'MODES'OF'ATTENTION'AND'SPACES'OF'NON6EXISTENCE'
In! her! study! on! undocumented! migrants! in! Israel,! Willen! (2007)! draws! on! Thomas! Csordas’!
(1993)!notion!of!‘somatic!modes!of!attention’!in!describing!how!“illegality”!affects!migrants’!
subjective! experiences! of! time,! space! and! embodiment! (Willen! 2007:16).! Focusing! on! the!
‘somatic! modes! of! attention’,! Willen! is! able! to! describe! the! ways! in! which! undocumented!
migrants!inhabit!and!move!around!in!their!bodies!as!a!reaction!to!fear!of!deportation,!arrest,!
the!Israeli!police,!criminalization,!and!other!external!factors!that!are!seen!as!a!threat!to!the!
migrants!(Willen!2007:16d17).!!
In! public! spaces,! Willen! argues,! migrants’! bodies! are! constantly! being! sensed! or! read! by!
members! of! the! host! society.! This! contributes! to! certain! embodied! consciousness! as! the!
migrants! will! have! to! negotiate! between! their! body,! on! the! one! hand,! as! an! object! that! is!
being!read!by!the!members!of!the!host!society!through!symbolic!codes!containing!ethnic!and!
racial! signals! that! entails! positive! or! negative! moral! value! or! on! the! other! hand,! their! own!
experience!of!self!(Willen!2007:23)!As!a!consequence!of!this!embodied!consciousness,!bodily!
vigilance! and! disguise! becomes! an! important! way! for! the! migrants! to! negotiate! when!
entering! public! spaces! in! order! not! to! reveal! their! “illegal”! status.! Thus,! Willen! argues,!
! 36!
“illegality”!is!incarnated!in!the!ways!in!which!the!migrants!“move!around!in,!and!present!–or!
hide!–their!bodies”!(Willen!2007:19).!!
Similar! to! Willen,! Coutin! writes! about! the! experience! of! migrant! “illegality”! in! her! study! on!
Salvadoran! “legalization”! in! the! US! (Coutin! 2003a).! Here! she! describes! how! “illegality”!
condemns! migrants! to! a! ‘space! of! nondexistence’.! This! ‘space! of! nondexistence’! can! be!
characterized! as! a! ‘borderland’! as! it! divides! the! legal! and! the! illegal.! A! ‘borderland’,! Coutin!
elaborates,! should! be! understood! as! a! space! of! deterritorializing! forces! that! redefines! and!
challenge! the! social! order! and! paradigms! and! categories! of! ‘what! fits’.! Nevertheless,! she!
continues,!the!borderland!is!a!site!of!repression!(Coutin!2000:28,!2003:171).!Coutin!describes!
the! borderland! as! a! space! that! “excludes! people,! limits! rights,! restricts! services,! and! erase!
personhood.! The! space! of! nondexistence! is! largely! a! space! of! subjugation”! (Coutin! 2000:28,!
2003:172).!!
The!‘space!of!nondexistence’!as!well!as!its!residents,!the!undocumented!migrants,!is!socially!
constructed!and!demarcated.!It!is!real!for!those!who!live!in!it!as!they!feel!the!material!effects!
of! the! practices! that! make! them! not! exist! –as! for! example! hunger,! unemployment! or! even!
death! (Coutin! 2000:29).! Although! being! an! imagined! space! –an! ‘underground’! or! a!
‘netherworld’!inhabited!by!undocumented!migrants!–!or!‘shadow’!people’!the!space!of!nond
existence! is! not! confined! to! a! limited! place,! but! coincide! with,! in! this! case,! the! territorial!
boundaries!of!Greece.!But!as!the!“illegal”!migrants!are!‘forbidden’!to!be!in!Greece,!they!are!
situated!‘outside’!Greece!in!a!‘space!of!nonexistence’!(Coutin!2003:179).!Thus,!these!spaces!
only!become!‘undergrounds’!or!‘netherworlds’!when!the!migrants!are!there.!!
This! space,! however,! is! a! necessary! space,! as! it! defines! what! is! illegal! and! thereby! what! is!
legal! –! who! should! be! excluded,! indicates! at! the! same! time! who! is! included! (Coutin!
2003:173).!Nevertheless,!these!binaries!should!not!be!taken!too!serious,!as!there!are!several!
nondexistences!and!nuances!of!existence.!Not!only!when!individuals!become!undocumented!
do!they!enter!a!‘space!of!nondexistence’,!but!also!when!they!dive!into!clandestine!activities!or!
hide!in!order!not!to!be!caught.!At!the!same!time,!migrants,!regardless!of!their!legal!status!do$
exist!(Ibid)!simply!as!they!live,!work,!speak,!go!to!school,!play!and!so!on.!Thus,!they!move!in!
an!out!of!existence!(Coutin!2003:187).!!
However,! as! illegalized! migrants! are! without! legal! existence,! Coutin! explains,! even! their!
physical!existence,!as!their!residence,!is!unregistered!–they!are!nowhere.!“They!do!not!exist”!
(Coutin! 2003:174d175).! The! same! goes! for! their! mobility,! which! is! highly! restricted! in! the!
‘space! of! nondexistence’.! Being! subject! to! arrest,! detention! and! deportation! the!
undocumented! consciously! limit! their! mobility! and! only! move! about! if! necessary! (Coutin!
2000:33).!!
Although!the!‘space!of!nondexistence’!is!mainly!a!space!of!subjugation,!which!most!migrants,!
according! to! Coutin,! prefer! to! leave,! sometimes! migrants! turn! nondexistence! into! their!
advantages!(Coutin!2000:28,!2003:189).!This!I!will!come!back!to!in!the!following!theoretical!
perspectives! on! coping! strategies! and! everyday! forms! of! resistance.! Before! that,! I! find! it!
important!to!note!that!although!Coutin’s!notion!of!‘spaces!of!nondexistence’!is!in!many!ways!
comparable! to! Agamben’s! notion! of! ‘state! of! exception’! I! intend! to! apply! the! two! terms! in!
different! ways.! Whereas! the! ‘state! of! exception’! is! useful! in! correlation! with! the! structures!
! 37!
under! which! the! children! live,! ‘spaces! of! nondexistence’! refers! more! directly! to! the! ‘space’!
that!is!experienced!by!the!children.!!
COPING'STRATEGIES'AND'RESISTANCE'
I! have! earlier! stated! that! separated! children,! although! they! might! be! subjects! to! state!
polices! and! control! are! not! passive! recipients,! but! actually! do$ have! agency.! In! order! to!
analyze!the!experiences!of!the!children!from!a!perspective!in!which!they!have!agency!I!will!
draw!on!James!Scott’s!notions!of!‘weapons!of!the!weak’!and!‘everyday!forms!of!resistance’!
developed! on! the! basis! of! his! research! among! peasants! in! rural! Asia.! Also! theoretical!
perspectives!related!to!migrants’!agency!and!coping!strategies!will!be!employed.!!
According!to!Scott,!weapons!of!the!weak!are!everyday!forms!of!resistance!that!includes!acts!
that! take! the! shape! of! “passive! noncompliance,! sabotage,! subtle! evasion! and! deception”!
(Scott!1985:!31);!other!examples!are!dissimulation,!harassment,!irony!and!false!compliance!
(Scott! 1985:! 29).! Unlike! other! forms! of! resistance! that! is! formal! and! public,! everyday!
resistance!is!not!directly!concerned!with!public!and!symbolic!goals,!but!make!use!of!implicit!
understandings!and!is!more!informal,!“often!covert,!and!concerned!largely!with!immediate!
de!facto!gains”!(Scott!1985:33).!These!are!acts!that!usually!only!have!marginal!significance!
and!never!directly!confront!the!state!and!the!structural!conditions.!Moreover,!such!acts!of!
resistance! are! individualized,! rather! than! collective,! as! they! are! connected! to! selfdinterest!
and!survival!and!therefore!require!little!or!no!planning!and!coordination!(Scott!1985:!29).!!
Previous! researches! have! examined! “illegal”! migrants’! everyday! form! of! resistance! as! a!
response!to!the!state’s!control!strategies!(e.g.!Stephenson!and!Papadopoulos!2006,!Coutin!
2000,! 2003,! Ellermann! 2010).! Stephenson! and! Papadopoulos! explore! how! undocumented!
migrants!throw!out!their!documents!or!do!not!apply!for!asylum,!but!instead!jump!into!the!
informal! networks! of! clandestine! and! become! dedidentifiable.! For! Stephenson! and!
Papadopoulos!being!imperceptible!in!the!context!of!“illegal”!migration!is!an!act!of!resistance!
towards!the!regimes!of!migration!control!(Stephenson!and!Papadopoulos!2006:436).!In!the!
before!mentioned!study!on!Salvadoran!migrants!in!the!US,!also!Coutin!focuses!on!becoming!
dedidentifiable!as!an!act!of!resistance.!!Referring!to!what!she!calls!‘the!art!of!not!existing’,!
Coutin!describes!how!“illegal”!migrants!assume!false!identity!in!order!to!protect!themselves!
(Coutin!2003:!191).!According!to!Ellermann,!migrants’!resistance!should!be!seen!as!an!“act!
of! desperation”! as! it! only! “constitutes! a! viable! course! of! action! once! the! individual! has!
nothing!left!to!lose”!(Ellermann!2010:!410).!!!
Although!Scott’s!idea!of!resistance!as!a!strategy!is!highly!applicable!it!is!worth!dwelling!for!a!
moment!on!the!notion!of!migrant!children!and!agency.!In!chapter!2!I!introduced!the!“new!
paradigm! of! childhood”! which! emphasizes! that! children! are! active! social! actors! in! shaping!
their!own!lives.!In!tune!with!this!notion,!there!have!been!several!studies!on!children’s!coping!
strategies! and! agency! in! migration.! In! their! text! “Children’s! Risk,! Resilience,! and! Coping! in!
Extreme! Situations”! Boyden! and! Mann! (2005)! write! about! how! children! find! different!
strategies!to!cope!with!adversity.!Drawing!on!several!studies!on!migrant!children!they!argue!
that! individual! attributes! as! humour,! reasoning,! hope! for! the! future! and! belief! are! all!
‘protective!factors'!that!in!many!cases!shape!the!strategies!that!children!use!in!order!to!cope!
! 38!
with! adversity! (Boyden! and! Mann! 2005:6).! Also! children’s! interpersonal! relationships! ! d
either!with!adults!who!can!act!as!mentors!and/or!peer!relationships!with!whom!the!children!
can!help!and!nurture!one!another!are!seen!to!be!important!coping!strategies!(Ibid:7d8).!In!
relation!to!this,!Massey!et!al.!emphasize!that!different!forms!of!networks!are!crucial!coping!
strategies! as! they! constitute! a! form! of! social$ capital! that! migrants! can! draw! upon! when!
necessary!(Massey!et!al.!1993:!448).!!
Thus,! Scott’s! theory! on! resistance! and! the! theoretical! perspectives! on! coping! strategies!
contribute! to! a! deeper! understanding! of! migrant! “illegality”! and! form! alternative!
perspectives!on!migrant!experience.!!
From! the! theoretical! perspectives! introduced! in! this! chapter! I! will! in! the! following! section!
present! the! structure! of! the! analysis.! Here! I! aim! to! show! how! the! different! theoretical!
concepts!as!well!as!my!methodology!become!relevant!in!the!analysis.!!
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
! 39!
STRUCTURE'OF'ANALYSIS''
The! analysis! is! guided! by! the! four! subdquestions! introduced! in! chapter! 2,! which! I! aim! to!
answer! throughout! the! four! following! chapters.! Together! these! should! constitute! a! full! and!
comprehensive!answer!to!the!research!question.!!
In! chapter! 5! I! will! answer! the! first! subdquestion:! How$ is$ migrant$ “illegality”$ configured$ in$
Greece?! Following! De! Genova! (2002)! who! states! that! configurations! of! “illegality”! are!
historical! and! geographically! conditioned,! I! will! here! focus! on! migration! trends! and! policy!
development! in! Greece! in! order! to! grasp! the! mechanisms! and! procedures! that! have! given!
shape! to! migrant! “illegality”! in! its! present! day! form.! I! make! use! of! previous! research! and!
reports,! EU! documents! and! empirical! data! collected! through! interviews! with! local! NGO!
representatives! as! well! as! representatives! from! the! Hellenic! Police.! The! chapter! will! not! as!
such!comprise!an!analysis,!but!should!rather!be!understood!as!a!contextual!overview!for!the!
reader!to!understand!the!circumstances!under!which!the!children!live.!!
In!chapter!6!I!will!draw!on!my!ethnographic!findings!among!the!children!in!order!to!answer!
the!second!subdquestion:!How$does$the$condition$of$“illegality”$shape$and$affect$the$children’s$
everyday$life?$The!analysis!will!be!structured!according!to!three!themes!that!appeared!to!be!
recurrent! in! the! children’s! narratives! of! how! their! everyday! life! is! shaped! and! affected! by!
“illegality”,!namely!the!lack!of!rights,!police!violence!and!racism.!Agamben!will!constitute!the!
theoretical!framework!of!this!chapter.!I!will!draw!on!his!notion!of!‘state!of!exception’!in!order!
to!understand!the!conditions!under!which!the!children!live!within!the!Greek!state!while!the!
concepts!of!‘homo!sacer’!and!‘bare!life’!will!be!applied!to!analyse!the!position!as!well!as!the!
plight!of!the!children.!!
Having!analysed!how!the!children’s!everyday!life!is!shaped!and!affected!by!“illegality”!enables!
me!in!chapter!7!to!dive!deeper!into!the!children’s!experiences!of!“illegality”!by!looking!at!how!
they!internalize!and!(quite!literally)!embody!this!position!as!well!as!how!they!experience!time!
and! space.! I! will! thus! answer! the! third! subdquestion:! How$ do$ the$ children$ embody$ migrant$
“illegality”$and$how$does$it$affect$the$children’s$subjective$experiences$of$time$and$space?$The!
chapter!is!split!into!three!sections!where!the!first!section!will!draw!on!Willen’s!use!of!‘somatic!
modes!of!attention’!in!order!to!analyse!how!the!children!embody!“illegality”.!In!the!second!
section!I!will!analyse!the!children’s!experience!of!space!by!applying!Coutin’s!concept!‘spaces!
of! nonexistence’.! The! third! section! will! provide! an! analysis! of! the! children’s! experience! of!
time!by!drawing!on!Coutin’s!notion!of!‘illegal!time’.!!
Applying! Scott’s! ‘weapons! of! the! weak’! as! ‘everyday! forms! of! resistance’! I! will! in! chapter! 8!
analyse!how!the!children,!although!positioned!as!‘homo!sacers’!work!out!ways!of!negotiating!
“illegality”! by! enacting! various! coping! strategies! and! everyday! forms! of! resistance.! The!
chapter! should! thus! provide! an! answer! to! the! fourth! and! last! subdquestion:! How$ do$ the$
children’s$cope$with$3$and$resist$“illegality”?$By!drawing!on!Boyden!and!Mann,!I!will!illuminate!
three! components! that! proved! to! comprise! important! coping! strategies! for! the! children;!
networks,!alcohol/drugs,!faith!and!future!dreams.!!
!
! 40!
!
!
!
Part!II!
Analysis!
'
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
%
'
! 41!
5'6'CONFIGURATIONS'OF'MIGRANT'
“ILLEGALITY”'IN'GREECE'
As! De! Genova! argues,! configurations! of! “illegality”! are! historically! and! geographically!
contingent!(De!Genova!2002:!428).!Therefore,!I!will!in!this!chapter!focus!on!migration!trends!
and! the! policy! development! in! Greece! that! have! been! instrumental! in! giving! shape! to!
migrant!“illegality”!in!its!present!day!form!both!in!discursive!and!material!terms.!I!will!thus!
answer!the!first!subdquestion:!How$is$migrant$“illegality”$configured$in$Greece?!!
The! chapter! will! not! constitute! an! analysis! as! such.! Rather! the! purpose! is,! as! explained! on!
page!40,!that!of!providing!the!reader!with!a!contextual!understanding!of!the!circumstances!
under!which!the!separated!Afghan!children!live.!This!will!enable!me!in!chapter!6!to!embed!
the! children’s! narratives! in! the! procedures! and! mechanisms! that! produce! their! “illegal”!
position!in!the!first!place.!!!
FROM'SENDING'TO'RECEIVING'COUNTRY'
Like! all! other! member! states! of! the! European! Union,! Greece! has! gone! through! a!
fundamental! transformation! over! the! last! forty! years! following! the! entrance! of! “illegal”!
migrants!into!political!discourse!(Castles!and!Miller!2009:193,!Karyotis!2012:394).!!
Before!the!late!1980s!Greece!was!mostly!known!as!a!sending!country!with!gross!emigration!
between! 1951! and! 1981! approaching! 1.6! million!(Karyotis! 2012:394).! Not! until!1974! when!
the! military! dictatorship! collapsed! and! the! immigration! policies! abroad! became! more! and!
more!restrictive!the!annual!return!migration!exceeded!emigration.!At!that!time,!due!to!labor!
market! shortages,! the! Greek! government! started! to! invite! immigrant! workers! mainly! from!
Africa!and!Asia!(Ibid).!Migrants!were!thus!primarily!seen!as!an!extra!flexible!and!cheap!work!
force!and!their!legal!status!of!immigration!was!not!of!relevance!to!domestic!needs!(ibid).!!
Migrants! who! applied! for! asylum! were! very! few! in! numbers.! Although! Greece! had! ratified!
the! Geneva! Convention! in! 1951! it! was! not! until! the! late! 1970s! after! the! collapse! of! the!
military! dictatorship! that! the! country! established! a! procedure! for! refugee! recognition.! The!
few! asylum! seekers! that! entered! the! country! were! placed! under! the! protection! of! UNHCR!
and! were! mostly! transferred! to! other! countries! under! different! resettlement! programs!
(Papadimitrios!and!Papageorigiou!2005:!300).!!
But! then! things! started! to! change! in! the! beginning! the! late! 1980s! and! early! 1990s.! The!
collapse! of! communist! regimes! in! the! neighboring! countries! generated! a! rapid! and!
unforeseen! increase! in! migratory! flows,! with! Albanians! constituting! the! biggest! group!
(BaldwindEdwards! 2002:! 211,! Antonopoulos! and! Winterdyk! 2006:! 440).! Over! a! short! time!
also! undocumented! migrants! from! more! distant! countries! in! Middle! East,! Asia! and! Africa!
found! Greece! to! be! an! attractive! destination! country.! Both! the! country’s! geographical!
position! with! Europe’s! longest! coastline! and! a! growing! and! long! established! informal!
economy!that!offered!employment!to!unskilled!workers!made!it!an!attractive!destination!for!
! 42!
many! undocumented! migrants! d! including! asylum! seekers! (Karyotis! 2012:394,!
PapadopouloudKourkoula!2008:2).!!
Being!overwhelmed!with!the!large!number!of!migrants!and!asylum!seekers!as!well!as!a!rising!
pressure!from!the!EU!to!manage!and!control!immigrants!the!conservative!government!then!
in! power! designed! for! the! first! time! in! 1991! a! legislative! framework! for! immigration! d! the!
“Law!for!Aliens”,!Law!1975/1991!(PapadopouloudKourkoula!2008:4,!Karyotis!2012:!395).!The!
main! objective! of! the! law$ was! to! restrict! immigration! and! facilitate! expulsion! of! those!
already!present!in!Greece$(Triandafyllidou!2009:!159).!Deportation!and!expulsions!became!
legalized!as!the!law!defined!the!entrance!of!migrants!without!documents!or!resident!permit!
as! a! criminal$ action$ (Triandafyllidou! 2009:! 161).! Instead! of! differentiating! between! the!
diverse!categories!of!migrants,!all!categories!were!distorted!under!the!general!term!“aliens”.!
Notably,!only!two!out!of!36!articles!in!the!law!dealt!with!refugee!recognition!and!protection!
(Sitaropoulos!2000:107).!!
Migrants! who! were! potentially! in! need! of! protection! were! still! constructed! as! a! possible!
threat.! This! focus! on! security! became! evident! both! politically! and! in! public.! Stamatis,! the!
governmental!sponsor!of!the!Law!set!the!tone!by!representing!migration!as!a!serious!attack!
on!national!interests:!!
“And$ you$ are$ all$ very$ aware$ of$ the$ national$ threats$ that$ we$ are$ facing$ from$ bogus$
immigrants$ and$ bogus$ asylum$ seekers$ that$ request$ to$ be$ hosted$ in$ out$ country,$ while$ in$
reality$they$are$on$specific$missions,$missions$that$threaten$our$own$state,$our$borders$and$to$
a$great$extend$our$own$existence”$(Stamatis,!cited!in!Karyotis!2012:!396).$$$
Portraying! migrants! as! “bogus$ immigrants”$ and! “bogus$ asylum$ seekers”$ on! a! “mission”$ to!
destroy! Greece’s! “own$ existence”$ helped! define! the! issue! of! migrants! as! a! security! threat.!
Consequently,!the!immigration!policy!became!increasingly!criminalized.!Linking!migrants!to!
crime! became! a! legitimizer! to! execute! strict! migration! management.! For! instance,! the!
speaker!of!the!largest!opposition!party!PASOK,!Kotsonis,!argued:!!
“Suddenly,$ Greece$ started$ to$ get$ flooded$ with$ aliens,$ who$ enter,$ stay$ and$ work$ illegally,$
creating$enormous$social$problems$for$the$state,$while$they$inevitably$try$to$solve$their$own$
problems$by$engaging,$sadly,$in$various$criminal$activities”$(Kotsonis,!cited!in!Karyotis!2012:!
396).!!
Thus,!the!migrants!became!illegalized,!not!only!because!they!crossed!the!border!“illegally”!
(to! such! an! extent! that! Greece! got! “flooded$ with$ aliens”),$ but! also! by! constructing! a!
connection! between! poverty! and! criminality! by! indicating! the! involvement! of! migrants! in!
“criminal$activities”.$!
In!spite!of!the!harsh!tone!in!the!migration!debate,!still!more!would!apply!for!asylum!and!the!
Greek!authorities!realized!that!they!were!unable!to!hasten!the!processing.!This!was!around!
the!same!time!that!the!EU!initiated!efforts!to!coordinate!asylum!mainly!through!the!Dublin!
Convention,! which! should! turn! out! to! have! great! consequences! for! Greece! (Papadimitrios!
and!Papageorigiou!2005:!300).!
'
! 43!
INTEGRATION'OF'THE'EUROPEAN'MIGRATION'POLICY''
As! well! as! Greece! other! EU! countries! responded! to! the! increase! in! the! number! of! asylum!
seekers.! Especially! Germany! began! to! argue! for! a! policy! of! ‘burden! sharing’! among! the!
member! states! (Karamanidou! and! Schuster! 2011:169d171).! This! resulted! in! the! drive! to!
establish!a!Common!European!Asylum!System!(CEAS)!in!the!end!of!the!1990s.!The!idea!was!
to!make!a!joint!approach!“to$guarantee$high$standards$of$protection$for$refugees”$in!which$
“procedures$must$at$the$same$time$be$fair$and$effective$throughout$the$EU$and$impervious$
to$ abuse”$ ! (EU! 2013a).! The! object! was! to! make! sure! that! the! asylum! applicants! get! a! fair!
treatment!no!matter!in!which!member!state!they!apply.!It!further!contains!restatement!of!
the!commitment!to!respect!the!1951!Geneva!Convention!and!the!right!to!seek!asylum!(Ibid).!
