Cultural and ecological contexts of violent punishment and restraint of Negev Bedouin children: from understandings to interventions

Abstract

Over recent decades we have become increasingly sensitised to the importance of considering the cultural and ecological contexts of child abuse. This paper illustrates the necessity for but also the complexity of doing so in practice, through refl ection on some of the dilemmas faced by social work professionals encountering physical punishment and restraint of children among the Negev Bedouin. We describe several cases and refl ect on two central challenges. First, we point to a signifi cant grey area remaining between consensually unacceptable and consensually acceptable practices, and show how the evaluation of worrying incidents of this kind requires careful reading of the complex interplay of a variety of cultural and contextual factors which are sometimes not easily resolved. Second, we highlight the need for cultural competence not just in understanding but in intervening since cultural differences continue to be important-sometimes critically so-in the ways in which social work interventions are understood by and affect clients and communities. We offer a schema for intervention, distilled from decades of experience working in the Bedouin setting, which describes the kind of decision-making processes a social worker might follow in this context. This is intended to guide practitioners, but also to be used more interactively and further evolved in discussion with parents and members of the Bedouin community on the one hand, and those shaping state child care policies and procedures on the other. Thus, our schema is a kind of boundary object-a shared instrument for assessment and dialogue in which both Bedouin and professional cultures can negotiate and renegotiate their caring for children at the interface between their different but intersecting worlds.

Child Protection in Islamic Contexts: Identifying Cultural and Religious Appropriate Mechanisms and Processes Using a Roundtable Methodology

“…Given the careful, cautious and complex negotiations needed to gain the best outcomes for children without causing public shame, it was felt important that child protection workers were also community members, ensuring that they have intimate understanding of the communities that they work in. Garb and Goren () also found that careful readings of the complex interplay between cultural and contextual factors were required when working with Negev Bedouin families and their children in Islamic contexts. Literature has shown that it is very difficult to perceive the world of another and easy to impose our views on others even while trying to be culturally sensitive (Connolly et al ., ).…”

“…Despite the wealth of literature on the rights and obligations of parents and their children under Islam, and the importance of promoting partnerships between INGOs and faith communities (Robinson, ; UNICEF, ), there is a lack of literature and little discussion on the practical application of these principles (Garb and Goren, ). This includes their conversion into child protection programmes and the role of non‐Islamic parties in promoting these mechanisms.…”

“…While it is widely recognised that religion, faith and culture shape our investigations, interpretations and responses to child abuse and neglect (Connolly et al ., ), relatively limited research has been undertaken in this area (Agathonos‐Georgopoulou, ; Welbourne, ), especially regarding the way that interventions are understood by religious families and communities (Garb and Goren, ). In this paper, we report on a piece of research which brought together Islamic scholars, child protection academics and international development agencies to identify mechanisms and processes which safeguard children from harm that are congruent with Islamic scholarship and practices.…”

Punishment and child harm

“…A remarkable paper from Israel (Garb and Goren, 2010) explores the challenge of intervening in the lives of Bedouin children who live in a society that is radically disadvantaged and whose traditional way of life is threatened and restricted by the State. Illustrated by vivid case examples, the paper explores some of the cultural values and structural constraints that force communities, families and individuals into using damaging practices including violent discipline and restraint.…”