At!the!same!time!though,!policies!were!set!up!in!order!to!control!and!reduce!the!mobility!of!
migration.!These!core!principles!were!embodied!in!the!Dublin!Convention!(now!replaced!by!
the! Dublin! Regulation),! which! came! into! force! in! 1997! (EU! 2013b)! and! highly! reduced! the!
mobility!and!space!of!action!within!the!EU.!The!keystone!of!the!Dublin!Regulation!is!that!the!
first! member! state! in! which! the! asylum! seeker! applies! for! asylum! is! responsible! for!
examining!the!asylum!application.!It!is!also!obliged!to!take!back!its!applicants!who!are!found!
in!other!member!states!(ibid).!Furthermore,!it!allows!the!use!of!what!is!called!the!‘safe!third!
country! concept’.! This! concept! permits! the! member! states! to! expel! asylum! seekers! to!
countries! outside! the! EU! i.e.! the! first! safe! country! reached! by! the! asylum! seeker! after!
leaving!their!home!country!(Schuster!2011:!1394).!!
The!main!purpose!of!the!Dublin!Regulation!was!to!avoid!migrants!who!abused!the!asylum!
system!by!applying!in!several!different!countries!(Ibid).!In!order!to!avoid!‘asylum!shopping’!
the! Eurodac! system! was! established.! Consisting! a! fingerprint! database! of! all! asylum!
applicants!in!the!EU!it!enables!the!member!states!to!determine!the!country!responsible!and!
send!back!the!applicant!to!the!first!member!state!(EU!2013c).!!
These! efforts! in! controlling! the! borders! of! the! EU! led! to! further! militarization! of! migration!
control! and! culminated! in! 2004! with! the! establishment! of! Frontex,! a! European! agency! in!
charge! of! managing! cooperation! between! member! states! in! matters! of! border! security!
(Frontex!2012).!As!another!example!of!burden!sharing!between!the!member!states,!Frontex!
clearly! shows! that! prioritizing! a! security! framework! and! migration! control! over! protecting!
refugee! rights! became! a! strong! policy! choice! of! the! EU! (Karamanidou! and! Schuster! 2011:!
186)!which!highly!contributed!to!the!configuration!of!migrant!“illegality”.!!
CURRENT'POLICIES''
The! effects! of! the! EU! polices! shortly! outlined! above! have! had! significant! influence! on! the!
Greek! system.! As! a! member! state! Greece! has! been,! and! still! is,! under! deep! pressure! to!
implement! the! common! EU! standards! on! asylum! procedures! and! protection,! but! also! to!
secure!its!borders!against!undocumented!migrants.!!
Due! to! its! location! as! the! Eastern! gateway! to! the! EU! and! its! coastline,! it! was! obvious! that!
when!Greece!signed!the!Dublin!Convention!and!when!it!later!in!2003!started!to!operate!the!
Eurodac!system,!it!would,!like!other!Southern!European!countries!as!Italy!and!Spain,!be!the!
! 44!
‘net! recipient’! of! asylum! seekers! who! were! sent! back! from! other! member! states!
(Papadimitrios!and!Papageorigiou!2005:!304).!!
The! increase! in! asylum! seekers,! both! those! that! were! sent! back! to! Greece! from! other!
member!states!but!also!those!that!arrived!from!outside!the!EU!caught!the!Greek!authorities!
unprepared! both! logistically! and! politically;! Practically! there! was! a! massive! lack! of! trained!
personnel!and!sufficient!training!of!staff!dealing!with!asylum!applicants!as!well!as!very!poor!
reception! and! detention! conditions.! Politically,! the! authorities! continued! the! skeptical!
opinion! about! asylum! seekers! who! were! presumed! to! attempt! to! abuse! the! system.!
Migrants! were! thus! still! seen! as! criminals,! as! “illegals”! that! did! not! deserve! to! stay! in! the!
country.! This! culture! of! disbelief! was! manifested! in! the! low! recognition! rate! of! refugee!
status!of!asylum!seekers.!Already!in!2002!Greece!had!the!lowest!recognition!rate!between!
the!member!states!in!the!EU!with!only!36!persons!recognized!as!refugees!(Papadimitrios!and!
Papageorigiou!2005:!306).!!
With!the!deep!economic!crisis!that!started!in!2008!the!country!faced!a!major!cut!down!on!
public!budgets,!which!intensified!what!the!United!Nations!High!Commissioner!for!Refugees!
(UNHCR)!described!in!2010!as!a!“humanitarian!crisis”!(Human!Rights!Watch!2012:!34).!The!
central! Police! Headquarters! in! Athens! would! only! accept! between! 20! to! 30! asylum!
applications! per! week.! This! meant! that! many! woulddbe! asylum! seekers! remained!
undocumented!and!without!protection—!only!because!they!were!not!allowed!access!to!the!
asylum!system!(Human!rights!watch!2013:19).!!
In!spite!of!a!new!asylum!law!(3907/2011)!that!was!passed!in!2011,!in!which!a!radical!reform!
of! the! asylum! system! was! introduced,! the! Greek! asylum! system! remained! dysfunctional!
(ibid).! The! European! Commission! assisted! with! financial! and! practical! support! in! order! to!
improve!the!system!and!create!better!conditions!for!migrants.!However,!although!the!new!
law! had! intentions! to! improve! the! system,! the! precedence! of! the! immigration! law!
3386/2005! (a! sequel! to! Law! 1975/1991! described! above)! created! major! hindrances! to!
accessing! asylum! procedures! as! the! law! (3386/2005)! still! allowed! arrest,! detention! and!
deportation! of! migrants,! including! separated! children,! entering! the! country! without! legal!
documents!(Karamanidou!and!Schuster!2011:!175).!!!
Becoming!aware!of!these!inhumane!conditions!for!migrants!in!Greece,!several!EU!member!
states! decided! in! 2011! to! suspend! Dublin! transfers! to! the! country.! The! European! Court! of!
Human! Rights! made! this! decision! on! the! background! of! a! ruling! in! January! 2011! that! the!
return! of! an! Afghan! asylum! seeker! from! Belgium! to! Greece! would! expose! him! to! great!
danger! due! to! the! brutal! and! degrading! conditions! for! migrants! in! Greece! (Human! Rights!
Watch!2012:!34).!!
In!spite!of!the!suspension!of!Dublin!transfers!the!asylum!system!in!Greece!still!suffers!from!
many!of!the!abovedmentioned!shortcomings.!One!major!weakness!of!the!asylum!system!is!
that! the! Greek! police! and! the! Ministry! of! Public! Order! and! Citizens! Protection! have! an!
exclusive! central! role! in! the! asylum! procedures.! Not! only! are! the! police! involved! in! the!
implementation!of!migration!control!such!as!arrest,!detention!and!deportation,!they!are!also!
responsible! for! deciding! on! asylum! claims.! This! makes! them! both! ‘prosecutors! and!
protectors’!(Karamanidou!and!Schuster!2011:!175)!and!thus!blurs!the!fundamental!principle!
! 45!
of! objectivity! that! should! characterise! any! aspect! of! the! asylum! process! (Ibid:! 179).!
However,!due!to!the!new!asylum!law!(3907/2011)!from!2011,!a!new!Asylum!Service,!which!
is! run! by! the! civil! service,! was! implemented! in! 2012.! This! has,! according! to! one! NGO!
representative,!both!taken!some!of!the!pressure!off!the!police!and!also!created!a!completely!
different!situation!for!migrants!who!want!to!apply!for!asylum.!First!of!all!they!can!avoid!the!
intimidating! confrontation! with! the! police! and! second! of! all,! the! chance! of! applying! for!
asylum!has!increased!as!the!Service!now!accepts!around!55!applications!per!day!(app.!D.2).!
Yet,!the!Police!still!have!around!40.000!pending!cases!that!they!have!to!finish!(app.!D.!5).!!
Nevertheless,! instead! of! making! an! effort! to! improve! reception! centres,! financial! support!
from! the! European! Commission! are! spent! on! building! more! detention! centres! around! the!
country!(ibid)!d!tendency!that!indicated!that!the!focus!is!still!on!controlling!migrants!rather!
than! on! human! rights.! ! This! focus! is! also! highlighted! by! the! deployment! of! Frontex! troops!
along!the!GreekdTurkish!border!and!the!newly!built!fence!along!parts!of!the!northern!border!
to! Bulgaria! in! order! to! prevent! “illegal”! entry! (Karamanidou! and! Schuster! 2011:! 175,! app.!
D.5).! The! “problem”! is! now! reduced! to! the! coasts.! Most! migrants! that! go! through! Turkey!
enter!one!of!the!Greek!islands!between!Turkey!and!Greece.!According!to!the!police!this!is!
highly!problematic!as!these!islands!are!touristic!destinations,!but!with!the!arrival!of!“illegal”!
migrants! these! places! gets! destroyed! (app.! D5).! The! migrants! thus! come! to! constitute! the!
‘polluted’!others,!the!ones!that!do!not!‘fit’!(Coutin!2003).!
THE'PUBLIC'OPINION'
Finally,!it!is!important!to!note!that!migrant!“illegality”!is!ultimately!sustained,!not!only!as!an!
effect! of! the! political! debate! and! the! dysfunctional! asylum! system,! but! also! the! broader!
public!debate!(De!Genova!2013:!43).!!
The!mismanaged!migration!and!asylum!policies!combined!with!widespread!hardship!in!the!
deep!economic!crisis!appear!to!have!fostered!a!climate!of!intolerance!towards!migrants!in!
the!public!debate.!!
As! an! effect! the! far! right! political! party,! Golden! Dawn,! an! unabashedly! neodfascist! party!
whose! stand! on! migrants! is! known! to! be! rather! controversial,! have! recently! gained!
popularity!among!Greek!citizens.!!The!leader!of!the!party,!Nikolaos!Michaloliakos,!explains!
the!party’s!view!on!migrants,!
“We$want$Greece$to$belong$to$the$Greeks.$We$are$proud$to$be$Greek;$we$want$to$save$our$
national$identity,$our$thousands3year$history.$If$that$means$we$are$racist,$then$yes$we$are.$
We$don’t$want$to$share$the$same$fate$of$the$Native$Americans.$Right$now,$the$immigrants$
are$the$cowboys$and$we$are$the$Apache”$(Human!Rights!Watch!2012:!37).!!
This! statement! clearly! shows! that! the! idea! of! migrants! as! a! threat! to! Greek! identity! is! still!
present! and! even! stronger! as! it! was! during! the! 1990s.! Moreover,! legitimizing! the! use! of!
racism!in!order!to!fight!the!migrants!has!proven!to!cause!a!dramatic!increase!in!the!number!
of!racist!attacks!on!migrants!(ibid).!Over!the!years!several!‘citizens!groups’!have!formed!in!
the! bigger! cities! in! Greece! patrolling! the! streets! at! night! in! order! to! protect! the! citizens.!
Although! no! evidence! has! been! found,! there! are! insistent! persecutions! that! Golden! Dawn!
! 46!
has! mobilized! these! groups! (ibid).! Whether! true! or! not,! it! is! obvious! that! the! public! has!
further!supported!and!even!developed!the!“illegalization”!of!migrants!in!Greece.!!
CONCLUDING'REMARKS'
In!this!chapter!I!have!highlighted!a!series!of!important!factors!that!have!been!instrumental!
in!giving!shape!to!migrant!“illegality”!in!its!present!day!form!in!Greece.!!
According!to!Khosravi!the!concern!of!how!migrants!are!being!configured!as!“illegals”!is!very!
often! framed! by! a! securitization! discourse! in! which! the! ‘other’! is! positioned! as! a! risk! to!
security! (Khosravi! 2010b:! 96).! This! has,! as! we! have! seen,! also! been! the! case! in! the! Greek!
context.! From! being! more! or! less! ignored! to! being! elevated! into! the! realm! of! security,!
migrants! have! been! turned! into! “illegalized”! subjects.! First! of! all,! the! establishment! of! an!
immigration!policy,!caused!by!a!need!to!control!and!sort!populations!of!migrants,!is!in!itself!
a!process!of!“illegalization”.!The!political!discourse!with!focus!on!securitization!of!migrants!
and! border! control,! strongly! influenced! by! the! EU! has! been! the! first! and! maybe! the! most!
important! step! in! constructing! migrants! as! “illegals”.! The! Dublin! Regulation,! Eurodac! and!
Frontex! are! among! the! most! crucial! and! effective! European! technologies! in! constructing!
migrant!“illegality”.!However,!we!have!also!seen!how!the!Greek!asylum!system!has!more!or!
less! cracked! down! because! of! the! side! affects! of! the! Dublin! Regulation! as! well! as! the!
economic! crisis.! In! the! following! chapter! I! will! look! into! the! consequences! that! this!
dysfunctional!asylum!system!have!for!the!separated!Afghan!Children.!
Finally,! the! public! discourse! that! has! been! shaped! due! to! the! political! discourse! and! the!
economic! crisis! in! the! country! has! further! been! an! important! factor! in! the! shaping! of!
migrant!“illegality”.!!
This! historically,! legally,! politically! and! socially! produced! “illegality”! deeply! impacts! all!
migrants’! lives,! including! in! particular! separated! children.! Thus,! in! the! following! chapter! I!
aim!to!show!how!the!“illegalized”!positions!that!the!children!are!placed!in!affect!and!shape!
their!everyday!life.!!!
!
!
!
(
(
(
(
! 47!
6''6'LIFE'IN'THE'`STATE'OF'EXCEPTION´'
$
“I$don’t$like$it$here.$Nobody$here$helps$immigrants”$
Reza,!app.!D.1!
“You$are$illegal!$Okay,$I$am$illegal,$but$for$example$why$
don’t$they$beat$up$a$driver$who$has$thousand$kilos$of$drugs$
in$his$truck?$They$beat$me$who$like$to$go$to$Italy.$They$beat$
me$up$who$wants$to$study$and$make$a$future$[…]$I$am$not$
dangerous.$I$like$to$just$sit$down$and$talk$$[…]$I$want$to$
make$my$own$life.$
Amin,!app.!D.1!
!
These! opening! quotes! from! Reza! and! Amin,! two! of! the! separated! Afghan! children,! give! at! first!
glance! an! idea! of! how! it! is! to! live! a! life! in! “illegality”! in! Greece! and! how! the! meeting! with! the!
authorities!and!the!Greek!society!is!experienced.!!!
In!the!previous!chapter!I!have!described!how!migrant!“illegality”!has!been!configured!in!Greece.!
In!this!chapter!I!will!take!a!step!further!and!analyse!how!the!condition!of!“illegality”!shapes!and!
affects! the! children’s! everyday! life,! thereby! answering! the! second! subdquestion! (How$ does$ the$
condition$ of$ “illegality”$ shape$ and$ affect$ the$ children’s$ everyday$ life?).$ Here! I! will! look! at! what!
mechanisms!of!control!and!exclusionary!practices!they!are!confronted!with!and!how!these!affect!
them.!$
In! particular! three! themes! proved! to! be! recurrent! in! the! children’s! narratives! of! how! the!
“illegality”!shapes!and!affect!their!everyday!lives:!lack!of!rights,!police!violence!and!racism.!The!
analysis! will! be! structured! accordingly.! Thus,! the! first! section! will! focus! on! the! children’s!
experiences!of!lack!of!rights.!I!will!here!touch!upon!the!practical!consequences!of!being!without!
rights.!Then!I!turn!to!the!second!section!in!which!I!focus!more!specifically!on!the!meeting!with!
the!police!and!the!experience!of!detention.!The!last!section!of!this!chapter!turns!attention!to!the!
children’s!meeting!with!Greek!citizens!with!special!focus!on!racism!and!xenophobia.!!
Agamben!will!constitute!the!theoretical!framework!of!this!chapter.!I!will!draw!on!his!notion!of!
‘state!of!exception’!in!order!to!understand!how!the!children!are!positioned!in!the!Greek!society,!
while! the! concepts! of! ‘homo! sacer’! and! ‘bare! life’! will! be! applied! to! analyse! the! plight! of! the!
children.!!
NO'RIGHT'TO'HAVE'RIGHTS''
Almost!all!my!informants!were!holders!of!a!pink!card!–a!document!that,!according!to!Greek!law,!
! 48!
should! give! them! access! to! a! number! of! rights! such! as! healthcare,! education! and!
accommodation! in! reception! centres.! However,! the! experiences! expressed! by! my! informants!
show! the! contrary.! Amin! explains,! “I$ have$ the$ pink$ card,$ but$ it$ doesn’t$ help”$ (app.! D.1)! –! a!
sentence!I!got!to!hear!several!times!during!my!fieldwork.$
Thus,!in!the!following!section!I!will!analyse!the!children’s!experience!of!lack!of!rights.!I!will!focus!
on! the! their! experiences! upon! arrival! and! challenges! concerning! shelter,! food,! education! and!
healthcare.!!
ARRIVING'TO'GREECE'
When!separated!children!enter!Greece,!they!are!in!most!cases!caught!by!the!coast!guards!and!
brought!to!a!detention!centre!where!they!have!to!stay!until!their!age!has!been!assessed.!If!they!
are!considered!minors!they!will!be!brought!to!a!reception!centre,!if!not,!they!are!mostly!left!on!
their!own!(app.!D.!5).!!!
The!following!story!of!Sami,!Yashar!and!Ali,!gives!an!insight!into!how!this!procedure!works!–or!
rather!how!it!is!supposed!to!work.!!
I!meet!the!three!boys!on!my!third!day!in!Athens!in!one!of!the!parks!where!Afghan!migrants,!both!
separated! children,! young! men! and! families! normally! spend! time! during! the! afternoon.! After! I!
have!been!sitting!alone!on!a!bench!for!some!time!Sami,!Yashar!and!Ali!approach!me.!Right!away!
one! of! them! asks! me! in! English! where! I! am! from.! I! answer! him! in! Farsi! and! our! conversation!
starts.!!
They!tell!me!that!they!arrived!in!Athens!three!days!ago.!Like!most!other!Afghan!migrants!they!
came! to! Greece! through! the! most! common! route! from! Iran! through! Turkey! and! then! from!
Turkey! to! Greece! by! the! help! of! a! smuggler! (Ibid)! –! a! journey! that! can! cost! up! to! 20.000! US!
dollars!(Mougne!2010:17,!Boland!2010:53).!!
As! a! consequence! of! harsher! border! control,! not! only! the! cost! of! human! smuggling! has!
increased,!but!also!the!danger.!Many!migrants!pay!the!price!of!the!harsher!border!control,!both!
with!their!money,!but!also!with!their!lives!(Khosravi!2010a).!Yashar,!Sami!and!Ali!managed!the!
trip,!but!it!was!not!without!challenges.!They!had!to!cross!the!mountains!from!Iran!to!Turkey.!It!
took!them!nearly!24!hours:!“Even!some!Afghan!children!die!on!the!way!through!these!mountains!
during! winter! because! of! cold! weather”! says! Yashar! (app.! C).! I! ask! them! how! they! got! from!
Turkey!to!Greece.!They!tell!me!that!they!had!to!wait!three!days!in!Istanbul!before!they!went!by!
boat!to!one!of!the!Greek!islands.!But!on!the!way,!just!200!meters!from!the!coastline!the!Greek!
police!caught!them.!Being!undocumented,!they!were!brought!to!a!detention!centre.!Ali!explains,!
“it!was!not!nice!(…)!only!a!little!bit!of!rice!in!a!glass,!sometimes!only!half!a!glass.!They!were!not!
nice!to!refugees!there”!(Ibid).!
This!narrative!does!not!only!show!how!border!control!makes!the!journey!extremely!risky!for!the!
children!it!also!gives!an!illuminating!insight!into!what!it!is!to!be!“illegalized”!already!upon!arrival!
as!it!is!“illegal”!for!the!subjects!without!citizenship!simply!to!be!present!within!the!territory!of!
the!state.!!
! 49!
The!children’s!very!presence! without! citizenship! becomes! a! challenge! to! the! ‘national! order! of!
things’!(Malkki!1995)!where!all!human!beings!are!supposed!to!belong!to!a!nation.!Being!outside!
the! realm! of! citizenship,! the! children! become! dehumanized.! The! outcome! is! a! position! of!
“included! exclusion”;! the! children! are! detained! upon! arrival! and! thus! included! as! objects! of!
sovereign! power,! but! at! the! same! time,! not! being! citizens,! they! are! excluded! from! the! normal!
law! and! thus! positioned! as! ‘homo! sacer’! without! right! to! have! rights! (Agamben! 1998).! As! we!
shall!see,!this!position!follows!the!children!throughout!almost!every!aspects!of!their!everyday!life!
in!Greece.!!
LEAVING'THE'‘SYSTEM’'
When! I! asked! the! boys! what! happened! next,! they! tell! me! that! they! were! released! from! the!
detention! centre! after! 17! days.! They! had! declared! themselves! to! be! adults! in! order! to! be!
released!earlier.!Ali!explains:!!
$“If$they$knew$we$were$minors$they$would$take$us$to$a$centre$for$minors.$We$didn’t$want$that.$
Then$they$let$us$go”$(Ibid).!!
They! were! thus! aware! that! if! they! declared! themselves! as! minors,! they! would! be! placed! in! a!
reception!centre.!According!to!one!NGO!representative!this!can!be!a!long!procedure:!!
“For$this$reason$many$minors$are$kept$in$detention$for$a$long$time.$We$have$even$found$cases$
where$minors$are$detained$for$six$months”$(app.!D.2).$$
To! avoid! this,! they! lie! about! their! age,! and! as! there! are! no! reliable! age! assessments! in! the!
detention!centres,!it!becomes!an!easy!strategy!that!many!other!Afghan!boys!I!talked!to!had!also!
followed!(app.!C).!They!are!thus!released!without!any!confirmation!of!custodian!or!residency.!In!
other!words,!the!police!leave!the!children!to!a!selfdsustained!existence!on!the!streets.!!
However,!most!of!my!other!informants!who!had!been!in!Greece!for!longer!time!had!experienced!
life!in!reception!centres.!Two!of!them,!Karim!(15)!and!Babak!(16)!who!had!been!in!Greece!for!3!
and!2!years,!respectively,!told!me!that!they!had!stayed!in!a!reception!centre!for!some!time,!but!
ran!away!because!the!conditions!were!so!bad.!“What$was$I$supposed$to$do$there?”!says!Karim!
when!I!asked!why!he!ran!away!(ibid).!Babak!explains!his!reasons!for!not!staying:!!
“All$the$people$that$I$know$are$here$in$Athens.$I$wanted$to$be$with$them.$There$was$nothing$to$do$
there$[in$the$reception$centre]$and$it$was$far$from$everything”!(ibid).!!
One! NGO! representatives! recognizes! this! tendency! among! the! children! and! explains! that! the!
main!problem!with!the!reception!centres!is!the!lack!of!funding:!!
“It$is$very$uncertain$every$year$if$they$[the$reception$centres]$have$funds$to$continue,$if$they$can$
have$staff,$if$there$is$someone$there$to$clean$and$feed$the$children$(…)$sometimes$they$have$to$
stop$in$periods$because$they$don’t$have$money$to$pay$the$staff$(…)$many$of$the$youngsters$they$
don’t$stay$very$long$cause$they$have$nothing$to$do$there”!(app.!D.4).!!
Thus,!between!the!two!options!of!staying!in!a!reception!centre!or!selfdsustained!existence,!all!my!
respondents!chose!the!latter.!The!first!option!would!give!them!some!degree!of!protection,!but!
with!no!guarantee.!The!second!option!offers!them!more!freedom!to!move!around!and!try!their!
! 50!
luck! to! get! out! of! Greece,! but! at! the! same! time! it! offers! no! protection! at! all! and! leaves! the!
children!even!more!vulnerable.!!
OUTSIDE'THE'SYSTEM'6'AFGHAN'HOTELS,'PARKS'AND'THE'‘OFFICE’'
Research! on! “illegal”! migrants! has! often! pointed! out! how! migrants! normally! stay! in! lessd
attractive!areas!with!big!concentrations!of!migrants,!so!called!‘immigrant!areas’!(Khosravi!2010b,!
104).! Many! of! my! informants! in! Athens! live! in! such! area! in! the! northern! part! of! the! city.! Here!
they!stay!in!apartments,!also!known!as!‘Afghan!hotels’,!where!they!typically!share!a!room!with!
four!to!six!others!and!pay!either!a!daily!or!monthly!rent!(app.!C).!!
Sami,! Yashar! and! Ali! tell! me! that! they! found! a! room! in! one! of! the! Afghan! hotels,! which! they!
share! with! some! of! the! other! boys! that! came! with! the! same! boat.! They! pay! 3! euros! each! per!
night!(app.!C).!Also!Babak,!Karim!and!their!friend!Farhad!(17)!share!a!room!with!some!other!boys!
each!paying!50!euros!a!month.!“That$is$much$better$than$staying$in$the$park”$says!Farhad.!He!has!
been! in! Greece! for! 6! years! and! tells! me! that! he! and! also! Babak! and! Karim! used! to! stay! in! the!
park,!but!not!anymore.!Only!when!they!are!out!of!money,!they!go!to!the!park!where!they!sleep!
on!the!roof!of!a!shed!so!that!they!avoid!being!caught!by!the!police!(ibid).!!!
In! Patras! things! look! slightly! different.! Here! I! meet! Amin! (16)! and! Reza! (19)8!who! tell! me! that!
they!stay!together!with!many!other!migrants!in!an!old!abandoned!office!building!in!the!industrial!
area!of!Patras.!They!refer!to!their!home!as!the$office.$Reza!explains!that!they!do!not!have!money!
to! pay! rent! so! staying! in! the$ office! became! their! only! choice.! Here! they! sleep! on! shabby!
mattresses!and!cook!on!a!small!fire!in!the!middle!of!a!room!(app!D.1).!The!following!quote!from!
Reza!further!gives!a!picture!of!the!conditions!under!which!they!live,!!
“Where$ we$ sleep$ there$ are$ mice,$ very$ big$ ones$ with$ long$ tails.$ There$ are$ many$ because$ the$
building$is$broken”$(app.!D.1).!
Finding! accommodation! is! thus! a! constant! concern! for! the! children! outside! the! system! due! to!
lack! of! financial! resources! and! right! to! housing.! Accordingly! they! are! forced! to! stay! under!
precarious!conditions.!!
HUNGER'AND'SCARCITY''
One! of! the! days! I! sit! in! Victoria! Park! with! a! group! of! some! of! the! boys! including! Babak! and!
Farhad!who!were!eager!to!tell!me!about!their!situation.!Just!as!all!the!others!I!met,!they!need!
money,! not! only! for! survival,! but! also! to! get! out! of! the! country.! In! many! cases,! the! smugglers!
keep!more!money!than!agreed!in!order!to!take!the!children!to!Greece,!which!leaves!the!children!
with!less!–!or!no!money!at!all!when!they!arrive!and!they!are!therefore!constantly!in!search!of!
income!(app.!C).!!
Coutin! notes! how! formalized! wage! labour! can! become! a! key! marker! of! personhood! and!
citizenship!(Coutin!2003)!–!something!that!could!possible!make!the!children!feel!less!excluded.!
But!although!those!of!them!holding!a!pink!card!are!actually!allowed!to!work!there!is!neither!jobs!
for!them!or!for!the!Greeks,!they!say!(app.!C).!Due!to!an!unemployment!rate!on!30!percent!and!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
8
!At!the!time!of!the!interview,!Reza!had!been!in!Greece!for!3!years.!He!thus!arrived!in!Greece!as!a!
separated!child!and!I!therefore!chose!to!include!him!in!my!research.!!
! 51!
youth! unemployment! rate! on! 60! percent! among! Greeks,! there! are! not! much! jobs! left! for! the!
children!(Kenneth!GCR,!app.!D.4),!not!even!in!the!informal!sector.!!
Most! of! the! boys! receive! money! from! their! family! in! Iran! or! from! relatives! in! Europe,! but! not!
enough! to! buy! a! fake! passport,! which! costs! around! 5000! euros.! This! leaves! them! in! poverty,!
which!in!some!cases!forces!them!to!do!jobs!they!would!otherwise!not!have!done.!!
Although! none! of! my! informants! talked! about! it,! there! are,! according! to! two! NGO!
representatives,!cases!where!the!children!survive!through!prostitution.!One!of!them!explains:!!
“We$know$it$happens$in$Alexandria$Park$at$night.$I$only$have$one$case$where$he$told$me$about$
this,$but$he$is$not$a$minor$now,$he$is$19.$But$I$know$that$it$happens,$unfortunately”$(app.!D.3).$$
Others,!including!one!of!my!informants,!Babak,!resorted!to!the!crime!of!selling!drugs!in!order!to!
get!an!income.!Babak!explains,!
“Last$year,$when$I$lived$in$the$park$I$had$to$do$something$bad$to$get$money.$I$sold$hash.$What$
could$I$do?$I$didn’t$have$any$money.$What$could$I$do?$(…)$We$have$no$money,$no$school,$no$real$
home,$no$job$and$no$rights”$(app.!C).!$
Babak’s! frustration! of! not! having! any! rights! is! evident.! Constructed! as! “illegal”! –! an! apolitical!
‘homo! sacer’,! he! is! excluded! from! the! rights! of! the! citizens! (Agamben! 1998)! and! thus! has! to!
resort! to! crime.! Selling! hash! was! a! necessity! in! order! to! survive,! as! no! other! instances! would!
assure!his!survival.!
Due! to! the! lack! of! income! most! of! my! informants! had! great! difficulties! in! terms! of! getting! a!
proper!daily!meal.!When!I!asked!Babak,!Farhad!and!their!friend!Hadi!(16)!where!they!get!food!
from,!Hadi!tells!me!that!they!normally!fast.!The!others!quickly!ensure!me!that!he!is!making!fun,!
but!that!it!is!true!that!some!days!they!do!not!eat!at!all!because!they!do!not!have!money.!Babak!
says!that!here!they!have!no!mother!to!cook!for!them!like!in!Iran.!He!has!lost!a!lot!of!weight!since!
he!came!to!Greece!two!years!ago!because!of!lack!of!real$food,!he!explains!(app.!C).!!
However,! like! other! Afghan! boys! I! meet! in! Athens,! they! sometimes! go! to! church! organizations!
and!soup!kitchens!to!eat9.!!
In! Patras! the! boys! also! do! not! have! jobs! and! are! out! of! money.! According! to! Reza! things! are!
getting!worse!every!year.!“It’s$very$hard”$he!says!(app.!D.1)!and!explains!that!they!do!not!even!
have!money!to!buy!food.!When!I!ask!where!they!get!food!from,!Amin!answers,!!
A:$ “If$ I$ don’t$ lie$ to$ you,$ from$ the$ bazar.$ What$ they$ throw$ out,$ we$ take$ if$ there$ is$ something$
eatable”$(ibid).!!
D:$And$you$cook$yourself?$
A:$Yes,$we$get$oil$and$other$things$from$an$old$woman,$Mummy.$For$example$oil,$tomato$paste,$
and$sometimes$pasta.$But$she$doesn’t$have$so$much$money.$
(…)$
D:$What$does$the$shopkeeper$say$when$he$sees$that$you$take$food$from$the$bazar?$
A:$He$thinks$the$food$is$not$useful$anymore,$it’s$rotten,$and$so$he$throws$it$out.$$
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
9
!I!will!return!to!the!role!of!soup!kitchens!and!church!organizations!in!chapter!8!
! 52!
D:$Don’t$they$tell$you$to$leave?$
A:$Yes,$sometimes,$but$we$have$no$other$option.$Thursdays,$Tuesdays,$whatever$is$found,$we$eat.$
Some$people$have$money$and$they$just$go$easily$to$buy$the$food,$but$some$don’t$(Ibid).!!
As! these! accounts! clearly! illuminate,! the! children! become! deeply! marked! by! poverty.!
Consequently,!the!everyday!life!of!most!of!the!children!becomes!a!struggle!of!survival,!as!they!
are!obviously!not!subjects!for!any!social!welfare.!!!
LIMITED'ACCESS'TO'PUBLIC'SERVICES'6`YOU'HAVE'TO'BE'ALMOST'DYING’'
Parallel!to!the!poor!living!conditions,!also!within!education!and!healthcare!the!children!they!face!
a!number!of!hindrances.!!
According!to!Greek!Law!separated!children!have!access!to!education!under!similar!circumstances!
as!Greek!nationals.!However,!the!number!of!separated!children!who!attend!school!is!extremely!
low.!According!to!one!of!the!NGO!representatives,!the!biggest!problem!with!access!to!education!
is! that! the! children! will! have! to! follow! classes! in! Greek! (app.! D.3).! None! of! my! informants! had!
received!any!Greek!language!classes,!and!as!most!of!them!knew!only!the!Greek!that!they!learned!
in!the!streets!they!were!not!allowed!access!to!the!schools.!Babak!had!tried!to!get!into!a!school!
once,!but!he!was!rejected!(app.!C).!!
Concerning! healthcare,! holders! of! the! pink! card! are! allowed! access! to! hospitals.! However,!
according!to!Reza,!who!recently!went!to!hospital!because!the!police!broke!his!arm!(something!I!
will! come! back! to! in! the! next! section)! the! service! provided! is! very! poor! and! leads! to! deep!
frustration:!!
!
“When$ you$ go$ to$ hospital$ no$ one$ cares$ for$ you.$ You$ have$ to$ be$ almost$ dying$ (…)$ I$ went$ to$ the$
hospital$to$get$the$pictures$[x3ray],$but$they$made$me$wait$for$many$hours.$So$after$the$pictures,$
my$doctor$wrote$that$I$have$to$bandage$it,$but$again$no$one$was$taking$responsibility$to$do$it$in$
the$hospital”$(app.!D.1).!!
Reza’s!experience!with!the!hospital!shows!his!frustration!of!being!regarded!as!“illegal”.!Being!a!
‘nondcitizen’!he!is!treated!with!less!care!than!others!holding!a!citizenship.!!!
The! challenges! faced! by! the! children! suggest! that! holding! a! ‘pink! card’! does! not! necessarily!
ensure!them!the!rights!they!are!entitled.!This!dilemma!exemplifies!Greece’s!failure!in!living!up!to!
international! conventions! and! declarations! mainly! due! to! its! dysfunctional! asylum! system.! The!
rights!thus!become!inaccessible!for!those!in!need!of!it.!In!Hannah!Arendt’s!words!the$‘Rights$of$
Man’$are!for!those!people!who!do!not!have!access!to!them$(Arendt!1967).!For!Arendt,!there!was!
only! one! kind! of! human! right! and! that! was! the! ‘right! to! have! rights’! –the! right! to! claim! ones!
rights.! The! problem,! according! to! Arendt,! is! that! rights! are! based! on! citizens’! rights! and! can!
therefore!only!be!achieved!through!the!nationdstate!system.!
Thus,!not!being!citizens!the!children!are!position!in!a!‘state!of!exception’!d!a!space!where,!as!we!
shall!see!in!the!following!section,!everything!can!happen!as!all!form!of!normal!juridical!order!and!
law!is!suspended!(Agamben!1998).!!
! 53!
ENCOUNTERING'THE'POLICE'
!
“We’ve$been$beaten$up,$chased$by$their$$
cars$and$fell,$broke$legs$and$arms”$
Amin,!app.!D.1!
!
As! shown! in! the! previous! section! the! ‘state! of! exception’! does! not! refer! exclusively! to! a!
contained!space,!but!exists!in!relation!to!the!children!and!where!ever!they!go.!Thus,!it!may!be!
argued! that! the! dysfunctional! asylum! system! ensures! that! the! entire! Greek! political! space!
operates!as!a!zone!of!exception,!an!‘absolute!biodpolitical!space’,!in!which!“the$very$concepts$of$
subjective$right$and$juridical$protection$no$longer$made$any$sense”$(Agamben!1998:!170).!!
Consequently,! being! outside! the! law,! the! children! are! left! vulnerable! to! different! kinds! of!
violence! without! any! legal! consequences.! Except! from! the! violence! of! their! rights! to! basic!
survival! as! shown! in! the! previous! section,! the! children! are,! as! the! quote! above! indicates,! in! a!
position! where! their! lives! are! subject! to! extreme! violence! by! state! agents! (the! police)! who!
temporarily!act!as!sovereign.!!!
This! section! will! uncover! the! children’s! encounter! with! the! police! and! the! police! violence! that!
they! are! exposed! to! –! both! in! the! children’s! spaces! of! everyday! life! as! well! as! in! detention!
centres.!!
‘NO'ONE'TAKES'RESPONSIBILITY,'THIS'IS'SO'HARD’'
I!am!sitting!a!park!in!Athens!together!with!four!boys,!Farhad,!Babak,!Behnam!and!Hadi!talking!
about!their!life!in!Greece.!Suddenly!the!police!pass!by!on!motorcycles!and!everyone!turns!quiet.!
I! get! the! sense! that! none! of! them! feel! safe! when! the! police! are! present.! Hadi! confirms! my!
thoughts,!“Look,!that!was!the!dogs.!We!call!them!dogs!in!Iran.!Here!we!call!them!pigs”,!he!says!
(app.!C).!Babak!tells!me!that!none!of!them!like!the!Greek!police.!Whenever!they!encounter!the!
police! they! get! into! trouble.! Therefore! they! try! to! keep! low! profile! whenever! they! see! them!
(ibid).!!
Later!that!day!while!still!sitting!in!the!park!I!ask!the!boys!if!they!had!ever!been!to!Patras.!Behnam!
tells!me!that!he!normally!stays!in!Patras,!but!most!of!the!time!he!is!in!Athens,!“Athens!is!better.!
In!Patras!there!are!many!fascists”!he!says!and!refers!to!the!police!(ibid).!!
Although!the!boys!in!Athens!did!not!mention!specific!examples!of!police!violence,!the!way!they!
talked! about! the! police! illuminates! that! all! of! them! were! somehow! aware! of! the! position! they!
are!placed!in!as!nondpolitical!subjects,!ergo!able!to!treat!this!way.!!!
Contrary!to!my!informants!in!Athens,!the!two!boys!in!Patras,!Reza!and!Amin,!had!countless!of!
experiences!with!police!violence.!Some!of!the!most!dramatic!episodes!relates!to!the!behaviour!
of!the!port!police!officers!in!Patras.!As!noted!in!chapter!3,!Patras!is!the!biggest!harbour!in!Greece!
and! constitutes! an! important! terminal! for! ferries! leaving! for! Ancona,! Bari! and! Venice! in! Italy,!
hence!a!central!“jumping!off!point”!for!migrants!to!go!to!other!parts!of!the!EU!(Human!Rights!
Watch!2008:!32).!Both!Amin!and!Reza!explain!that!they!go!to!the!harbour!almost!every!day!in!
! 54!
search! of! trucks! departing! for! Italy.! Attempting! to! hide! under! or! inside! trucks,! they! have! both!
experienced!being!caught!a!number!of!times!by!port!police!officers.!Amin!reveals:!!!
“They$ [the! police]! sometimes$ let$ a$ dog$ go$ to$ check$ everything$ under$ the$ cars$ (…)$ if$ the$ police$
doesn’t$notice$anything$the$dog$does$(…)$for$example$if$it$is$winter$and$if$the$dog$catches$you,$
they$[the!police]!take$you$to$the$sea$shore.$They$take$your$phone$and$throw$it$to$the$sea$for$sure$
and$you$yourself$and$they$look$at$you$and$they$laugh.$They$stand$and$laugh$at$you.$And$if$you$
don’t$put$your$head$under$the$water$they$press$it$with$their$feet,$they$press$you$to$the$water”$
(app.!D.1).!!
Also!Reza!has!experienced!being!thrown!to!the!water:!!
“They$throw$you$in$the$water.$They$say$‘take$of$your$clothes’.$$If$its$hot$weather,$if$they$catch$you$
they$let$you$to$stand$in$the$sun$till$the$ship$leaves”$(ibid).!!
In!spite!of!the!risk!of!being!caught!Amin!still!goes!to!the!harbour!almost!everyday.!For!Reza!it!is!
different.!Last!time!he!was!caught!by!the!police!officers!they!hit!him!with!a!baron!and!left!him!in!
the!streets!with!a!broken!arm!(app.!C).!Something!that!led!to!great!frustration!for!Reza:!
“Now$I$can’t$even$complain$to$the$police.$I$can’t$complain$anywhere$(…)$they$don’t$answer$at$all.$
Even$if$I$go$to$the$police$station$they$say$‘it’s$none$of$our$business.$(…)$‘You$are$illegal’$(…)$If$they$
catch$a$drug$smuggler$they$don’t$hurt$him$physically,$they$put$him$in$prison$for$10$to$15$years$for$
example.$But$if$they$see$an$Afghan,$they$beat$you$up$(…)$No$one$asks$the$commander$‘why$you$
do$that?’$(…)$No$one$takes$responsibility.$This$is$so$hard”$(app.!D.1).!!
These!accounts!testify!the!powerless!positions!of!the!children!in!their!meeting!with!the!police.!
Without! political! subjectivity! they! are! situated! in! a! “zone! of! indistinction”! where,! as! Agamben!
expresses!it,!the!principle!of!“everything!is!possible”!is!present.!!!
Not! only! are! the! children! deprived! of! their! rights,! but! also! their! ‘otherness’! has! come! to! be!
regarded,!at!least!by!some!agents!of!the!Greek!state,!as!legitimation!of!the!practise!of!physical!
violence!against!them.!The!behaviour!of!the!police!officers!could!thus!be!analysed!in!relation!to!
what! Agamben! conceptualize! as! pure! violence.! In! the! zone! of! indistinction! the! pure! violence!
rule,!not!as!a!mean!to!establish!the!juridical!order,!but!rather!on!the!police’s!autonomous!sense!
of!ethics!and!civility!(Agamben!2005:195).!!
Furthermore,!Reza’s!story!about!not!being!able!to!complain!anywhere!shows!that!the!children’s!
very! existence! seems! to! convict! them! to! an! abject! condition! of! speechlessness,! which! renders!
them! no! chance! to! directly! challenge! the! violence! they! are! exposed! to.! Most! likely! it! would!
never!be!accepted!if!a!Greek!citizen!were!exposed!to!the!same!form!of!violence!by!the!police,!
nor! to! ignore! the! fundamental! principle! of! the! right! to! complain! or! bring! charges! against! the!
police.!!
Moreover,!the!last!story!exposes,!being!“illegalized”!by!the!police!is!also!a!racialised!experience,!
telling! us! that! getting! caught! on! the! background! of! being! an! Afghan$ rather! than! a! Greek$ drug$
smuggler,!the!boys’!race!and!ethnicity!is!what!makes!him!criminal.!It!is!thus!not!the!children’s!
actions! that! are! the! main! focus! in! the! discourse! of! illegality.! It! is! rather! their! beings$ (Schinkel!
2009:!787).$$
! 55!
Yet,!it!is!not!only!at!the!harbour!that!the!children!are!exposed!to!the!risk!of!police!violence!and!
harassment,!but!also!in!their!home.$Reza!explains:!!
“They$[the!police]!even$destroy$the$home$and$food$you$have$made$yourself$if$they$find$you.$They$
even$take$your$phone.$What$ever$you$have$they$take.$What$we$use$for$cooking,$they$throw$into$
the$fire”$(app.!D.1).!!
Also! in! the! streets! the! police! do! not! leave! the! boys! alone.! Both! Amin! and! Reza! reveal! that!
showing!the!pink!card!to!the!police!does!not!spare!them!from!problems.!Reza!tells:!!
“They$[the!police]!have$given$me$the$pink$card$themselves,$but$when$they!catch$me$and$ask$me$if$
I$have$the$pink$card,$I$show$it$to$them,$they$look$at$it$and$throw$it$away$and$say$‘okay,$go$grab$
it!’$ (…)$ or$ they$ take$ it$ from$ me$ and$ tell$ me$ to$ come$ tomorrow$ to$ get$ it$ (…)$ such$ situation$ can$
happen$very$often$that$the$police$annoy$you$(…)$They$never$think$logically,$to$think$for$example$
maybe$I$am$right$about$something”$(app.!D.1).!!
These!passages!once!again!witness!that!within!the!‘state!of!exception’!the!children!are!caught!in!
an!‘inclusive!exclusion’;!they!are!excluded!from!the!normal!law!(of!the!citizens),!but!at!the!same!
time! included! as! objects! of! the! exercised! power! of! the! police! where! both! moral! and! legal!
principles! are! completely! absent.! As! Agamben! puts! it,! within! the! ‘state! of! exception’! “every!
distinction!between!proper!and!improper,!between!possible!and!impossible,!radically!disappear”!
(Agamben!2000:75).!!
‘DON’T'THINK'THAT'THEIR'PRISONS'ARE'CLEAN’''
One! of! the! most! central! mechanisms! rendering! the! children’s! “illegal”! position! is! undoubtedly!
the!risk!of!being!detained.!The!story!of!Sami,!Yashar!and!Ali!in!the!previous!section,!showed!us!
that!children!are!regularly!detained!on!arrival.!However,!it!is!not!only!on!arrival!that!the!risk!of!
being!detained!appears.!Both!in!Athens!and!Patras!there!are!regular!launchings!of!special!police!
forces! aiming! to! round! up! undocumented! migrants.! One! of! the! police! officers! I! interviewed!
explains:!!
“We$have$a$lot$of$actions$made$in$Greece$and$specifically$in$big$centres.$It$is$called$Xenios$Zeus$
this$programme$that$we$sweep$all$the$area$(…)$We$arrest$everybody$that$is$illegal$and$then$they$
get$in$detention$centres”$(P2,!app.!D.!5).!!
Ironically,! the! name! of! the! operation,! Xenios! Zeus! means! Zeus’! hospitality,! but! is! anything! but!
hospitable! to! the! migrants.! It! is! no! difference! whether! they! hold! a! pink! card! or! not.! Amin!
explains:!!
“If$the$police$catch$us$now$even$when$we$have$the$pink$card,$they$can$still$put$us$in$jail”$$
(app.!D.1).!!
According! to! Human! Rights! Watch,! the! police! caught! almost! 85.000! people! of! foreign! origin!
between! August! 2012! and! February! 2013! solely! in! Athens.! Only! six! percent! were! found! to! be!
living! unlawfully! in! Greece! (Human! Rights! Watch! 2013b:! 13d14).! Thus,! many! of! the! migrants,!
including!the!children,!are!detained!as!“illegals”!due!to!reasons!beyond!their!control.!!
! 56!
The!launching!of!such!operation!clearly!exposes!the!‘naked!body’!of!the!subjects!of!“illegality”!in!
Greece.! Targeting! only! a! certain! ‘category’! of! subjects! noticeably! brings! associations! to! other!
welldknown$ ‘sweeping’! operations! in! the! history.! Whether! the! ‘category’! consists! of! Jews! or!
“illegal”! migrants! the! practice! will! always! depend! on! subjects! holding! no! ‘right! to! have! rights’!
discursively!regarded!as!apolitical!(Agamben!1998:8)!!
Some! of! my! informants! had! experienced! being! detained! following! police! operations,! but! also!
after!being!deported!from!Italy!to!Greece.!As!mentioned!in!chapter!5!other!EU!countries!have!
suspended! Dublin! transfers! to! Greece,! but! with! the! exception! of! Italy.! Therefore,! if! the!
coastguards! in! Italy! catch! the! children! they! are! sent! back! to! Athens! where! they! are! detained!
(app.!C).!!
Massoud,!17!years!old,!tells!me!about!his!experience!of!being!deported!from!Italy!and!detained.!
I!meet!him!on!one!of!my!last!days!in!Athens!in!the!park!where!he!sits!together!with!some!other!
Afghans!and!smoke!hash.!He!has!been!in!Greece!for!five!years,!he!tells!me.!While!we!are!talking!
some!other!boys!greets!him!and!ask!how!he!has!been.!They!look!surprised!to!see!him.!When!I!
ask!him!if!he!has!been!away!from!Athens!he!tells!me!that!he!just!got!out!of!prison.!He!went!to!
Italy,!but!got!caught!by!the!police!and!was!deported!back!to!Greece!and!detained!for!six!months!
under!dreadful!conditions!where!he,!contrary!to!international!standards,!was!held!together!with!
adults!(app.!C).!!
Also!Reza!has!experienced!detention.!In!august!2011!he!was!caught!in!the!streets!of!Patras!and!
brought!to!a!detention!centre!six!hours!from!the!city.!Here!he!was!kept!for!almost!four!months,!
Reza!explains:!!
“They$kept$me$for$108$days$only$in$a$room$(…)$I$couldn’t$leave$the$room.$When$they$let$me$go,$I$
didn’t$have$money$to$go$back,$they$said$‘it’s$none$of$our$business’$I$couldn’t$go$to$Athens$cause$
that$was$very$far$from$there$so$I$had$to$come$back$walking$330$kilometres$back$to$Patras$(…)$We$
were$three$(…)$10$days$we$were$on$the$way.$We$didn’t$have$water$in$the$hot$summer,$we$nearly$
died$(…)$when$I$arrived$in$Patras$they$took$my$paper$and$deported$me$to$Athens.$Again$I$didn’t$
have$money$and$I$had$to$walk$back$to$Patras$again$(…)$It$was$so$hard”$(app.!D.1).!!
When!I!ask!how!it!was!to!be!in!detention!Reza!gets!quite!and!looks!down.!Amin!takes!over!and!
says,!
“You$can’t$even$sleep$in$those$jails.$Don’t$think$that$their$prisons$are$clean”$(ibid).!
Now!Reza!looks!up!and!reveals,!!
“In$the$jail$they$put$20$people$in$a$small$room,$but$bring$food$for$10$people$(…)$they$humiliate$
you$in$any$way$they$can$(…)$they$tell$you$to$get$naked$and$walk$around$in$front$of$everyone$from$
this$ side$ of$ the$ room$ to$ the$ other.$ And$ they$ do$ it$ only$ to$ Afghans$ (…)$ and$ everybody$ comes$ to$
look.$That$is$so$bad”$(ibid).$$
Reza! also! tells! about! some! of! his! Afghan! friends! in! Patras! who! got! caught! by! the! police! some!
days!before!we!met.!Reza!explains,!!
“When$they$got$my$friends$naked,$my$friends$were$not$looking$at$each$other,$so$we$police$were$
! 57!
laughing$saying$‘look$the$Muslims$don’t$look$at$each$other$when$they$are$naked$(…)$I$hope$one$
day$comes$that$no$one$will$do$such$thing”$(ibid).!!
Following!these!accounts!from!Massoud,!Amin!and!Reza,!the!detention!camp!recalls!Agambens’!
provocative! comparison! to! the! concentration! camp! (Agamben! 1998)! in! which! everything! can!
happen.!However,!whereas!subjects!in!the!concentration!camp!loose!every!quality!except!from!
their!‘bare!life’!the!detention!camp!does!not!(yet)!take!shape!of!‘the!ultimate!space!of!exception’!
(GrundydWarr!&!Kumar!2004:!47).!!
However,! unlike! the! general! prison! system! in! which! the! prisoners! are! disciplined! in! order! to!
become!‘docile!and!useful!bodies’!(Foucault!1977)!beneficial!for!the!society,!the!detention!camp!
becomes! nothing! more! than! “a$ site$ for$ the$ punishment$ and$ permanent$ removal$ of$ ‘wasted’$
bodies”$(Khosravi!2010a:!101).!
Solely!the!arbitrary!detention!procedure!(in!which!the!children!are!not!separated!from!adults),!
without!accusation,!no!possibility!of!trial,!no!reference!of!time!comprises!extraordinary!that!no!
citizen! would! be! exposed! to.! The! perception! that! the! children! are! first! and! foremost! “illegals”!
seems!to!justify!their!detention.!!
Finally,!the!remarks!by!the!police!about!Islam!and!nakedness!do!not!only!demonstrate!how!the!
children’s! “illegality”! becomes! racial! but! also! gendered.! Following! Khosravi,! especially! since!
9/11,! Muslim! males! have! come! to! “personify! the! antithesis! of! ‘civilized’! Western! values! and!
norms”! (Khosravi! 2010a:! 77).! Thus,! the! fact! that! the! boys! did! not! want! to! look! at! each! other!
while! being! naked! is! seen! as! Muslim! norm! and! thus! inferior! to! the! norms! of! the! ‘civilized’!
Western!man.!!
RACISM'AND'XENOPHOBIA''
In!the!previous!section!I!have!shown!how!the!children!are!identified!by!the!police!as!criminals,!
not! due! to! their! actions,! but! simply! due! to! their! beings.! This! renders! them! defenceless! and!
leaves!them!in!a!position!of!the!‘homo!sacer’!denied!the!right!to!protection!from!various!forms!
of!violence.!!
Moreover,! have! we! witnessed! that! the! meeting! with! the! police! is! highly! influenced! by! racism!
and! xenophobia,! something! that! the! children! are! also! subjects! to! in! their! encounter! with! the!
ordinary!Greek!citizens.!As!Khosravi!points!out,!it!is!important!to!note!that!“illegalized”!migrants!
are!not!only!left!vulnerable!to!the!violence!of!state!agents.!Also!the!violence!of!ordinary!citizens!
renders!them!vulnerable!(Khosravi!2010a:!108,!Agamben!1998).!Thus,!I!will!in!this!section!come!
across!the!third!theme!that!proved!to!be!recurrent!in!the!children’s!narrative!of!how!“illegality”!
affects!their!daily!life,!namely!that!of!racism!and!xenophobia!of!the!ordinary!citizens.!!
‘THERE'ARE'SO'MANY'FASCISTS'IN'THIS'COUNTRY’'
As!noted!in!chapter!5,!the!public!discourse!on!migrants!has!turned!extremely!negative!especially!
as! a! cause! of! the! economic! crisis! and! the! high! unemployment! rates! as! well! as! the! migration!
policies.!Migrants!are!seen!not!as!‘people!who!have$a!problem!but!as!people!who!are!a!problem!
(Joly! et.! al.! 1997:! 35)! and! thus! perceived! as! undesirables! –! “illegal”! criminals! that! constitute! a!
threat!to!the!ordinary!citizens’!security.!This!opinion!has!exacerbated!hostility!and!racism,!which!
! 58!
has!led!to!several!attacks!on!migrants.!According!a!Human!Rights!Watch!report!from!2012!the!
number!of!violent!attacks!on!migrants!has!increased:!!
“Xenophobic$violence$has$reached$alarming$proportions$in$Greece,$particularly$in$the$capital$city$
of$Athens.$Vigilante$groups$of$up$to$twenty$people,$often$with$their$faces$hidden$and$sometimes$
armed$with$clubs$or$beer$bottles,$attack$migrants$and$asylum$seekers$regularly”!(Human!Rights!
Watch!2012:!100).!
When! I! asked! my! informants! if! they! had! experienced! such! attacks,! many! of! them! confirmed.!
Either!they!had!been!victims!of!attacks!themselves!or!knew!of!someone!in!their!circle!of!friends!
who! had! been! exposed! to! such! violence.! All! of! them! were! constantly! aware! of! the! risk! of!
becoming!the!next!victim!(app.!C).!!
During! the! interview! with! Amin! in! Patras! I! ask! him! about! these! groups,! whereto! he! asks! ‘the$
fascists?’!–!a!term!that!all!my!informants!happened!to!use!when!referring!to!violent!groups!of!
Greeks.!Amin!explains!that!there!are!different!kinds!of!fascists,!but!that!they!are!all!racists!and!
extremely!violent,!!
“If$they$catch$a$refugee,$they$beat$him$up$really$bad.$Maybe$you$can’t$get$up$afterwards,$they$
beat$to$death”$(app.!D.1).!!!
Also!Reza!explains!that!he!has!been!beaten!up!by!the!fascists!a!couple!of!times.! “There$are$so$
many$fascists$in$this$country”$he!says!and!elaborate!his!experiences,!!
R:!Do$you$know$what$a$motorcycle$chain$is?$$
D:!No,$not$really$
R:!The$one$that$turns$the$wheels.$
D:!Ah$okay,$I$know$$
R:!They$beat$with$those$kinds$of$chains;$with$whatever$they$can$–knife,$stick,$glass,$and$stuff$$
D:!What$ever$they$have?$
R:!Yes,$what$ever$they$have$they$beat$us$with$(ibid)$$
These! accounts! from! Amin! and! Reza! illuminate! incidents! of! xenophobic! violence! that! the!
children! are! exposed! to! in! their! everyday! life.! According! to! one! NGO! representative! such!
incidence!happens!almost!everyday,!but!has!nothing!to!do!with!the!children’s!legal!status,!but!
rather!their!ethnicity,!“for!the!colour,!for!the!face”!the!representative!says!(app.!D.!3).!!
This! clearly! highlight! another! point! made! by! Agamben;! it! is! not! only! the! police! that! act! as!
sovereign!over!the!‘homo!sacer’,!all!citizens!are!as!sovereign!before!the!‘homo!sacer’!(Kuman!&!
GrundydWarr!2004:!51).!!
In!most!cases!such!racial!attacks!do!not!have!any!legal!consequences!for!the!perpetrators,!which!
again!reveals!that!anything!can!happen!in!the!‘state!of!exception’.!!
‘THEY'CHANGE'THEIR'WAY'WHEN'THEY'SEE'ME’'
Apart!from!racist!attacks!by!fascists,$nearly!all!my!informants!revealed!that!almost!everyday!they!
were!exposed!to!racism!by!ordinary!citizens.!Farhad!explains,!!
! 59!
“When$ we$ enter$ a$ shop$ and$ they$ ask$ where$ we$ are$ from$ and$ we$ tell$ them$ that$ we$ are$ from$
Afghanistan,$they$say$uuuh$and$tell$us$to$leave”$(app.!C).!!
Also! when! walking! in! the! streets! many! of! the! children! are! met! with! such! stigmatization.! Amin!
tells!about!how!people!try!to!avoid!him!in!the!streets,!!
“Me$as$a$refugee$walking$in$the$streets,$they$[Greeks]!change$their$way$when$they$see$me.$They$
would$prefer$to$make$their$way$longer,$but$not$getting$close$to$me”$(D.1).!!
Reza!recognise!this!experience!and!shares!his!explanation!of!why!people!treat!migrants!like!that,!!
“They$see$refugees$in$a$very$bad$way$(…)$For$example$there$is$war$in$Afghanistan$so$they$see$it$
on$the$TV.$They$only$hear$about$the$war$in$Afghanistan$so$when$they$see$me$in$the$street$they$
think$I’m$also$one$of$those$who$hold$a$gun$and$kills$people.$If$I$come$around$in$the$streets,$no$
matter$if$it’s$a$boy$or$a$girl$they$change$their$way$”$(ibid).!!
Others!also!experience!being!stigmatized!in!the!private!sphere.!Babak!explains!that!he!used!to!
date! a! Greek! girl! for! some! time,! but! one! day! her! parents! found! out! that! their! daughter’s!
boyfriend!was!Afghan.!Since!then,!Babak!tells,!she!was!not!allowed!to!see!him!anymore!and!they!
had!to!break!up!(app.!C).!!
Thus,! not! only! due! to! their! “illegality”! but! also! due! to! their! ethnicity! the! children’s! daily!
experiences! are! marked! by! excluded! inclusion,! criminalization,! othering,! stigmatization! and!
scapegoating.! They! are! being! “demonized”! as! potential! “terrorist”! due! to! their! ethnicity.! In!
Coutin’s!words,!they!are!the!ones!that!‘do!not!fit’!(Countin!2003)!into!the!Greek!society!and!are!
thus!marginalized!by!ordinary!citizens!in!an!effort!to!keep!them!out.!!
Again! we! are! witnessing! that! citizenship! has! become! the! nature! of! being! human! (Agamben!
1998).! Being! outside! the! realm! of! citizenship! the! children! become! dehumanized! and! can! be!
exposed!to!various!forms!of!racism!–both!attacks!and!the!more!“indirect”!racism!that!they!meet!
by!ordinary!citizens.!!
PARTIAL'CONCLUSION'
With! point! of! departure! in! the! three! themes! that! proved! to! be! recurrent! in! the! children’s!
narratives:! lack! of! rights,! police! violence! and! racism,! I! have! in! this! chapter! examined! how! the!
condition!of!“illegality”!shapes!and!affects!the!children’s!everyday!life!in!Greece.!!
Based!on!the!narratives!of!the!three!newly!arrived!boys,!Sami,!Yashar!and!Ali,!I!begun!by!looking!
into!how!the!children,!already!upon!arrival,!are!being!constructed!as!apolitical!subjects.!Entering!
the!sovereign!state!as!undocumented!migrants,!and!thus!being!outside!the!realm!of!citizenship,!
the!children!are!left!in!a!condition!of!‘included!exclusion’!as!they!are!detained!upon!arrival!and!
thus! included! as! objects! of! sovereign! power,! but! at! the! same! time,! not! holding! a! Greek!
citizenship,! they! are! excluded! from! the! normal! law! and! thus! positioned! as! ‘homo! sacers’! in! a!
‘state!of!exception’!where!their!very!right!to!have!rights!is!no!longer!valid.!As!we!have!seen,!this!
position!follows!the!children!throughout!almost!every!aspect!of!their!everyday!life!even!though!
most!of!them!are!holders!of!a!pink!card,!which!according!to!Greek!law!should!give!them!access!
! 60!
to!a!number!of!rights.!However,!the!‘legal’!status!that!they!have!qua!the!pink!card!is!in!itself!not!
a! guarantee! of! security! and! protection.! Being! politically! constructed! as! “illegal”! makes! it! much!
harder! for! the! children! to! access! social! protection,! justice! and! services! and! they! are! thus! left!
outside!the!system!to!survive!on!their!own!under!precarious!conditions!and!poverty.!!
This!‘grey!zone’!that!the!children!are!positioned!in!where!they!on!the!one!hand,!with!the!pink!
card,! are! allowed! rights,! but! on! the! other! hand! are! rejected! their! rights,! shows! that! the!
dysfunctionality! of! the! Greek! asylum! system! has! further! contributed! to! the! configuration! of!
“illegality”!as!the!capacity!to!ensure!the!rights!of!the!children!is!absent.!In!this!regard!one!can!
argue!that!it!is!not!the!Greek!state!as!such!that!poses!the!control!mechanisms!and!practices!that!
the!children!are!exposed!to.!Rather!as!we!have!seen!in!the!second!section!of!this!chapter,!it!is!
the! police! that! act! as! sovereign! within! the! ‘state! of! exception’! where! both! moral! and! legal!
principles!are!absolutely!absent.!Qua!their!“illegality”!the!children!are!exposed!to!the!additional!
harm!of!detention,!violence!and!abuse!from!the!police.!The!children’s!narratives!testify!that!they!
are! consistently! victims! of! the! violence! of! the! police! due! to! reasons! beyond! their! control.!
However,!as!shown!in!section!three,!the!children!are!not!only!exposed!to!the!violence!and!abuse!
from! the! police,! but! also! by! ordinary! citizens! who! act! as! sovereign! before! the! children! dthe!
‘homo!sacers’$d!and!thus!treat!them!accordingly!without!any!legal!consequences.!!
Finally,! whilst! the! condition! of! “illegality”! leaves! the! children! in! a! highly! abject! and! vulnerable!
position! in! which! they! are! exposed! to! external! mechanisms! of! control! and! practices,! they! are!
simultaneously!meaningful!interpreters!of!the!conditions!under!which!they!live.!This!we!shall!see!
in!the!two!following!chapters.!!
!
!
!
(
(
(
(
(
(
(
(
! 61!
76'INTERNALIZING'“ILLEGALITY”'
So!far!we!have!seen!how!“illegality”!is!a!form!of!juridical!as!well!as!a!sociodpolitical!condition!that!
shapes!the!children’s!abject!position!and!status!and!thereby!affect!their!everyday!life.!From!that!
focus!I!will!in!this!chapter!turn!to!the!impact!of!“illegality”!on!the!children’s!experiences!of!being$
in$ the$ world.! From! a! sensorydcentred! perspective! (Willen! 2007),! where! the! focus! lies! on! bodily!
awareness,!I!will!dive!deeper!into!the!children’s!experiences!of!“illegality”!by!looking!at!how!they!
(quite! literally)! embody! this! position! as! well! as! how! they! experience! time! and! space.! I! will! thus!
seek!to!answer!the!third!subdquestion:!How$do$the$children$embody$migrant$“illegality”$and$how$
does$it$affect$the$children’s$subjective$experiences$of$time$and$space?$
The!chapter!is!split!into!three!sections;!in!the!first!section!I!will!analyse!how!migrant!“illegality”!is!
embodied.!Here!I!will!apply!Willen’s!notion!of!‘somatic!modes!of!attention’!to!show!how!bodily!
vigilance!becomes!an!almost!ingrained!part!of!the!children’s!everyday!life.!In!the!second!section!I!
will! again! apply! Willen! but! also! Coutin’s! concept! ‘spaces! of! nonexistence’! in! order! analyse! the!
children’s! experiences! of! space.! In! the! last! section! I! will! focus! on! how! “illegality”! has! a! major!
influence!on!the!experience!of!time!by!applying!Countin’s!notion!of!‘illegal!time’.!!
Moreover,!as!we!have!seen!in!chapter!6,!the!body!becomes!the!primarily!target!of!power!in!the!
‘state! of! exception’.! Simultaneously,! the! body! becomes! (perhaps)! the! most! crucial! site! for!
resistance.! As! Foucault! states:! “Where! there! is! power,! there! is! resistance”! (Foucault! 1978).! As!
such,!I!will!in!this!chapter!further!show!that!the!children!are!not!only!passive!unresponsive!‘homo!
sacers’!or!victims!of!conditions!of!structural!inequality!and!violence!that!determine!their!position!
and!status,!they!are!also!social!actors!able!to!resist.!$
EMBODIED'EXPERIENCES'OF'“ILLEGALITY”'
The! criminalization! of! migrants! and! the! intensified! risk! of! police! brutality,! detention,! racist!
attacks! as! well! as! the! indirect! racism! they! are! confronted! with! has! reverberated! into! almost!
every!corner!of!the!children’s!lives,!including!their!experience!of!embodiment.!To!show!how!the!
condition! of! “illegality”! becomes! deeply! embodied,! I! will! in! the! following! section! look! at! the!
children’s! ‘somatic! mode! of! attentions’! d! the! way! in! which! they! move! around! and! navigate! in!
public!space!as!well!as!how!they!present!or!hide!their!bodies!(Willen!2007).!
BODILY'VIGILANCE'AND'HIDING'(
After!the!interview!with!Amin!and!Reza!in!Patras!I!decide!to!ask!them!out!for!lunch!together!with!
Jasin,!the!gatekeeper.!They!look!at!each!other!and!then!at!Jasin!who!says!that!maybe!we!can!go!
to!a!Greek!restaurant!nearby.!Again!they!look!at!each!other!with!a!concerned!look!in!their!eyes,!
but!after!some!time!they!agree!and!we!go!outside!and!walk!towards!the!restaurant.!During!the!
only!five!minutes!walk!they!seem!rather!nervous.!They!walk!fast!and!look!over!their!shoulders!
several! times.! They! do! not! say! much! and! from! their! short! answers! to! my! questions! I! get! the!
sense!that!they!prefer!to!walk!in!silence.!We!get!to!the!restaurant!where!we!find!a!table!outside.!
Still!the!boys!seem!nervous.!I!notice!that!they!take!an!exhaustive!look!around!before!they!lean!
! 62!
back!in!their!seats.!While!eating!we!joke!and!laugh,!but!the!‘looking!over!the!shoulder’!does!not!
stop!(app.!C).!!
The! content! of! this! field! note! gives! an! illuminating! insight! into! how! “illegality”! becomes!
internalized!and!embodied!through!the!ways!in!which!the!children!move!in!public!spaces.!Their!
‘somatic!modes!of!attention’!are!shaped!by!fear!of!the!police,!detention!and!the!racist!attacks!
that! we! were! introduced! to! in! chapter! 6.! They! know! that! their! “illegality”! is! written! on! their!
bodies,!literally!on!their!skin.!Unlike!other!“illegal”!migrants!in!Greece!–Albanians!for!instance,!
the! chances! that! the! police! and! the! ‘fascists’! would! assume! Amin! and! Reza! to! be! Greek,! and!
therefore! leave! them! alone,! is! virtually! nonexistent.! Although! they! have! the! pink! card,! which!
theoretically! renders! them! immune! to! for! example! detention,! they! do! not! abide! the! risk! of!
another!encounter!and!they!are!therefore!constantly!vigilant.!!
During!the!interview!Amin!tells!me!that!they!rarely!walk!around!in!the!city,!and!that!they!stay!
away! from! crowds! and! public! spaces,! which! explains! their! vigilance! when! walking! towards! the!
restaurant.!He!reveals!that!apart!from!the!office$and!the!harbor!they!would!normally!only!go!to!
the! bazar! and! then! to! the! local! NGO! in! case! they! need! help! (app.! D.1).! Being! subject! to!
detention,! police! violence! and! racist! attacks! the! boys! consciously! limit! their! mobility! and! only!
move!about!if!necessary!(Coutin!2000:33).!In!Coutin’s!words!they!are!‘absent!yet!there’!(ibid).!
According! to! Khosravi,! this! spatial! bodied! fear! leads! to! “a! constant! feeling! of! being! under!
surveillance”(Khosravi!2010a:!91),!which!also!explains!why!Reza!and!Amin!took!great!care!not!to!
do! anything! wrong! and! stayed! in! silence! while! walking! towards! the! restaurant! in! order! not! to!
become! objects! of! attention.! As! De! Genova! states,! “Undocumented! migrants! cannot! afford! to!
make!mistakes”!(De!Genova!2002:!429).!Also!other!of!my!informants!in!Athens!would!take!great!
care!not!to!do!anything!wrong!and!thereby!to!risk!revealing!their!“illegality”.!For!example,!many!
of!my!informants!would!never!use!the!underground!in!Athens!without!a!ticket.!!
In! his! research! on! “illegal”! migrants! in! Sweden,! Khosravi! points! out! how! the! condition! of!
“illegality”!results!in!such!docility!that,!in!the!words!of!one!of!his!informants,!“one!does!not!even!
dare!to!jaywalk”.!Ironically,!Khosravi!states,!“illegal”!migrants!exemplify!‘the!impeccable!citizens’!
(Khosravi!2010a:!91).!!
The!way!that!some!of!my!informants!have!embodied!“illegality”!–being!as!‘invisible’!as!possible!
as!a!way!of!dodging!perils,!could!be!referred!to!what!Coutin!calls!‘the!art!of!not!existing’!(Coutin!
2003:!191)!as!an!everyday!form!of!resistance!to!protect!themselves.!As!Scott!states:!“What!may!
look! from! above! like! the! extraction! of! a! required! performance! can! easily! look! from! below! like!
the!artful!manipulation!of!deference!and!flattery!to!achieve!its!own!ends”!(Scott!1990:!34).!As!a!
strategy!to!avoid!suspicion!the!children!may!use!deference!in!the!same!way!as!criminals!might!
walk!tranquilly!in!front!of!the!police.!Thus,!these!acts!of!resistance!do!not!directly!confront!the!
structures! under! which! the! children! live,! but! are! acts! of! selfdinterest! in! order! to! survive! (Scott!
1985).!In!Ellermann’s!words,!they!could!even!be!interpreted!as!‘acts!of!desperation’!(Ellermann!
2010:!410)!in!order!not!to!be!seen!and!caught.!!
CAMOUFLAGED'“ILLEGALITY”''–'AN'ATTEMPT'TO'LOOK'JAPANESE'AND'KOREAN'(
Indeed,!not!all!of!my!informants!exemplify!‘the!impeccable!citizen’.!Nor!did!all!of!them!prefer!to!
stay! silent! and! hide! as! much! as! possible.! This,! I! should! find! out! on! my! very! first! day! in! Athens!
! 63!
after! coming! back! from! Patras.! Sitting! on! a! bench! in! one! of! the! parks! I! look! around! and! see!
several!groups!of!young!Afghan!boys.!Like!Amin!and!Reza!in!Patras,!most!of!them!are!dressed!in!
modest!clothes!–!dark!jeans!and!tdshirts!that!do!not!capture!specific!attention–!a!strategy!that!I!
assume!to!be!common!among!many!of!the!migrants!as!a!way!to!not!stand!out!of!the!crowd.!But!
then!I!look!to!my!left!side!and!see!three!Afghan!boys!sitting!next!to!me.!They!look!completely!
opposite.!It!is!Babak,!Farhad!and!Behnam.!They!all!have!more!or!less!the!same!hairstyle;!long!red!
or!blond!colored!hair!that!stands!up!like!a!cockscomb!in!the!middle!and!short!hair!in!each!side.!
They!all!have!piercings,!both!in!their!ears,!lips!and!eyebrows.!Farhad!also!has!one!in!his!tongue.!
Their! clothes! look! refined! and! trendy:! slim! fashionable! jeans,! lowdnecked! colorful! tdshirts! and!
shiny!Nike!sneakers.!When!we!get!to!talk!they!appear!more!energetic!and!loud!than!the!boys!in!
Patras.!They!are!not!hiding!in!the!same!way.!Especially!Farhad,!who!is!not!sitting!down!like!the!
rest!of!us,!but!stands!in!front!of!us!and!seem!to!enjoy!the!attention!he!attacks.!When!I!ask!about!
their!appearance!Behnam!tells!that!they!spend!a!lot!of!time!on!their!look!and!that!it!is!important!
for!them!because!they!prefer!to!look!like!Afghans!as!little!as!possible!(app.!C).!They!want!to!look!
like!Japanese!or!Korean!boys!because!it!is!more!accepted!than!being!Afghans.!Babak!discloses:!
“Greek$girls$like$Korean$and$Japanese$boys$and$we$look$a$bit$like$them,$but$when$they$find$out$
that$we$are$Afghans$they$are$not$interested$in$us$anymore”$(ibid).!!
These!insights!show!that,!like!Amin!and!Reza!and!other!of!my!informants,!also!Babak,!Farhad!and!
Behnam!have!embodied!their!“illegality”.!Their!‘somatic!modes!of!attention’!are!shaped!by!the!
same! fear! of! being! revealed! as! “illegals”.! I! also! discovered! that! they! too! were! constantly!
vigilance,! but! opposite! to! Amin! and! Reza! for! whom! becoming! almost! ‘invisible’! were! the!
everyday!acts!of!resistance,!Babak,!Farhad!and!Behnam!were!not!afraid!to!get!attention!and!to!
be! visible.! Usually! it! seems! rather! normal! that! young! boys! wear! trendy! clothes! and! have!
controversial!hairstyles,!but!in!relation!to!their!position!as!“illegals”,!this!becomes!an!important!
matter!to!consider.!First!of!all,!by!the!act!of!dressing!trendy,!as!any!other!youngsters,!the!boys!–
the!nondcitizens!d!claim!an!identity!outside!the!one!constructed!within!the!space!of!“illegality”.!I!
will! claim! that! this! dressing! and! attitude! becomes! an! everyday! act! of! resistance! towards! what!
Malkki! (1995:! 498)! and! also! Khosravi! (2010a:! 71)! refer! to! as! educated! “refugeeness”! –! an!
identity!imposed!by!the!international!refugeed!and!asylum!regime!that!require!forced!migrants!
to!act,!dress!and!speak!in!specific!ways.!As!Khosravi!puts!it!in!his!auto!ethnographic!analysis!of!
his! own! experience! as! a! migrant:! “I! was! educated! to! become! a! ‘victim’! (Khosravi! 2010a:! 71).!
Thus,! disguising! their! “illegality”! in! trendy! clothes! and! fashionable! hairstyles! that! make! them!
look!Japanese!and!Korean,!the!boys!appear!as!nondvictims.!At!the!same!time!it!gives!them!access!
to!romantic!relations!with!Greek!girls,!partially!however.!!
LEARNING'TO'BECOME'“ILLEGAL”(
As! we! can! see,! “illegality”! has! clearly! shaped! the! children’s! experience! of! embodiment.!
“Illegalization”!has!become!a!part!of!their!embodied!consciousness!to!such!an!extent!that!it!in!
many!ways!has!shaped!their!habitus,!to!use!Bourdieu’s!term!(1977).!This!becomes!evident!when!
I!ask!Amin!how!he!manages!to!get!on!a!truck!to!go!to!Italy.!He!explains,!!!
“Aah,$it’s$easy.$You$learn$it$very$fast.$You$run$fast$after$the$truck$and$jump$up.$First$you$check$if$
the$right$handle$is$locked.$If$not,$then$you$open$it$and$get$inside.$We$are$not$afraid$of$that”$(app.!
C).!!
! 64!
To!Amin!and!also!many!of!my!other!informants,!acts!like!these!become!habits.!It!is!just!a!part!of!
their!life.!Coutin!notes!that!“migrants’!accounts!of!running,!not!breathing,!and!being!transported!
like!cargo!indicate!how!migrants!are!made!to!embody!illegality”!(Coutin!2005:!199).!According!to!
Sigona,! learning! to! become! “illegal”! and! adapting! to! the! constraints! and! limitations! of! status!
takes! very! short! time,! especially! for! children! (Sigona! 2012:! 57).! My! informants,! I! will! argue,!
embody!“illegality”!long!before!they!enter!Greece.!Not!only!on!the!road!to!Greece,!where!they!
are! smuggled! through! mountains! (cf.! the! story! of! Sami,! Yashar! and! Ali! who! had! to! cross! the!
mountains! on! foot),! but! already! in! Iran! where! they! lived! as! undocumented.! Thus,! becoming!
“illegalized”! is! for! them! “a! continuation! rather! than! a! beginning! of! a! nondexistence”! (Coutin!
2003:! 179).! They! have! experienced! how! it! is! to! live! without! rights,! how! it! is! to! be! criminalized!
and!exposed!to!police!harassment!and!the!racist!and!xenophobic!gaze!from!the!host!society.!Yet,!
it!became!clear!that!none!of!them!considered!returning!to!Iran!as!a!last!alternative!(app.!C,!app.!
D.!1).!!
EXPERIENCE'OF'SPACES'AND'PLACES'
Following! Willen,! fundamental! shifts! in! migrants’! embodied! consciousness! and! sensation! take!
place! as! they! move! from! areas! of! ‘host! society! space’! like! public! streets,! where! they! are!
constantly!being!reminded!of!their!‘Otherness’,!into!alternative!set!of!spaces,!which!she!refers!to!
as! ‘inhabitable! spaces! of! welcome’.! Within! these! alternative! spaces,! migrants! are! able! to!
cultivate! a! sense! of! relative! belonging! and! a! sense! of! security! (Willen! 2007:! 23).! I! will! in! the!
following! section! look! at! these! two! different! kinds! of! spaces! to! show! how! my! informants!
experience! space.! In! this! regard,! it! is! important! to! pay! attention! to! the! heterogeneity! of! their!
experiences.!They!are!not!a!homogeneous!group!and!do!therefore!not!necessarily,!as!we!have!
seen!in!the!previous!section,!experience!“illegality”!in!the!same!way.!Different!spaces!and!places!
configure!the!experiences!of!“illegality”!in!very!different!ways.!What!some!of!them!experience!as!
a!dangerous!space,!others!would!experience!as!less!dangerous.!
HOST'SOCIETY'SPACE(
Whether! being! in! the! ‘host! society! space’! or! ‘inhabitable! spaces! of! welcome’,! the! space! if!
“illegality”!is!according!to!Coutin,!a!‘space!of!nondexistence’!as!those!who!do!not!exist!legally!are!
imagined! to! be! “‘outside’,! in! ‘an! underground’! or! ‘not! there’”! (Coutin! 2003:! 172).! Like! other!
social! spaces,! the! ‘space! of! nondexistence’! is! an! imagined! space! that! is! socially! constructed.!
However,! for! the! children,! living! in! this! space,! it! becomes! real! in! that! the! practices! that! make!
them! not! exist! have! material! effects! (Coutin! 2003:! 173),! This! is! especially! sensed! in! the! ‘host!
society! space’.! In! chapter! 6! we! saw! that! Reza! discerned! how! local! people! imagine! his! nond
existence:!!
“If$I$come$around$in$the$streets,$no$matter$if$it’s$a$boy$or$a$girl$they$change$their$way$”$$
(app.!D.1).!
Similarly,!Farhad!explains!how!he!feels!that!people!do!not!accept!his!existence,!“They$don’t$see$
us$as$real$human$beings”!(app.!C).!
Within!the!public!space,!the!children’s!bodies!are!thus!constantly!read!and!sensed!by!members!
of!the!host!society.!These!patterns!of!attention!contribute!to!the!production!of!“spatially!specific!
! 65!
forms! of! embodied! consciousness”! (Willen! 2007:! 23)! as! we! saw! in! the! previous! section!
exemplified!by!Reza!and!Amin!in!Patras,!for!whom!mobility!in!the!‘host!society!space’!becomes!
extremely! limited.! As! Coutin! notes,! mobility! becomes! highly! restricted! in! the! ‘space! of! non!
existence’!(Coutin!2003:!178).! ! For! Amin! and! Reza,! the! ‘host! society! space’!is!full!of!nodgo!and!
limited!access!areas.!!
In!Athens!my!informants!seem!to!appear!less!‘stressed’!in!the!‘host!society!space’.!According!to!a!
representative!from!one!of!the!local!NGOs!the!reason!for!that!is!that!Patras!is!much!smaller!than!
Athens!and!therefore!the!children!become!more!visible!in!the!streets!of!Patras!than!in!Athens!
(app.!C).!However,!this!does!not!mean!that!the!‘host!society!space’!in!Athens!produce!less!spatial!
specific! forms! of! embodied! consciousness.! My! informants! in! Athens! would! for! example! never!
walk!alone.!Wherever!they!went,!they!always!appeared!in!groups!of!at!least!two!or!three.!They!
all!knew!very!well!how!to!navigate!in!the!city.!Being!‘streetwise’,!they!knew!which!places!to!go!
and!which!places!not!to!go.!!
`SAFE$PLACES´$IN$THE$HOST$SOCIETY$SPACE$
Within! the! ‘host! society! space’! in! Athens! most! of! my! informants! had! a! daily! routine,! which!
would!normally!bring!them!to!two!different!parks!in!the!city!that!appeared!as!!‘second!homes’!
for! them.! Here! they! would! gather! daily! and! hang! out! for! hours.! As! the! parks! are! almost!
exclusively! crowded! by! migrants! the! children! found! it! to! be! less! dangerous! spaces! to! stay! in!
during!daytime.!!
The! smaller! of! the! two! parks! is! a! place! where! only! Afghans! are! to! be! found! d! both! separated!
children,! single! men! and! families.! It! functions! as! a! social! nerve! center! for! the! migrants! where!
they!meet!in!the!afternoon!to!hang!out,!tell!stories!and!share!information.!!Also!newcomers!like!
Sami,!Ali!and!Yashar!quickly!discovered!that!this!was!‘the!place!to!be’.!As!newcomers!they!find!it!
reassuring!to!spend!time!in!the!park!as!they!get!to!meet!other!Afghans!from!whom!they!can!get!
information! and! learn! about! life! as! “illegals”! in! the! city.! The! networks! that! are! created! in! the!
park!have!great!significance!for!the!children,!not!only!during!their!time!in!Greece,!but!also!for!
their!future!migratory!process.!This!I!will!come!back!to!in!chapter!8.!!
Contrary! to! the! small! park,! the! other! park! hosts! both! Afghans! and! migrants! from! other!
countries.! After! some! hours! in! the! small! park! my! informants! would! typically! walk! together! in!
groups!towards!the!other!park!where!they!would!play!football!with!other!young!migrants,!hang!
out!around!the!football!lane!or!walk!around!in!groups.!!
Contrary!to!the!boys!in!Patras,!my!informants!in!Athens!thus!turn!to!the!host!society!spaces,!but!
as!the!parks!are!predominantly!crowded!by!migrants!they!turn!into!spaces!in!which!they!are!able!
to!cultivate!a!sense!of!relative!belonging!(Willen!2007:!23)!and!where!they!are!reminded!less!of!
their!Ohterness.!!
However,!for!Babak,!Farhad!and!Behnam!as!well!as!for!others!of!my!informants!the!two!parks!
represent!the!exact!opposite.!Although!they!too!spend!much!of!their!time!in!the!parks!they!are!
here!constantly!reminded!of!their!Otherness!and!thus!turn!to!other!spaces!in!the!center!where!
Greeks!and!tourists!would!constitute!the!biggest!part!of!the!crowd.!Babak!explains:!!
! 66!
“Here$ [in$ the$ centre]$ we$ merge$ with$ the$ crowd$ and$ often$ people$ think$ we$ are$ Japanese$ or$
Koreans.$If$we$are$in$the$parks$people$know$we$are$Afghans”$(app.!C).!$!!
Again!their!appearance!becomes!an!important!aspect!in!covering!their!“illegality”,!but!appearing!
as! Japanese! or! Korean! in! the! parks! does! not! do! it! alone;! the! space$ in! which! they! appear! also!
becomes!important!in!their!efforts!to!resist!“illegality”!and!thereby!avoid!the!othering!gaze!from!
the!host!society.!In!the!center!they!hang!out!among!youngsters!of!the!host!society!and!for!some!
time! they! are! able! to! step! out! of! the! ‘space! of! nonexistence’! that! otherwise! surrounds! them!
wherever!they!go!(Coutin!2003:!173).!!
‘INHABITABLE'SPACES'OF'WELCOME’'
Although! some! of! my! informants! are! able! to! find! spaces! in! public! in! which! they! feel! relatively!
safe,!the!‘host!society!space’!generally!leaves!the!children!vigilant.!Therefore!they!always!look!to!
alternative!spaces,!within!which!they!can,!provisionally,!get!a!sense!of!security!and!thus!inhabit!
another!kind!of!embodied!consciousness!(Willen!2007:!24).!The!closest!my!informants!would!get!
to! such! alternative! spaces! happened! to! be! their! homes! and! in! particular! the! social! media,!
Facebook.!!
PERMEABLE$HOMES$
Coutin!suggest!that!the!homes!of!“illegal”!migrants!once!again!point!to!their!nondexistence.!Their!
names!do!not!appear!either!on!the!door,!utility!accounts!or!rent!receipts.!As!such,!they!do!not!
exist! officially! (Coutin! 2003:! 175).! At! one! point! this! could! be! seen! as! an! advantage! for! the!
children;! as! their! residence! is! not! registered! officially! one! should! think! that! home! would! be! a!
secure!space!away!from!the!Othering!gaze!and!the!violence!that!they!are!confronted!with!on!the!
streets.!In!many!ways!my!informants!would!see!their!homes!as!important!sites!for!the!cultivation!
of! safety! and! “homeliness”.! At! night! for! example,! they! would! always! go! back! home! and! stay!
indoor! to! minimize! the! risk! of! apprehension.! Some! would! even! stay! indoors! for! days! without!
going!out.!However,!“illegality”!also!makes!the!boundaries!of!their!homes!permeable!and!thus!
sometimes! associated! with! fear! and! vulnerability! (Willen! 2017:! 24).! In! chapter! 6! we! saw! how!
Reza! and! Amin’s! office! in! Patras! was! discovered! and! destroyed! by! the! police.! Also! in! Athens!
some! of! my! informants! experienced! that! home! turned! into! a! precarious! ‘space! of! welcome’.!
Hamed!explains!that!the!‘fascists’!once!discovered!where!he!lived.!They!came!in!a!big!group!in!
the! middle! of! the! night! and! threw! rocks! through! his! window.! They! yelled! at! Hamed! and! his!
roommates!that!they!should!come!down,!but!that!night!they!stayed!in!the!apartment!full!of!fear,!
Hamed! explains.! Since! then! he! was! afraid! to! stay! in! that! apartment! and! has! now! moved! to!
another!apartment!where!he!shares!a!room!with!Farhad!and!Babak!and!some!other!boys!instead!
(app.!C).!!
Such!experiences!show!that!even!in!my!informants!homes!they!cannot!always!find!safety,!which!
indicate!that!the!“illegality”!of!the!children!“materializes!around!them!wherever!they!go,!like!a!
force!that!sets!them!apart!from!the!legally!and!privileged”!(Coutin!2000:!39).!Being!“illegal”,!they!
are!stripped!of!the!possibility!to!fully!experience!the!private!space!of!home!as!a!refuge!from!the!
outside!world.!!
“ILLEGALITY”$AND$CYBERSPACE$$
! 67!
Although! Facebook! is! potentially! a! site! of! surveillance! where! authorities! can! trace! migrants! it!
appears,! almost! ironically,! to! be! perhaps! the! only! alternative! space! in! which! the! children! can!
cultivate! a! sense! of! security.! Without! having! to! hide! or! be! constantly! vigilant! like! in! the! ‘host!
society!space’!or!even!in!their!homes,!Facebook!offers!the!children!a!space!in!which!they!can!just!
be$ and! it! thus! becomes! an! important! component! of! the! daily! life! of! many! of! my! informants.!
Drawing! on! my! theoretical! framework,! one! could! interpret! Facebook! as! a! space! where! the!
children’s!“illegality”!becomes!irrelevant!(Coutin!2003:!9).!As!a!space!generally!not!structured!by!
territorial!borders,!they!here!have!the!chance!to!leave!the!‘space!of!nonexistence’!for!a!while.!
The! imbued! logic! of! restrained! visibility! in! their! everyday! life! and! the! mechanisms! aiming! to!
control! their! spatial! experiences! turn! invalid! and! become! challenged! and! resisted! within! the!
space!of!Facebook.!!
Especially! Farhad! and! Babak! are! frequent! users! of! Facebook.! For! them! Facebook! becomes! a!
space! in! which! they! can! create! their! own! identity! and! cultivate! their! youth! unmediated! by!
“illegality”! and! the! Othering! gaze! of! the! frequent! xenophobic! host! society.! Almost! daily! they!
update! their! status! messages,! upload! photos! of! themselves! and! their! friends! and! post! links! to!
other!websites.!Other!than!‘normal’!youth!topics!as!music!and!friendships!that!appear!on!their!
profiles,! topics! that! reveal! nostalgia! towards! their! home! country! and! complaints! about! their!
difficult!situation!in!Greece!also!appear!frequently.!Sentences!such!as!“God,!what!have!I!done!to!
have! a! life! like! this?”! often! appear! on! their! status! updates! as! well.! Also! pictures,! like! the! ones!
below,! that! illustrate! frustration! about! life! and! the! world! are! often! uploaded! on! the! boy’s!
profiles.!!
!
!
Facebook! thus! becomes! a! space! in! which! they! can! freely! express! their! frustrations,! but! at! the!
same!time!cultivate!their!youth!in!ways!that!are!less!possible!outside!the!realm!of!cyberspace.!!
'
'
'
! 68!
EXPERIENCE'OF'TIME'
“Such$strange$times,$my$dear”$$
(Shamlou!1979,!Persian!poet)!!
!
So! far! we! have! in! this! chapter! seen! how! “illegality”! shapes! the! children’s! experience! of!
embodiment! and! space,! but! “illegality”! has! also! profoundly! affected! their! experience! of! time.!
They! are! not! only! caught! in! a! ‘space! of! nonexistence’,! but! also! in! what! I! will! call! a! ‘time! of!
nonexistence’.!As!Coutin!has!noted,!“illegality”!is!confined!by!‘illegal!time’,!where!actions!taking!
place!within!it!are!not!recognized!as!valid!(Coutin!2005:!201).!The!fact!that!‘illegal!time’!does!not!
count!leads!to!great!frustration!among!those!who!live!within!it.!In!the!following!I!will!show!how!
my! informants,! confined! by! such! ‘illegal! time’,! feel! caught! in! a! temporal! limbo! that! leads! to!
boredom,!restlessness!and!despair.!!
‘WE'ARE'CAUGHT'HERE’'–LIFE'ON'HOLD(
All!of!my!informants!arrived!to!Greece!with!the!expectation!that!it!would!only!be!a!space!to!pass!
through! and! that! they! would! only! have! to! stay! for! a! short! period! of! time! before! they! would!
move!on!to!another!country!in!Europe.!Together!with!their!families!back!in!Iran!they!made!the!
decision!to!migrate!based!on!the!hope!to!live!in!a!country!that!would!offer!them!everything!that!
they!could!not!get!in!Iran:!rights,!education,!guaranteed!work!and!freedom!(app.!C,!app.!D.1).!
The!three!new!boys,!Sami,!Yashar!and!Ali,!who!had!only!been!in!Greece!for!two!weeks!when!I!
met! them,! were! all! still! full! of! such! expectations.! They! would! just! have! to! wait! for! some! time!
before!their!families!in!Iran!would!send!them!more!money.!Then!they!would!find!a!smuggler!and!
go! to! another! European! country! in! which! they! would! apply! for! asylum! and! hopefully! find! the!
future!that!they!were!looking!for!(app.!C).!My!other!informants!shared!such!expectations!upon!
arrival!as!well,!but!for!them!things!had!turned!out!quite!differently.!Amin!explains:!!
“I$didn’t$think$it$would$be$this$long.$I$thought$I$would$only$have$to$stay$for$four$months.$I$came$to$
study$cause$in$my$childhood$I$always$had$to$work”$(app.!D.!1).!
Reza!shares!similar!thoughts:!!
“When$I$came$here$from$Iran,$I$was$told$that$after$one$month,$two$months$or$four$months$I$could$
leave,$but$then$I$realized$that$it$was$not$like$that”$(ibid).!
He!is!now!on!his!third!year!in!Greece!and!has!turned!19!and!is!thus!no!longer!officially!regarded!
as!a!child!d!a!fact!that!is!of!great!frustration!for!Reza!as!he!is!not!entitled!the!same!rights!as!those!
under!the!age!of!18!in!case!he!gets!to!another!European!country:!!
“When$ I$ came$ here$ I$ was$ 16.$ Now$ I$ am$ 19.$ If$ I$ go$ anywhere$ like$ Finland,$ Norway,$ Sweden$ or$
other$places,$they$don’t$accept$me$as$a$minor$(…)$I$can’t$just$say$that$I$am$16$or$17.$I’m$not$a$
minor$anymore$(…)$They$might$keep$me$for$3$or$4$years,$but$if$they$deport$me$again$maybe$7$
years$of$my$life$gets$destroyed.$My$life$is$destroyed.$I$cannot$go$back$to$Iran,$you$know,$you$have$
seen$that$they$don’t$treat$us$well”$(ibid).!!
! 69!
Also!Babak!shares!his!frustrations!of!feeling!caught!in!a!temporal!limbo:!
“We$are$caught$here.$We$cannot$leave$cause$then$we$will$be$sent$back,$but$we$also$cannot$stay$
here$cause$we$have$no$rights$here.$If$they$send$us$back$to$Iran$where$our$families$live$we$will$be$
deported$back$to$Afghanistan”$(app.!C).!!
The!children!are!thus!‘caught’!in!a!temporal!limbo!trapped!in!between!the!life!they!had!back!in!
Iran!and!the!lives!they!hoped!to!live!and!the!idea!of!migrating!in!order!to!make!a!better!future!is!
far! from! realized.! According! to! Ghassan! Hage! (2005)! migration! should! be! seen! as! a! ‘significant!
movement’,! which! he! relates! to! the! notion! of! ‘existential! movement’.! Through! his! studies! on!
Lebanese!migrants!he!demonstrates!how!important!it!is!for!people!to!feel!that!‘they!are!going!
places’!rather!than!staying!in!an!environment!in!which!they!are!‘going!nowhere’!or!are!somehow!
‘stuck’! (Hage! 2005:470d471).! But! for! my! informants,! instead! of! being! on$ the$ move! and! going!
somewhere,! the! condition! of! “illegality”! has! resulted! in! the! opposite! –that! of! ‘going! nowhere’!
and!being!‘stuck’!in!‘illegal!time’!in!which!every!action!becomes!invalid.!The!expected!movement!
in! time! (as! well! as! space)! is! perceived! as! failed! among! the! children! and! has! thus,! as! Reza!
expresses,!‘destroyed!life’.!!
This!bracketdlike!temporality!is!reminiscent!of!what!Brekke!(2004)!in!a!comparable!context!refers!
to! as! ‘directionless! time’,! a! subjective! experience! of! temporal! space! that! depicts! a! person!
situated!between!past!and!future!where!the!present!does!not!point!at!a!specific!future!(Brekke!
2004:!28).!Will!they!be!deported!to!Afghanistan!where!most!of!them!have!never!been!before?!
Will! they! be! able! to! get! out! of! Greece! and! apply! for! asylum! elsewhere?! What! will! time! bring?!
The!constant!presence!of!unpredictability!represents!a!key!aspect!in!my!informants’!experience!
of!time,!which!is!also!expressed!in!their!quotidian!rhythm,!as!I!will!show!below.!$
‘EVERYDAY'IS'THE'SAME’'–'QUOTIDIAN'BOREDOM,'ROUTINES'AND'RESTLESSNESS'(
“So!what!have!you!been!doing!today?”!I!ask!Babak!and!Behnam!while!having!one!of!our!almost!
daily!chats!in!the!park.!Behnam!looks!at!me!and!shrug!his!shoulders!without!saying!anything!as!if!
the!question!is!not!worth!answering.!Then!Babak!explains!in!an!almost!mechanical!way:!!
“I$woke$up,$ate$breakfast,$walked$around,$slept$and$now$I’m$sitting$here”$(app.!C).$$
He!lights!a!cigarette!and!continues:!
“Everyday$is$the$same.$The$last$two$years$that$is$what$I$have$been$doing.$The$only$difference$is$
that$I$do$not$eat$breakfast$everyday”$(ibid).!!
After! a! few! minutes! he! finishes! the! cigarette! and! tells! me! that! they! have! to! go.! They! have! an!
appointment! with! Farhad! and! some! of! the! other! guys! to! hang! out! in! the! center.! We! agree! to!
meet!there!later.!!
Meanwhile! I! stay! in! the! park! and! chat! with! some! of! the! older! Afghans.! Just! like! the! children,!
young! men! and! families! come! to! the! park! every! afternoon.! Around! 6! o’clock! the! park! is! filled!
with! Afghans.! After! just! a! few! days! of! spending! my! time! in! the! parks! I! get! the! sense! that!
everyday!is!the!same.!Sami,!one!of!the!new!boys!who!are!sitting!among!the!older!men!confirms!
this!and!says,!“What$is$there$to$do?”!When!I!ask!him!what!he!did!today,!he!says!“Nothing!$I$have$
slept$and$been$in$my$room”$(app.!C).!!
! 70!
Also!in!Patras!Amin!shows!how!they!are!captured!in!a!monotonic!quotidian!rhythm:!!
“Everyday!is!the!same.!I!wake!up,!eat!something!if!there!is!any!food,!if!not,!I!just!go!to!find!a!
truck!to!jump!on!for!going!to!Italy!(…)!except!for!example!I!need!a!doctor!or!something!special!
comes!up”!(app.!D.!1).!!
These!accounts!suggest!that!the!children’s!quotidian!life!is!animated!in!monotonic!patterns.!The!
feeling! of! restlessness! and! boredom! is! overshadowing! their! experience! of! time.! It! seems! that!
they! are! just! waiting! for! something! to! happen! and! meanwhile! the! ‘illegal! time’! just! has! to! be!
‘killed’.!As!Farhad!says!when!I!meet!him!and!his!friends!later!the!same!day!in!the!center:!!
“We$are$just$waiting$(…)$We$just$walk$around$and$hang$out.$There$is$nothing$else$to$do”$(ibid).!!
PARTIAL'CONCLUSION''
In!this!chapter!I!have!shown!how!the!children!have!internalized!“illegality”!to!such!an!extent!that!
it!has!profoundly!affected!their!experience!of!embodiment,!space!and!time.!!
The!fear!of!police!brutality,!detention!and!racist!attacks!is!evident!on!the!children’s!bodies!and!
how!they!move!about!in!their!bodies!and!thus!shape!their!‘somatic!modes!of!attention’.!When!
venturing! into! public! spaces! all! my! informants! were! sensory! and! bodily! vigilant.! Some!
informants,! like! Amin! and! Reza,! would! consciously! limit! their! mobility! and! only! move! about! if!
necessary.!Being!afraid!that!their!“illegality”!should!be!revealed,!they!would!hide!their!bodies!as!
much!as!possible!and!take!good!care!not!to!do!anything!wrong,!which!ironically!exemplifies!‘the!
impeccable!citizens’!(Khosravi!2010a:!91).!Their!‘invisibility’! or!what!Coutin!calls!‘the!art!of!not!
existing’!(Coutin!2003:!191)!becomes!an!everyday!form!of!resistance!that!the!boys!apply!in!order!
to! protect! themselves.! Others,! like! Babak! and! Farhad! whose! ‘somatic! modes! of! attention’! are!
shaped! by! the! same! fears! make! an! art! out! of! being! as! visible! as! possible.! By! wearing! trendy!
clothes! and! having! fashionable! hairstyles! looking! Japanese! and! Korean! they! would! seek! to!
camouflage!their!“illegality”!and!thus!appear!as!nondvictims.!!
Drawing!on!Coutin’s!notion!of!‘spaces!of!nondexistence’!I!showed!in!the!second!section!how!the!
children’s!experiences!of!space!is!determined!by!“illegality”!as!well.!Although!the!‘space!of!nond
existence’!does!not!exist$as!such,!it!follows!the!children!wherever!they!go!as!the!practices!that!
make!them!not!exist!have!material!effects.!Especially!in!the!‘host!society!space’!my!informants!
sense!how!members!of!the!host!society!are!constantly!reading!their!bodies,!which!leads!to!the!
fact!that!my!informants!carefully!chose!where$to!go.!In!Patras,!the!‘host!society!space’!becomes!
a! nodgo! area,! which! limits! their! mobility.! In! Athens! my! informants! find! spaces! within! the! ‘host!
society! space’! in! which! they! can! cultivate! a! sense! of! security.! Whereas! the! parks! constitute! a!
relatively! safe! space! for! some,! others! (Babak,! Farhad! and! Behnam)! again! seek! to! resist! their!
“illegality”! by! hanging! out! among! locals! and! tourists.! All! my! informants! would! turn! to! their!
homes! in! search! of! ‘inhabitable! spaces! of! welcome’,! but! also! here! their! “illegality”! would! strip!
them!from!fully!experiencing!a!haven!from!the!outside!world.!Only!within!the!space!of!Facebook!
the!children!get!a!chance!to!escape!the!‘space!of!nondexistence’.!Here!they!can!freely!cultivate!
their!youth,!frustrations!and!nostalgia.!!
! 71!
Finally,! the! third! section! showed! how! the! children,! through! “illegality”,! are! confined! to! ‘illegal!
time’!(Coutin!2005),!in!which!every!action!becomes!invalid.!This!leads!to!an!experience!of!being!
caught! in! a! temporal! limbo! where! the! children! are! stuck! in! ‘directionless! time’! (Brekke! 2004)!
between! the! past! and! the! future.! This! triggers! a! monotonic! quotidian! rhythm! filled! with!
boredom!and!restlessness.!!
Although! the! children! feel! caught! in! a! temporal! and! spatial! limbo! where! they! have! to! be!
constantly! vigilant,! they! are! not,! as! we! have! already! witnessed,! completely! powerless.! In! the!
following!chapter!I!will!elaborate!on!their!agency!and!thus!their!ability!to!cope!and!resist.!!
!
!
(
(
(
(
(
(
(
(
(
(
(
(
(
! 72!
8'–NEGOTIATING'“ILLEGALITY”'–COPING'
STRATEGIES'AND'RESISTANCE'
Whilst!the!children!qua!their!“illegality”!are!positioned!as!‘homo!sacers’!in!the!Greek!society!and!
thus!treated!accordingly!they!are!simultaneously!meaningful!interpreters!of!the!society!and!not!
completely!powerless!subjects.!In!chapter!6!I!showed!how!my!informants,!in!their!desire!to!enact!
the!right!to!mobility,!circumvented!reception!centres!either!by!claiming!to!be!adults!upon!arrival!
or! simply! by! escaping! the! centres! after! short! time.! As! we! know,! this! strategy! also! has! its!
consequences.!Not!only!are!the!children!excluded!from!access!to!social!protection,!services!and!
justice,! they! are! also! exposed! to! the! additional! harm! of! abuse,! violence! and! racism! from! the!
police!and!the!host!society!members.!Yet,!in!spite!of!the!consequences!and!the!fear!that!follows,!
the! children! manage! to! appropriate! and! reconfigure! spaces,! affirming! a! presence! in! the! cities!
where! they! ‘do! not! fit’! and! where! they! are! not! supposed! to! exist! (Coutin! 2003).! We! have! also!
seen!how!they!find!strategies!to!survive!by!resorting!to!the!crime!of!selling!drugs!like!Babak!or!by!
collecting!leftovers!from!markets!like!Amin!and!Reza!in!Patras.!!
Furthermore,! in! chapter! 7! I! have! shown! that! even! though! “illegality”! have! penetrated! every!
aspect!of!my!informants’!lives!including!their!experience!of!self,!time!and!space!the!children!still!
have! agency! and! find! strategies! to! conceal! their! “illegality”! in! an! attempt! to! circumvent! the!
threats! that! are! constantly! following! them! either! by! literally! hiding! their! bodies! or! by! dressing!
and!acting!in!ways!that!‘camouflage’!their!“illegality”.!!
Yet,! there! are! other! coping! strategies! and! ‘everyday! forms! of! resistance’! among! my! informants!
that!deserve!to!be!examined!in!order!to!fully!understand!how!they!experience!“illegality”!in!their!
everyday! lives! in! Greece.! Therefore,! I! will! in! this! last! chapter! of! the! analysis! further! investigate!
how! the! children! work! out! ways! of! negotiating! “illegality”! by! enacting! various! coping! strategies!
and!everyday!forms!of!resistance.!I!will!thus!answer!the!fourth!and!last!subdquestion:!How$do$the$
children’s$cope$with$3$and$resist$“illegality”?$$
Boyden! and! Mann! (2005)! write! about! how! children! cope! in! different! situations! of! adversity!
through!different!components!as!hope,!dreams!and!belief!(Boyden!and!Mann!2005:6).!They!argue!
that!such!components!compose!protective!factors,!which!shape!the!strategies!that!children!apply!
to! manage! –! and! defend! themselves! against! hardship! (Ibid).! I! will! in! this! chapter! illuminate!
components! that! proved! to! be! important! for! my! informants! in! order! to! cope! withd! and! resist!
“illegality”.!Mainly!four!components!happened!to!be!of!great!importance!among!my!informants,!
namely! networks,! alcohol/drugs,! faith! and! future! dreams.! The! analysis! will! be! structured!
accordingly,!but!with!main!emphasis!on!networks!as!it!proved!to!be!a!shared!component!between!
all! my! informants,! whereas! alcohol/drugs,! faith! and! future! dreams! were! not! equally! valued! in!
coping!withd!and!resisting!“illegality”.!!
'
'
! 73!
THE'IMPORTANCE'OF'NETWORKS''
As! both! Massey! et! al.! (1993)! and! Boyden! &! Mann! (2005)! suggest,! networks! provide! a! crucial!
coping! strategy! among! migrants.! ! According! to! Massey! et! al.! (1993:! 448),! “migrant! network! are!
sets!of!interpersonal!ties!that!connect!migrants,!former!migrants,!and!nondmigrants!in!origin!and!
destination! areas! through! ties! of! kinship,! friendship,! and! shared! community! of! origin.”!
Furthermore,! Massey! et! al.! note:! “network! connections! constitute! a! form! of! social! capital! that!
people!can!draw!upon”!(ibid.).!
My!findings!from!the!field!suggest!that!in!the!absence!of!structured!support!and!protection!from!
the! state,! networks! become! highly! instrumental! in! making! survival! possible! among! the! children!
who,!whenever!necessary,!mobilize!resources!from!their!networks,!locally!or!globally,!to!support!
them!throughout!their!migration!process.!These!networks!mainly!consist!of!other!“illegal”!Afghan!
migrants! d! peers! as! well! as! adults,! young! nondmigrants! from! the! host! society,! local! NGOs,! soup!
kitchens!and!church!organizations!as!well!as!family.!!
“PARALLEL'INSTITUTIONS”''
First!of!all,!networks!give!the!children!access!to!what!Broeders!and!Engbersen!(2007)!describe!as!
“parallel! institutions”! which! is! “informal! and! illegal! markets! in! the! sphere! of! work,! housing,!
relations!and!documents”!(Broeders!and!Engbersen!2007:!1597).!Especially!in!terms!of!housing,!all!
of!my!informants!in!Athens!made!use!of!these!“parallel!institutions”.!The!‘Afghan!hotels’!in!which!
they!live!are!in!most!cases!owned!by!Afghans!who,!in!return!of!a!daily!or!monthly!rent,!would!let!
the!children!stay!in!small!rooms!together.!In!order!to!get!in!contact!to!these!“parallel!institutions”!
the!children!would!normally!go!to!the!park!in!which!only!Afghans!hang!out.!When!I!asked!Sami,!
Yashar!and!Ali!how!they!knew!that!they!should!go!there!upon!arrival!in!Athens,!they!told!me!that!
it!was!their!smuggler!that!provided!them!with!information!about!where!to!go!in!Athens!in!order!
to!get!a!network!(app.!D).!!
For!an!‘outsider’!like!me!it!seemed!as!if!the!Afghans!were!just!‘hanging!out’!in!the!parks!in!order!
to!kill!“illegal!time”!(Coutin!2005)!(which!they!also!did),!but!I!was!soon!to!find!out!that!this!was!
also!the!place!to!go!in!order!to!find,!not!only!housing,!but!also!smugglers!with!whom!the!children!
would!negotiate!a!price!for!fake!passports!or!arrange!other!ways!out!of!the!country!(app.!C).!One!
of!my!informants,!Nadar,!with!whom!I!only!spoke!shorty,!told!me!that!he!had!recently!bought!a!
fake!passport!for!5000!Euros!from!one!of!the!Afghan!smugglers!in!the!park.!He!would!soon!leave!
to!Sweden!where!his!family!was!waiting!for!him,!he!said!(ibid).!!
According! to! Broeder! &! Engbergsen,! such! strategy! d! making! use! of! “parallel! institutions”! are!
typical! “weapons! of! the! weak”! (Broeder! &! Engbergsen! 2007:! 1598)! that! does! not! confront! the!
authorities!directly,!but!compose!“a!form!of!individual!self!help”!(Scott!1985:!29)!for!the!children!
in!order!to!cope!with!their!situation.!!
UTILITY'ORIENTED'FRIENDSHIPS'–'‘EVERYONE'THINKS'OF'THEIR'OWN'PROBLEMS’'
Also!the!interpersonal!relationships!between!the!children!comprise!an!important!coping!strategy!
(Boyden! and! Mann! 2005:6).! Many! of! my! informants! developed! strong! friendships! with! one!
another.!Through!‘hanging!out’!with!the!children!I!observed!how!these!friendships!seem!to!be!of!
crucial! importance! in! coping! with! emotional! struggles! in! particular,! as! well! as! a! way! of! ‘killing’!
! 74!
time.!The!children!would!freely!share!with!each!other!their!frustrations!and!feelings!of!loneliness,!
nostalgia!and!the!longing!for!a!‘normal!life’,!knowing!that!their!friends!are!in!the!same!situation.!!
Their!interpersonal!relationships!further!constitute!social$capital!that!my!informants!would!draw!
upon! for! example! as! a! strategy! to! reduce! the! cost! of! living! by! residing! together! in! the! ‘Afghan!
hotels’!in!Athens.!They!would!also!draw!on!their!social$capital!when!walking!around!in!the!‘host!
society!space’.!As!we!have!already!seen,!my!informants!never!walk!alone,!but!always!in!groups!in!
order!to!feel!safer.!Their!interpersonal!relationships!thus!consist!both!of!deep!friendships!in!which!
the!children!nurture!one!another,!but!at!the!same!time!I!would!argue!that!their!relationships!take!
shape!of!what!I!call!‘utility!oriented!friendships’!–as!they!become!highly!instrumental!in!making!
survival!possible.!As!Amin!tells,!when!we!talk!about!relations!among!the!migrants:!!
“Here$we$are$in$a$situation$in$which$everyone$thinks$of$their$own$issues$and$problems”$(app.!D.1).!$$
Thus,!although!the!children!help!and!befriend!each!other,!they!would!for!example!never!talk!to!
me!about!how!they!had!plans!to!get!out!of!the!country!when!their!friends!were!listening!–!as!if!
they! were! afraid! that! their! friends! would! spoil! their! plans.! Sami,! Yashar! and! Ali! for! example,!
strongly! emphasized! that! they! would! not! try! to! leave! the! country! together.! They! would! leave!
separately!just!like!Amin!and!Reza!have!done!every!time!they!tried!their!luck!to!go!to!Italy!(app.!C,!
app.! D.1).! The! act! of! leaving! thus! becomes! an! individual! project,! whereas! the! interpersonal!
relations!between!the!children!are!important!coping!strategies!here$and$how.$$
Whereas! Amin! and! Reza! in! Patras! and! some! of! my! other! informants! in! Athens! only! engage! in!
friendships!with!other!Afghans,!Babak,!Farhad,!Behnam!and!a!few!others!also!engage!in!relations!
with! youngsters! from! the! host! society.! ! Especially! Babak! and! Farhad! involve! in! relations! with!
Greeks,!mainly!in!the!shape!of!romantic!relations!with!Greek!girls.!This!becomes!evident!both!on!
their!Facebook!profiles!where!they!often!upload!photos!of!themselves!in!close!contact!with!Greek!
girls,!but!also!during!our!conversations!and!the!time!we!spent!together!in!the!centre,!where!they!
openly! flirt! and! try! to! get! in! contact! with! the! girls.! Just! like! their! way! of! dressing,! having! Greek!
friends!and!engaging!in!romantic!relations!with!Greek!girls!can!be!seen!as!an!act!of!resistance!to!
the! social! mechanisms! that! tries! to! produce! a! distinction! between! “legal”! and! “illegal”! citizens.!
Furthermore,! as! Papadopoulou! (2004)! has! explored! in! his! study! among! Kurdish! migrants! in!
Greece,! ties! with! the! host! society! can! also! become! a! source! of! social! capital! as! it! can! provide!
information! and! assistance! and! at! the! same! time! it! can! ease! the! waiting! time! (Papadopoulou!
2004:!177).!!
LOCAL'NGOS'AND'CHURCH'ORGANIZATIONS''
Being! constructed! as! “illegal”! one! would! assume! juridical! assistance! to! be! one! of! the! main!
support!needs!of!the!children.!But!local!NGOs!that!provide!such!assistance!appeared!to!play!a!
less!significant!role.!Amin!and!Reza!in!Patras!would!sometimes!go!to!the!local!NGO!to!get!help,!
but!they!also!emphasize!the!limits!of!the!provided!assistance.!Amin!explains:!
“They$help$us$with$for$example$shoes$and$clothes$and$such$things,$but$they$can’t$do$more”$(app.!
D.1).!!
One!NGO!representative!confirms!the!limitations!of!the!assistance!that!they!are!able!to!provide!
! 75!
and!explains:!!
“No$matter$how$good$your$organization$is$and$how$many$projects$and$resources$you$have$then$
we$can’t$guarantee$individual$safety$and$welfare$in$the$long$run”$(app.!D.4).!
Not! only! the! limited! help! makes! many! separated! children! stay! away! from! NGOs.! According! to!
the! same! NGO! representative! up! to! 80! percent! of! the! children! never! get! in! contact! with! the!
NGOs!because!of!lack!of!knowledge!about!their!existence!(ibid).!!
This!becomes!evident!in!Athens!were!only!a!few!of!my!informants!had!consulted!a!local!NGO!to!
get! assistance! in! order! to! be! familydreunited! with! their! parent(s)! in! other! European! counties.!
However,!most!of!my!informants!were!unfamiliar!with!the!role!of!NGOs!(app.!C).!!
Yet,!church!based!organizations!and!to!a!certain!extent!also!soup!kitchens!seem!to!play!a!more!
central! role! for! some! of! my! informants! in! Athens.! The! soup! kitchen! where! I! worked! as! a!
volunteer! every! morning! provide! free! breakfast,! which! for! some! comprise! the! only! solid! meal!
during! the! day.! Like! the! soup! kitchens,! church! organizations! also! offer! free! meals! as! well! as! a!
temporary!!‘inhabitable!space!of!welcome’!(Willen!2007).!Furthermore,!the!church!organizations!
became! an! important! institution! for! some! of! my! informants! by! offering! information,! spiritual!
guidance! and! relief! from! moral! dilemmas.! For! some,! like! Mehdi,! converting! to! Christianity!
became!a!strategy!in!coping!with!“illegality”!as!it!meant!access!to!new!local!social!networks!(app.!
C).!!
Yet,!whereas!engaging!in!such!networks!becomes!a!coping!strategy!for!some,!others!would!only!
rarely!or!never!make!use!of!such!institutions.!Amin!and!Reza!for!example,!tell!me!that!they!used!
to!come!to!one!of!the!church!organizations!in!Patras!to!eat,!but!feeling!that!the!Christians!tried!
to!persuade!them!into!converting!to!Christianity,!they!stopped!coming!there.!Others,!like!Babak,!
Farhad!and!Karim!in!Athens!would!never!go!to!the!church!organizations!and!only!rarely!do!they!
take! advantage! of! a! free! meal! in! the! soup! kitchens.! They! would! rather! choose! to! stay! hungry.!
This!could!be!understood!as!a!form!of!resistance!characterized!by!a!sort!of!selfdexclusion!aimed!
at!preserving!dignity!and!selfdworth!(Broeders!and!Engbersen!2007:!1605).!
FAMILY'RELATIONS'–'SUPPORT'AND'SHAME'
Finally,! within! my! informants’! networks! family! seem! to! provide! important! assistance! in! coping!
with!“illegality”.!First!of!all,!the!financial!support!from!the!family!is!crucial!for!the!very!survival!of!
the!children!and!their!migration!process!in!general.!It!is!in!most!cases!the!family!that!pays!for!the!
child!to!go!to!Europe!(Boland!2010:!17).!Yet,!none!of!my!informants!revealed!how!their!families!
got!the!money,!but!according!to!previous!studies!on!separated!Afghan!children,!the!family!often!
has!to!sell!property!or!borrow!big!sums!of!money!to!be!able!to!pay!the!smuggler!(Boland!2010:!
17).!Once!the!children!arrive!in!Greece,!they!might!be!in!need!of!more!money!to!continue!their!
journey!and!again!the!family,!if!possible,!provide!financial!support.!This!was!the!case!for!Sami,!
Yashar! and! Ali! who,! as! we! already! know,! were! waiting! for! their! parents! to! send! more! money.!
Others,!like!Babak,!did!not!receive!more!money!from!his!family!in!Iran,!but!would!occasionally!
get! financial! support! from! extended! family! in! Sweden.! In! many! cases,! such! transnational!
networks!also!determined!where!my!informants!hoped!to!get!asylum.!I!will!come!back!to!their!
future!hopes!and!dreams!in!the!end!of!this!chapter.!!
! 76!
Apart!from!financial!support,!many!of!my!informants!found!it!important!to!have!regular!contact!
with! their! family,! either! through! phone! or! Skype.! They! all! expressed! nostalgia! towards! their!
family! and! talking! with! them! would! sometimes! ease! the! pain! of! being! far! from! them! (app.! C,!
app.!D.!1).!
However,!while!contact!with!the!family!provides!coping!strategies,!the!relations!with!families!are!
not! always! without! tensions.! Khosravi! writes! in! his! autodethnographic! analysis! of! his! own!
experiences! how! families,! having! invested! in! a! familydmember’s! migration,! also! expect! a!
successful! ‘migratory! performance’! (Khosravi! 2010a:! 87).! In! Iran,! Khosravi! argues,! ideas! of!
kharej,!which!literally!means!‘abroad’,!but!is!mainly!used!to!refer!to!the!West,!are!mobilized!in!a!
discourse! on! progress,! wealth! and! success.! If! you! do! not! succeed! in! gaining! the! material!
attributes!of!the!‘good!life’!in!kharej$your!‘migratory!performance’!is!seen!as!failed!(ibid).!Such!
failure! has! led! to! shame! among! some! of! my! informants! and! has! impeded! them! from! always!
telling! the! truth! about! their! situation! in! kharej.$ The! following! quotes! from! Amin! and! Reza!
capture!this!shame:!!
R:$In$Iran,$people$think$that$kharej$is$a$very$good$place$(…)$so$many$people$here$don’t$want$their$
family$to$see$their$situation![in!Greece]!
(…)!
D:$Does$your$family$know$about$your$situation$here$[in$Greece]?$
A:$ Yes,$ of$ course,$ but$ we$ lie.$ We$ can’t$ say$ that$ we$ sleep$ in$ an$ abandoned$ building$ and$ don’t$
really$get$any$decent$food.$We$can’t$say$that.$We$have$to$say$that$we$are$good$and$that$we$eat$
good$food.$They$don’t$know$that$we$live$like$this$and$that$the$police$sometimes$catch$us”$(app.!D.!
1).!!
Reza! reveals! that,! by! accident,! his! family! found! out! how! he! lives.! He! tells! that! once! a! TV!
journalist! came! to! their! office$ to! film! them! and! to! make! interviews! about! their! life! in! Greece.!
Although!the!journalist!came!from!Europe,!the!film!was!showed!on!an!Iranian!TV!channel,!which!
his!family!back!in!Iran!happened!to!see.!Reza!explains:!!
“So$ my$ family$ saw$ me$ on$ TV.$ Then$ my$ brother$ told$ me$ on$ the$ phone$ ‘don’t$ you$ want$ to$ come$
back$to$Iran?’(…)$He$said$‘it’s$much$better$here.$I$saw$it$on$TV$that$you$were$making$food$on$fire’$
(…)$I$didn’t$want$my$family$to$see$how$I$live,$but$now$they$saw$it$on$TV”$(ibid).!!
These! narratives! show! that! although! the! relation! to! the! family! is! important! for! the! children! to!
cope!with!life!in!“illegality”,!they!cannot!always!reveal!their!minds!freely!as!they!fear!to!disclose!
their!failed!‘migratory!performance’.!!
ALCOHOL/DRUGS,'FAITH'AND'FUTURE'DREAMS''
Although!networks!proved!to!be!perhaps!the!most!important!component!for!all!my!informants!
in! order! to! cope! withd! and! resist! “illegality”! other! components! as! drugs! and! alcohol! as! well! as!
faith!in!God!also!turned!out!to!play!a!role!in!the!children’s!everyday!life!as!well.!!
! 77!
‘MANY'OF'THE'MIGRANTS'HERE'GENERALLY'SMOKE'AND'DRINK'A'LOT’'
On!one!of!my!first!days!in!Athens!Farhad!calls!me.!He!tells!me!that!him!and!his!friends!are!going!
to!the!centre!to!hang!out!in!evening!and!they!would!like!me!to!come!too.!I!accept!his!invitation.!
At!8!pm!I!show!up!in!the!centre!as!promised.!It!is!packed!with!young!people,!African!musicians!
and!lots!of!tourists.!From!far!away!I!quickly!recognize!Farhad,!Babak,!Behnam!and!their!friends.!
Their!long!and!colourful!hair!makes!them!extremely!identifiable!in!the!crowd.!They!are!sitting!on!
a!broad!flight!of!steps!among!other!youngsters.!We!shake!hands!and!they!make!space!for!me!to!
sit! among! them.! All! of! them! are! drinking! beers.! Behnam! offers! me! one! too.! I! accept.! Farhad!
disappears!into!the!crowd,!but!after!a!while!he!comes!back.!“Do!you!smoke!weed?”!he!asks!me!
and!shows!a!little!bag!of!marijuana!that!he!just!bought!from!an!Albanian!pusher.!‘Not!really’,!I!
say!and!decline!when!he!asks!me!if!I!want!to!smoke.!They!share!the!joint!among!them.!Some!of!
them! inhale! strongly! and! blow! the! smoke! into! the!others! mouths,! “then! it! goes! faster.! I! mean!
then!you!get!high!faster,”!says!Babak!and!laughs.!He!comes!to!sit!next!to!me!and!tells!me!that!he!
actually!does!not!smoke!as!much!as!he!used!to!do,!“it!destroys!you”,!he!says!and!tells!me!that!
especially!Farhad!smokes!too$much.!“He!is!a!little!destroyed!because!he!smokes!so!much”,!says!
Babak!and!further!states!that!many!of!the!migrants!here!generally!smoke!and!drink!a!lot!(app.!
C).!!
Like!other!youngsters,!they!too!like!to!drink!alcohol!and!smoke!marijuana!when!socializing,!but!
the! content! of! the! above! field! note! give! a! glimpse! into! how! some! of! my! informants! use! drugs!
and!alcohol!as!a!strategy!to!cope!with!their!“illegality”.!Whenever!I!met!this!group!of!informants!
during!the!evenings!they!would!consistently!drink!beers!and!smoke!marijuana!–an!act!that!could!
be! interpreted! as! an! everyday! form! resistance! “expressed! quietly! and! as! a! form! of! personal!
release”!(Constable!1997:!210)!that!substitute!for!direct!aggression.!!
!
‘WE'HAVE'TO'BELIEVE'IN'GOD’'
Just!like!networks!and!alcohol/drugs!some!of!my!informants!also!voice!the!importance!of!faith!in!
God.!This!becomes!evident!on!one!of!the!‘nights!out’!with!Babak,!Farhad!and!Behnam.!While!we!
are!drinking!beer!and!talk!about!life!I!decide!to!ask!them!if!they!believe!in!God.!Both!Farhad!and!
Behnam!nods,!while!Babak!looks!and!me!and!says:!!
!
“Didde,$why$are$you$asking$about$that?$You$know$our$situation:$No$family,$no$money,$no$school,$
no$real$home,$no$job,$and$no$rights.$We$have$to$believe$in$God”$(app.!C).!!
For! them! (as! well! as! for! others! of! my! informants)! faith! thus! becomes! an! important! coping!
strategy!in!making!meaning!to!their!hardship!and!the!uncertainties!they!face.!That!they!have$to!
believe! in! God! indicates! that! faith! is! the! only! anchor! provided! in! all! the! uncertainties! they!are!
confronted! with.! Also! the! children’s! updates! on! Facebook! where! they! ask! God! for! help,! show!
that!they!make!sense!of!their!situations!by!attributing!them!to!God’s!will.!!
‘BUT'WE'HAVE'HOPE!’'
Although! the! condition! of! “illegality”! has! caught! the! children! in! both! a! spatial! and! temporal!
limbo!with!a!feeling!of!being!‘stuck’!in!‘illegal!time’!(Coutin!2003)!many!of!my!informants!seem!
! 78!
to!cope!by!still!having!dreams!and!hopes!about!the!future.!For!example!Reza,!who!feels!that!his!
life!is!destroyed,!as!we!saw!in!chapter!7,!still!voices!hope!for!the!future:!
!“It’s$been$3$years$that$I$am$here,$but$I$still$have$hope$to$leave”$(app.!D.1).!!
Others!frequently!expressed!aspirations!about!where!they!wanted!to!go!and!what!they!wanted!
to!do!in!the!future.!Like!Amin,!who!is!determined!to!go!to!Norway:!
$“When$I$leave$here,$I’ll$go$to$Norway$(…)$my$friends$are$mostly$in$Sweden,$Denmark$or$Germany.$
I$don’t$have$anyone$in$Norway,$but$I’m$more$comfortable$that$way”$(ibid).!
As!most!of!my!informants!were!hoping!to!reach!Scandinavian!countries!they!would!often!ask!for!
advice! and! information! about! Denmark,! Norway! and! Sweden.! ! Sami,! for! example,! was! very!
determined!to!go!to!Sweden!to!become!a!professional!football!player!and!would!therefore!ask!
me!about!the!chances!of!becoming!professional!in!Sweden!(app.!C).!Also!Babak!wants!to!go!to!
Sweden!where!some!of!his!relatives!are!living.!He!spends!a!lot!of!time!on!writing!rap!texts!and!
thus!dreams!of!becoming!a!famous!rapper!when!he!reaches!Sweden!(ibid)!!
Farhad!also!wants!to!go!to!Scandinavia,!but!is!not!sure!where!and!asks!me!for!information!about!
the!differences!between!the!countries;!where!is!the!best!chances!of!getting!asylum?!How!long!
time!will!he!have!to!stay!in!a!camp?!What!about!education?!Are!people!racists!like!in!Greece?!
And!what!about!the!girls,!are!they!beautiful!(ibid)?!
Also!Behnam!has!plans!about!where!to!go:!
“I$want$to$go$by$ship$–first$to$Italy$then$France$and$then$Germany.$Maybe$I$stay$there$or$go$to$
Norway$or$Sweden.$Denmark$is$also$an$option,$I$have$six$friends$there”$(ibid).!!
$
Although! my! informants! are! left! in! a! limbo! in! Greece! for! years,! the! above! statements! indicate!
that!they!are!still!able!to!remain!hopeful!about!the!future!in!spite!of!the!adversity!that!they!are!
facing.!!
PARTIAL'CONCLUSION'
In!this!last!chapter!of!the!analysis!I!have!shown!that!in!spite!of!their!abject!positions!as!‘homo!
sacers’! the! children! are! still! meaningful! interpreters! of! their! situation! and! the! environment! in!
which!they!live!and!find!ways!of!coping!withd!and!resist!“illegality”.!!
Drawing! on! Boyden! and! Mann! I! have! highlighted! a! serial! of! components! that! proved! to! be! of!
great! importance! for! the! children! in! coping! withd! and! resisting! “illegality”.! The! most! crucial!
component!is!networks,!which!for!all!of!my!informants!become!highly!instrumental!in!mobilizing!
resources!that!would!help!them!to!cope!with!“illegality”.!Becoming!a!part!of!a!network,!would!
give!access!to!“parallel!institutions”!(Broeders!&!Engbergsen!2007)!from!where!the!children!get!
help!with!housing,!fake!documents!and!other!kinds!of!assistance,!which!comprise!‘weapons!of!
the!weak’!as!they!offer!‘individual!self!help’!that!does!not!directly!confront!the!authorities.!The!
interpersonal!relationships!between!the!children!also!comprise!an!important!strategy!in!coping!
with! emotional! struggles! and! in! easing! time,! but! take! shape! of! ‘utility! oriented! friendships’!
! 79!
where!the!children!become!instrumental!for!each!other!in!making!survival!possible.!Only!some!
of!my!informants!would!engage!in!relations!with!members!of!the!host!society,!like!Farhad!and!
Babak!who!befriended!Greek!girls!as!an!act!of!resistance!and!as!a!way!of!gaining!social!capital.!
Whereas!local!NGOs!providing!legal!assistance!did!not!play!a!big!role!in!my!informants’!life,!some!
found! the! spiritual! guidance! from! church! organizations! and! free! meals! from! soup! kitchens! as!
ways!of!coping.!Finally,!within!my!informants’!networks!family!seem!to!provide!crucial!assistance!
both! financially! and! emotionally.! Yet,! some! informants,! like! Amin! and! Reza,! would! feel!
ambivalent!about!their!families!as!they!were!ashamed!of!their!failed!‘migratory!performances’!
and!thus!compelled!them!to!lie!!(Khosravi!2010a).!!
Apart!from!networks!I!have!shown!that!also!alcohol/drugs,!faith!in!God!and!future!dreams!and!
hope! become! important! components! for! some! of! my! informants! in! coping! withd! and! resisting!
“illegality”!as!it!comprise!a!form!of!personal!release.!!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
! 80!
!
!
!
!
!
!
Part!III!
Conclusion!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
! 81!
9'–'CONCLUSION'
In!a!world!in!which!the!borders!of!nationdstates!have!come!to!form!the!‘natural!order!of!things’!
(Malkki!1995),!millions!of!people!who!cross!these!very!borders!are!classified!as!“illegal”!migrants!
and!has!become!increasingly!highdstake!issues!both!on!global,!regional,!national!and!local!levels.!
A! growing! number! of! these! “illegal”! borderdcrossers! are! separated! Afghan! children! (Mougne!
2010:!2)!who!travel!through!precarious!routes!across!mountains!and!land!in!search!for!a!better!
future!in!Europe.!With!its!geographical!position!bordering!Turkey,!Greece!has!become!a!major!
gateway!for!many!of!these!children!–!a!gateway!which,!for!most!of!them,!is!turned!into!a!space!
of!‘no!way!out,!no!way!in’!(Sigona!&!Hughes!2012).!In!fact,!as!children,!migrants,!and!“illegals”,!
this! group! is! positioned! at! the! intersection! of! two! opposite! logics,! namely! the! protection! of!
children!and!children’s!rights!on!the!one!hand,!and!restrictive!immigration!control!and!migrant!
“illegalization”!on!the!other.!In!Greece!d!the!latter!of!these!two!logics!rules.!!
As! this! thesis! has! sought! to! demonstrate,! the! life! of! separated! Afghan! children! in! Greece! are!
profoundly!shaped!and!constrained!by!the!condition!of!migrant!“illegality”.!Through!fieldwork!I!
have!provided!ethnographic!glimpses!into!the!“illegalized”!life!of!a!fragment!of!separated!Afghan!
children!in!Greece.!With!the!desire!to!challenge!the!adultdcentric!approach!to!migration,!which!
has! been! widely! criticized! for! overlooking! the! active! roles! and! experiences! of! children,! I! have!
approached!the!issue!from!a!child!perspective!in!order!to!give!voice!to!the!children!in!focus.!The!
question!that!has!guided!the!research!(as!stated!on!p.!15)!is:!!
How$is$the$configuration$of$migrant$“illegality”$experienced$in$the$daily$life$of$separated$Afghan$
children$in$Greece?$
In! order! to! answer! that! question! I! built! the! study! on! Willen’s! threeddimensional! approach! to!
“illegality”! (i.e.! juridical! status,! sociodpolitical! condition! and! modes! of! being! in! the! world),! but!
added! a! fourth! dimension! related! to! resistance! and! coping! strategies.! Following! this! approach! I!
first! presented! a! contextual! chapter! in! order! to! show! how! “illegality”! has! been! configured! in!
Greece! as! a! product! of! global,! regional! and! national! factors.! This! enabled! me! in! chapter! 6! to!
analyse!how!the!condition!of!“illegality”!shapes!and!affects!the!children’s!everyday!life.!With!the!
help! of! Agamben’s! theoretical! perspectives,! I! showed! how! the! condition! of! “illegality”! does! not!
impose! its! effects! simply! by! excluding! the! unwanted! “polluted! bodies”! (Malkki! 1995)! of! the!
children;! rather! it! controls! and! shapes! their! lives! through! ‘inclusive! exclusion’! (Agamben! 1998).!!
Entering! the! Greek! state! as! undocumented! migrants,! the! children! are! actively! kept! outside! the!
realm!of!citizenship,!but!are!nevertheless!part!of!society!and!objects!of!sovereign!power.!They!are!
thus!neither!inside!nor!outside,!but!kept!at$the!border!in!a!juridical,!social!and!political!‘threshold’!
d!the!‘state!of!exception’!(Agamben!1998).!As!my!ethnographic!accounts!have!shown,!the!children!
are!positioned!as!‘homo!sacers’!within!the!‘state!of!exception’,!which!leaves!them!with!no!right!to!
have!rights.!!Although!most!of!them!are!holders!of!a!pink!card,!their!“illegality”!makes!it!almost!
impossible!to!gain!access!to!social!protection,!justice!and!service!and!they!are!thus!left!to!survive!
on!their!own.!Consequently,!the!everyday!life!of!the!children!is!strongly!rendered!by!poverty!and!
precariousness.! Furthermore,! as! the! research! findings! point! to,! my! informants! are! also! left!
vulnerable!to!the!violence!of!the!police!who!act!as!sovereign!within!the!‘state!of!exception’.!The!
children’s! narratives! have! shown! us! how! the! police! due! to! reasons! beyond! their! control!
! 82!
consistently!expose!them!to!detention,!violence!and!abuse.!I!have!also!shown!how!my!informants!
qua! their! “illegality”! become! victims! of! xenophobia! and! brutal! racist! attack! by! members! of! the!
host!society,!who!as!well!act!as!sovereign.!By!exposing!the!children!to!such!mechanisms!of!control!
and! practices,! the! police! as! well! as! the! host! society! members! have! succeeded! not! only! in!
detaining!the!children!and!subjecting!them!to!violence!and!racism,!but!also!in!sowing!anxiety!and!
distress!among!them.!!
!
In!chapter!7!I!showed!how!this!anxiety!and!distress!caused!by!the!condition!of!“illegality”!become!
highly!embodied.!This!becomes!evident!in!the!way!my!informants!move!about!in!their!bodies!and!
thus!shape!their!‘somatic!modes!of!attention’!(Willen!2007).!All!my!informants!would!constantly!
be! sensory! and! bodily! vigilant! when! moving! about.! While! some! would! hide! their! bodies! and!
consciously!limit!their!mobility!and!only!move!about!if!necessary,!others!preferred!to!be!as!visible!
as!possible.!Drawing!on!Scott!(1985)!I!showed!how!these!choices!of!either!hiding!or!showing!their!
bodies!becomes!‘weapons!of!the!weak’!as!‘everyday!form!of!resistance’!that!my!informants!used!
in!order!to!protect!themselves!and!hide!or!camouflage!their!“illegality”.!!
!
Drawing! on! Coutin’s! notion! of! ‘spaces! of! nondexistence’! I! showed! in! the! second! section! of!
chapter! 7! how! the! children’s! experiences! of! space! is! also! determined! by! “illegality”.! Being!
“illegalized”,!the!‘space!of!nondexistence’!would!surround!the!children!wherever!they!go.!Having!
a!sense!of!being!constantly!read!by!members!of!the!host!society,!my!informants!were!strategic!
in!choosing!where$to!go.!Whereas!the!‘host!society!space’!became!a!nodgo!area!for!some,!others!
were! able! to! cultivate! a! sense! of! security! either! in! the! parks! or! even! among! the! host! society!
members.!Although!their!“illegality”!would!strip!them!from!fully!experiencing!a!refuge!from!the!
outside!world,!they!would!all!turn!to!their!homes!in!search!of!‘inhabitable!spaces!of!welcome’.!
My!findings!suggest!that!Facebook!becomes!(ironically)!the!only!space!in!which!the!children!can!
escape!the!‘space!of!nondexistence’!for!a!while.!!
In! the! last! section! in! chapter! 7! I! showed! how! the! children! experience! time.! Applying! Coutin’s!
notion!of!‘illegal!time’,!I!showed!how!my!informants!feel!trapped!in!a!temporal!limbo!in!which!
no! actions! count! as! valid! (Coutin! 2003).! This! bracketdlike! temporality! leads! to! great! frustration!
among! my! informants! and! gives! a! feeling! of! being! stuck! in! ‘directionless! time’! (Brekke! 2004)!
somewhere! between! past! and! future.! As! my! findings! also! point! to,! this! feeling! of! being! in! a!
temporal!limbo!triggers!a!monotonic!quotidian!rhythm!of!boredom!and!restlessness.!!
Although! the! children! feel! caught! in! a! temporal! and! spatial! limbo,! in! which! they! have! to! be!
constantly! vigilant! due! to! the! fear! of! detention,! violence! and! racism,! they! still! have! agency! to!
find! different! ways! to! cope! withd! and! resist! “illegality”.! In! this! respect,! the! research! has!
foregrounded! the! crucial! role! of! networks! as! a! coping! strategy! (Massey! et! al.! 1993).! My!
informants! would! actively! mobilize! resources! from! their! networks! to! support! them! in! their!
everyday! struggles.! Being! part! of! a! network! gives! the! children! access! to! “parallel! institutions”!
(Broeders! &! Engbergsen! 2007)! –often! made! up! of! older! Afghan! migrants,! whom! the! children!
would!go!to!the!parks!to!meet!in!order!to!find!housing,!fake!papers!or!other!kinds!of!assistance.!
In! addition,! the! interpersonal! relationships! between! the! children! were! found! to! be! of! crucial!
importance!and!highly!instrumental!in!coping!with!emotional!struggles!and!in!easing!time.!While!
some! would! only! befriend! other! Afghans,! others! would! engage! in! (romantic)! relations! with!
members!of!the!host!society!as!an!act!of!resistance!towards!the!mechanisms!that!produces!the!
! 83!
distinction!between!“legal”!and!“illegal”!citizens.!Whereas!few!of!my!informants!would!make!use!
of!legal!assistance!offered!by!local!NGOs,!some!would!come!to!soup!kitchens!to!get!a!free!meal!
or! look! for! church! organizations! to! get! spiritual! guidance! or! even! convert! to! Christianity! as! a!
strategy! to! cope! with! “illegality”.! For! most! of! my! informants,! family! would! comprise! a! crucial!
role!in!their!networks!both!in!assisting!with!financial!and!emotional!support!although!some!were!
ashamed! of! their! failed! ‘migratory! performance’,! which! compelled! them! to! lie! about! their!
situation.!Finally,!in!the!last!section!in!chapter!8!I!showed!that!also!alcohol/drugs,!faith!in!God!
and!future!dreams!comprised!crucial!components!in!coping!with!“illegality”.!!
With! this! wide! array! of! ethnographic! findings! I! have! in! this! thesis! offered! a! glimpse! into! how!
separated! Afghan! children! experience! the! configuration! of! migrant! "illegality"! in! Greece.! With!
Agamben’s!theory!I!have!shown!how!the!children!become!highly!dehumanized!and!thus!left!in!a!
vulnerable! position! as! ‘homo! sacers’.! While! this! position! undeniably! limits! their! access! to! ‘the!
right! to! have! rights’! it! is! exactly! the! very! rightlessness! that! places! the! children! in! a! position!
where! acts! of! resistance! become! possible.! As! such,! Scott’s! ‘weapons! of! the! weak’! have! been!
instrumental!in!illustrating!that!the!children!are!never!completely!objectified!or!rationalized!by!
the! state,! but! are! competent! active! beings.! However,! while! it! has! enabled! to! illuminate! the!
children’s!strategies!that!help!them!in!coping!with!“illegality”,!the!use!of!‘weapons!of!the!weak’!
has! not! been! geared! towards! transformative! actions! aimed! at! durable! enhancements! of! their!
lives.!According!to!Agamben!the!‘homo!sacer’!is,!as!we!have!seen,!consigned!to!a!position!that!
depends!on!the!ethics!of!the!sovereign!citizens.!As!such,!I!will!echo!Vitus!(2011)!in!arguing!that!
the!only!durable!form!of!resistance!depends!on!the!willingness!of!sovereign!citizens!to!respond!
and!act!on!behalf!of!the!migrants!(Vitus!2011:!110).!!
With! these! reflections! in! mind,! what! are! then! the! contributions! of! this! thesis?! First! of! all,! the!
study!provides!a!comprehensive!insight!into!a!group!of!people!about!whom!little!research!exists.!
Having! explored! how,! in! particular,! Afghan! separated! children! experience! “illegality”! I! have!
contributed! with! knowledge! that! can! be! useful! in! getting! a! better! understanding! of! the!
children’s!migration!process!and!the!consequences!hereof.!Furthermore,!through!ethnographic!
fieldwork!I!have!been!able!to!apply!a!child!perspective!approach!with!which!I!have,!in!contrast!to!
most! research! on! separated! children,! taken! the! children’s! own$ perspectives! and! experiences!
serious.!
Finally,! deep! poverty,! police! violence,! brutal! racist! attacks! and! abuse! are! ‘normally’! not!
associated! with! liberal! democratic! states! –at! least! not! within! the! borders! of! the! EU.!
Nevertheless,! with! focus! on! Greece,! I! have! in! this! thesis! illuminated! that! even$ within! the! EU!
thousands!of!people’s!rights!are!being!neglected!daily.!As!such,!I!hope!that!this!study!will!give!
rise!to!critical!questioning!of!the!Human!Rights!as!well!as!the!Children’s!Rights!dat!least!to!the!
way!that!they!are!applied,!or!rather!not!applied.!!
!
!
!
! 84!
10'–'BIBLIOGRAPHY'
!
Adelkhah,!Fariba!&!Oszewska,!Zuzanna!!
2007,!The$Iranian$Afghans,!Iranian!Studies!40,2:!137d165.!
!
Agamben,!Giorgio!!
1998,!Homo$Sacer.$Sovereign$Power$and$Bare$Life,$Palo!Alto,!Stanford!University!Press.!
2000,!Means$Without$End.$Notes$on$Politics,!University!of!Minnesota!Press,!Minneapolis.!
!
Alogoskoufis,!George!
2012,!Greece’s$Sovereign$Debt$Crisis:$Retrospect$and$Prospect,$GreeSE!Paper!No.!54,!
Hellenic!Observatory!Papers!on!Greece!and!Southeast!Europe,!LSE.!!
!
Arendt,!Hannah!!
1968,!The$Origins$of$Totalitarianism,!Harcourt!Brace!Jovanovich,!New!York.!!
!
Bauman,!Zygmunt!!
2004,!Wasted$lives,$Modernity$and$its$Outcasts,!Polity!Press,!Cambridge.$
$
Bhabha,!Jacqueline!!
2011,!Children$Without$a$State:$A$Global$Human$Rights$Challenge,$The!MIT!Press,!
Cambridge,!Massachusetts.!!
$
Boyden,!Jo!&!Hart,!Jason!!
2007,!The$Statelessness$of$the$World’s$Children,$Children!&!Society!21:!237d248.!
!
Boyden,!Jo!&!Mann,!Gillian!
2005,!Children’s$Risk,$Resilience,$and$Coping$in$Extreme$Situations,!in!M.!Ungar,!
Handbook$for$Working$with$Children$and$Youth:$Pathways$to$Resilience$Across$Cultures$
and$Contexts,$Thousand!Oaks:!Sage!Publications!$$
!
!!
Brekke,!JandPaul!
2004,!While$We$are$Waiting,$Uncertainty$and$Empowerment$among$Asylum3seekers$in$
Sweden,$ISF,$Institute!for!Social!Research,!Oslo.!
!
Broeder,!Dennis!&!Engbersen,!Godfried!
2007,!The$Fight$against$Illegal$Migration,$Identification$Policies$and$Immigrants’$
Counterstrategies,$American!Behavioral!Scientist,!50,!1592d1609!!
$$
Bryman,!Alan!!
2004,!Social$Research$Methods,!second!edition,!Oxford!University!Press,!Oxford.!!
!
Castles,!Stephen!&!Miller,!Mark!!
2009,!The$Age$of$Migration,!fourth!edition,!Palgrave,!UK.!
!
Constable,!N.!!
1997,!Maid$to$order$in$Hong$Kong.$Stories$of$Filipina$workers,!Cornell!University!Press,!
New!York.!!
! 85!
!
Coutin,!Susan,!B.!!
1993,!The$Culture$of$Protests:$Religious$Activism$and$the$U.S.$Sanctuary$Movement,$
Boulder,!Westview.!
!
2000,!Legalizing$Moves:$Salvadoran$Immigrants'$Struggle$for$U.S.$Residency,$University!
of!Michigan!Press.!
!
2003,!Illegality,$Borderlands,$and$the$Space$of$Nonexistence,!in!Perry,!Richard!W.!&!
Maurer,!Bill,!Globalization$under$Construction.$Governmentality,$Law$and$Identity,!
University!of!Minnesota,!Minneapolis.!!
!
2005,!Being$En$Route,!American!Anthropologist,!107,!2:!195d206.!!
!
Dahinden,!Janine!&!EfionayidMäder,!Denise!!
2009,!Challenges$and$Strategies$in$Empirical$Fieldwork$With$Asylum$Seekers$And$Migrant$
Sex$Workers,$in!Van!Liempt,!Ilse!&!Bilger,!Veronika,!The$Ethics$of$Migration$Research$
Methodology.$Dealing$with$Vulnerable$Immigrants,$Sussex!Academic!Press,!Brighton.!
!
De!Genova,!Nicholas!
2002,!Migrant$“Illegality”$and$Deportability$in$Everyday$Life,$Annual!Review!of!
Anthropology,!31:!419d447!
!
2005,!Working$the$Boundaries:$Race,$Space,$and$“Illegality”$in$Mexican$Chicago,$Duke!
University!Press.!
!
2013,!Immigration$“Reform”$and$the$Production$of$Migrant$“Illegality”$in!Menjívar,!
Cecilia!&Kanstroom,!Daniel,!Constructing$Immigrant$“Illegality”,$Critiques,$Experiences$
and$Responses,$Cambridge!University!Press,!New!York.!!
!
Dimitropoulou,!G.!&!Papageorgiou,!I.!!
2008,!Unaccompanied$Minors$Asylum$Seekers$in$Greece:$A$Study$on$the$Treatment$of$
Unaccompanied$Minors$Applying$for$Asylum$in$Greece,$UNHCR.!
!
Ellermann,!Antje!
2010,!Undocumented$Migrants$and$Resistance$in$the$Liberal$State,$Politics!&!Society,!38,!
408d429.!
!
Empez,!Nuria!
2009,!The$Fieldworker$as$Social$Worker:$Dilemmas$in$Research$with$Moroccan$
Unaccompanied$Minors,$in!Van!Liempt,!Ilse!&!Bilger,!Veronika,!The$Ethics$of$Migration$
Research$Methodology.$Dealing$with$Vulnerable$Immigrants,$Sussex!Academic!Press,!
Brighton.!
!
European!Union!
2013a,!Common$European$Asylum$System,$European!Commission!Home!Affairs!!
Available!from:!http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/homedaffairs/whatdwed
do/policies/asylum/index_en.htm!(accessed!15.01.2014).!
!
!
2013b,!Dublin$II$Regulation,$Europa!d!Summaries!of!EU!legislation,!!
Available!from:!
! 86!
http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/justice_freedom_security/free_movement_of_
persons_asylum_immigration/l33153_en.htm!
(accessed!15.01.2014).!
!
2013c,!The!Eurodac!System,!!
Available!from:!
http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/justice_freedom_security/free_movement_of_
persons_asylum_immigration/l33081_en.htm!
(accessed!15.01.14).!
!
Foucault,!Michel!
1978,!The$History$of$Sexuality,$Volume$1:$An$Introduction,$Random!House,!New!York.!$$
!
FRONTEX!
2012:!‘Origin’$Frontex.!Available!from!http://frontex.europa.eu/aboutdfrontex/origin!
(accessed!17.01.14).!!
!
Furia,!Annalisa!!
2012,!Victims$or$Criminals?$The$Vulnerability$of$Separated$Children$in$the$Context$of$
Migration$in$the$United$Kingdom$and$Italy,$Working!Paper!No!69,!University!of!Sussex,!
Sussex!Centre!for!Migration!Research.!
!
Geertz,!Clifford!
!
1973,!The$Interpretation$of$Cultures,$Basic!Book,!New!York.!$$
!
$
Gulløv,!Eva!&!Højlund,!Susanne!!
2003,!Feltarbejde$blandt$børn$–$Metodologi$og$etik$i$etnografisk$børneforskning,!
Gyldendal.!
!
Gupta!and!Ferguson!
1997,!Discipline$and$Practice:$'the$field'$as$site,$method,$and$location$in$anthropology.$In$
Anthropological$locations:$boundaries$and$grounds$of$a$field$science,$Berkeley!University!
of!California!Press.!
!
Hage,!Ghassan!
2005,!A$not$so$multi3sited$ethnography$of$a$not$so$imagined$community,$Anthropological!
Theory,!5,4:!463d475.!!
!
Hogan,!Diana!&!Greene,!Sheila!!
2006,!Researching$Children’s$Experiences,$Approaches$and$Methods,$Sage,!London.!
!
Hopkins,!Peter!!
2008,!Ethical$Issues$in$Research$with$Unaccompanied$Asylum3seeking$Children,$
Children’s!Geographies!6,1:!37–48.!
!
Human!Rights!Watch!!
2008,!Left$to$Survive,$Systematic$Failure$to$Protect$Unaccompanied$Migrant$Children$in$
Greece,$Human!Rights!Watch.!!
!
2012,!Hate$on$the$Streets,$Xenophobic$Violence$in$Greece,!Human!Rights!Watch.!
!
! 87!
2013a,!Turned$Away,$Summary$Returns$of$Unaccompanied$Migrant$Children$and$Adult$
Asylum$Seekers$from$Italy$to$Greece,$Human!Rights!Watch.!!
!
2013b,!Unwelcome$Guests,$Greek$Police$Abuses$of$Migrants$in$Athens,$Human!Rights!
Watch.!
!
Huysmans,!Jeff!!
2000,!The$European$Union$and$the$Securitization$of$Migration,$Journal!of!Common!
Market!Studies,!38,!5:!751d777.!
!
James,!A.!&!Prout,!A.!
1990,!Constructing$and$Reconstructing$Childhood:$Contemporary$Issues$in$the$
Sociological$Study$of$Childhood,!Basingstoke,!Falmer!Press.!
!
Järvinen,!Margaretha!&!MikdMeyer,!Nanna!!
2005,!Kvalitative$Metoder$i$et$Interaktionistisk$Perspektiv,!Hans!Reitzels!Forlag,!
Copenhagen.!
!
Järvinen,!Margaretha!!
2005,!Interview$i$en$interaktionistisk$ramme$in!Järvinen,!M.!&!MikdMeyer,!N.!(2005)!
Kvalitative$Metoder$i$et$Interaktionistisk$Perspektiv,$Copenhagen,!Hans!Reitzels!Forlag.!
!
Joly,!Danièle,!Kelly,!Lynette!&!Nettleton,!Clive!
1997,!Refugees$in$Europe:$The$Hostile$New$Agenda,$Monitory!Rights!Group,!London.!!
!
Kakissis,!Joanna!
2011,!Tensions$Rise$Over$Illegal$Immigrants$in$Greece,$NPR.!Available!from!
http://www.npr.org/2011/08/14/139613525/tensionsdoverdillegaldimmigrantsdind
greecedrises!(accessed!20.11.2014).!!
!!
Karamanidou,!Lena!&!Schuster,!Liza!!
2011,!Realizing$One’s$Rights$under$the$1951$Convention$60$Years$On:$A$Review$of$
Practical$Constraints$on$Accessing$Protection$in$Europe,$Journal!of!Refugee!Studies,!25,!2:!
169d192.!
!
Karyotis,!Georgios!!
2012,!Securitization$of$Migration$in$Greece:$Process,$Motives,$and$Implications,$
International!Political!Sociology!6:!390d408.!!
Khosravi,!Shahram!!
2010a,!The$„Illegal‟$Traveler:$an$auto3ethnography$of$borders,!Palgrave!Macmillan.!!
!
2010b,!An$ethnography$of$migrant$‘illegality’$in$Sweden:$Included$yet$Accepted,!Journal!
of!International!Political!Theory,!6:!95d116.!!
Madden,!Raymond!!
2010,!Being$Ethnographic$3$A$Guide$to$the$Theory$and$Practice$of$Ethnography,$SAGE,!
London.!
!
Malkki,!Liisa!H.!!
1992,!National$Geographic:$The$Rooting$of$Peoples$and$the$Territorialization$of$National$
! 88!
Identity$among$Scholars$and$Refugees,$Cultural!Anthropology,!7,1:!24d44.!!
!
1995,!Refugees$and$Exile:$From$“Refugee$Studies”$to$the$National$Order$of$Things,$
Annual!Review!of!Anthropology!24:!495d523.!!
!
Massey!et!al.!
1993,!Theories$of$International$Migration:$A$Review$and$Appraisal,$Population!and!
Development!Review,!19,!431d466.!!
!
Nyers,!Peter!!
2006,!Rethinking$Refugees,$Beyond$States$of$Emergency,$Routledge,!New!York.!
!
Owen,!Patricia!
2009,!Reclaiming$’Bare$Life’?:$Against$Agamben$on$Refugees,$International!Relations,!23,!
4:!567d582.!!
!
Papadimitriou!&!Papageorgiou!!
2005,!The$New$‘Dubliners’:$Implementation$of$European$Council$Regulation$343/2003$
(Dublin3II)$by$the$Greek$Authorities,$Journal!of!Refugee!Studies!18,!3:!299d318.!
!
Papadopoulou,!Kourkoula!!
2004,!Smuggling$into$Europe:$Transit$Migrants$in$Greece,!Journal!of!Refugee!Studies,!17,!
2:!167d184.!!
!
2008,!Transit$Migration$through$Greece,!Paper!presented!at!the!Conference:!(Irregular)$
Transit$Migration$in$the$European$Space:$Theory,$Politics$and$Research$Methodology,$
IMISCOE,!18d20!April!2008,!Koc!University!Istanbul.!!
!
Papastergiadis,!Nikos!!
2006,!The$Invasion$Complex:$The$Abject$Other$and$Spaces$of$Violence,$European!Journal!
of!Social!Theory,!4,1:!81d94.!!
!
Peutz,!Nathalie!&!De!Genova,!Nicholas!
2010,!The$Deportation$Regime:$Sovereignty,$Space,$and$the$Freedom$of$Movement,$Duke!
University!Press,!London.!
!
Rajaram,!Prem!Kumar!&!GrundydWarr,!Carl!!
2004,!The$Irregular$Migrant$as$Homo$Sacer:$Migration$and$Detention$in$Australia,$
Malaysia,$and$Thailand,$International!Migration!42,1:!33d64,!Blackwell!Publishing!Ltd.,!
Oxford.!
!
SCEP!d!Separated!Children!in!Europe!Programme!!
2010,!Statement$of$Good$Practice,$4th$Revised$Edition,$Separated$Children$in$Europe$
Programme,![Accessed!December!2013]!from!www.separateddchildrend!europed
programme.org/separated_children!/good_practice/index.html!
!
Schinkel,!Willem!
2009,!‘Illegal$Aliens’$and$the$State,$or:$Bare$Bodies$versus$the$Zombie,$International!
Sociology,!24,!6:!779d806.!!
!
!
! 89!
Schuster,!Liza!
2011,!Turning$Refugees$into$‘illegal$migrants’:$Afghan$asylum$seekers$in$Europe,$Ethnic!
and!Racial!Studies,!34,!8:!1392d1407.!
!
Schütz,!Anton!!
2000,Thinking$Law$with$and$against$Luhmann,$Legendre$and$Agamben,$Law!and!
Critique,!11:!107d136.!!
!
Scott,!James!C.!!
!
1985,!Weapons$of$the$Weak,$Everyday$Forms$of$Peasant$Resistance,$!!
!
Yale!University!Press,!New!Haven.!
!
1990,!Domination$and$the$Arts$of$Resistance.$Hidden$Transcripts,$Yale!University!Press,!
New!Haven.!!
!
Sigona,!Nando!
2012,!‘I$have$too$much$baggage’:$The$impacts$of$legal$status$on$the$social$worlds$of$
irregular$migrants,$Social!Anthropology,!20,!1:!50d65.!
!
Sitaropoulos,!Nicholas!!
2000,!Modern$Greek$Asylum$Policy$and$Practices$in$the$Context$of$the$Relevant$European$
Developments,$Journal!of!Refugee!Studies,!13,1:!105d117.!!
!
Stephenson,!N.!and!Papadopoulos,!D.!!
2006,!Outside$Politics/Continuous$Experience,!Ephemera$6,!4:!433d453.!!
!
UNHR!(United!Nations!Human!Rights)!
2012,!Convention$on$the$Rights$of$the$Child,$available!from!
http://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/crc.aspx!(accessed!12.12.2013).!!
!
Van!Liempt,!Ilse!&!Bilger,!Veronica!!
2009,!The$Ethics$of$Migration$Research$Methodology$–$Dealing$with$Vulnerable$
Immigrants,$Sussex!Academic!Press,!Brighton.$
$
Vitus,!Kathrine!!
2011,!Zones$of$Indistinction:$Family$Life$in$Danish$Asylum$Centres,!Distinktion:!
Scandinavian!Journal!of!Social!Theory,!12,!1:!95d112.!!
$
Vitus,!Kathrine!&!Lidén,!Hilde!!
2009,!The$Status$of$the$Asylum3seeking$Child$in$Norway$and$Denmark:$Comparing$
Discourses,$Politics$and$Practices,$Journal!of!Refugee!Studies!23,!1:!62d81.!!
!
Warming,!Hanne!!
2005,!Erkendendelse$gennem$oplevelse,$når$indlevelse$ikke$er$mulig,$in!Jaärvinen,!
Margaretha!&!MikdMeyer,!Nanna,!Kvalitative!Metoder$i$et$Interaktionistisk$Perspektiv,!
Hans!Reitzels!Forlag,!Copenhagen.!!
!
Watters,!Charles!
2008,!Refugee$Children,$Towards$the$Next$Horizon,$Routledge,!New!York.!!
!
!
! 90!
Wernesjö,!Ulrika!
2011,!Unaccompanied$Asylum3seeking$Children:$Whose$Perspective?$Childhood,!19,!4:!
495d507.!!
!
White,!Allen!et!al.!!
2011,!Children’s$Role$in$Transnational$Migration,$Journal!of!Ethnic!and!Migration!
Studies,!37,!8:!1159d1170.!!
!
Willen,!Sarah!S.!!
2005,!Birthing$"Invisible"$Children:$State$Power,$NGO$Activism,$and$Reproductive$Health$
among$"Illegal$Migrant"$Workers$in$Tel$Aviv,$Israel,$Journal!of!Middle!East!Women's!
Studies,1,2:!55d88.!!
!
2007,!Toward$a$critical$phenomenology$of$'Illegality':$state$power,$criminalization$and$
abjectivity$among$undocumented$migrant$workers$in$Tel$Aviv,$Israel’,!International!
Migration!45,3:!8d38.!
!
2010,!Citizens,$“Real”$Others,$and$“Other”$Others:$The$Biopolitics$of$Otherness$and$the$
Deportation$of$Unauthorized$Migrant$Workers$from$Tel$Aviv,$Israel$in!Peutz,!Nathalie!&!
De!Genova,!Nicholas,!The$Deportation$Regime,$Sovereignty,$Space,$and$the$Freedom$of$
Movement,$Duke!University!Press,!London!
!
Øien,!Cecilie!!
2010,!Underveis$–$En$studie$av$enslige$mindreårige$asylsøkere,!Fafodrapport,!Fafo.!!
!
!
!
!
!
(
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
! 91!
!
! 92!

Life in Ghorbat

Transcription

Similar documents

Hello from Greece

Peter Polder: Breaking Greek Oil Addiction

GREEK ISLANDS Costa Cruises Selection

sin fronteras - Gabriele Di Mascolo

Speakers who have been invited

By Tatiana [ard an and Blaec Kalweit, 10M Moldova "I would

A Greek Retreat: The Poetic Peloponnese

greece, new york

TRADITIONAL GREEK COSTUMES

Full Page Yearbook Story