Rellen in Matonge en… onverschilligheid van de overheid?

Abstract

La revue scientifique électronique pour les recherches sur Bruxelles / Het elektronisch wetenschappelijk tijdschrift voor onderzoek over Brussel / The e-journal for academic research on Brussels Collection générale | 2013 Rellen in Matonge en… onverschilligheid van de overheid? Emeutes à Matonge et… indifférence des pouvoirs publics ? Riots in Matonge and… the indifference of public authority?

Explanatory models of mental health : a qualitative study among East-African migrants and Belgian healthcare professionals

“…Within my research, I focus on the explanatory models of mental health among East-African migrants living in Belgium, which is particularly relevant for several reasons. First, East-African migrants constitute a significant and growing proportion of the Belgian population (Demart et al 2017), with a majority originating from countries with a Belgian colonial history, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi. I also included East-African countries with distinct histories and more recent migration to Belgium, such as Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Tanzania.…”

“…By including this diverse set of East-African countries, I can avoid biases that may arise from solely focusing on migrants coming from countries with a Belgian colonial history, considering their unique historical contexts, migration patterns, and relationships with Belgium. Second, evidence suggests that migrant groups of African descent are more frequently exposed to various forms of racism and discrimination (Centrum voor gelijkheid van kansen en voor racismebestrijding 2011; Demart et al 2017;Tortelli et al 2014). The combination of their challenging migration experiences and precarious living conditions in the destination countries renders them among the most vulnerable groups to developing mental health problems (Pannetier et al 2017).…”

“…East-African migrants make up a significant and growing part of the Belgian population, with the largest population coming from the Democratic Republic of Congo (Demart et al 2017;Myria Federaal Migratiecentrum 2022). In 2021, two percent of the people migrating to Belgium came from East Africa, with the largest group coming from DR Congo (StatBel 2022).…”

“…Of the total Belgian population, 0.9% have an East-African nationality, 1.1% are born in an East-African country, and 1.3% have one or two parents with an East-African country of birth (StatBel 2022). People with an African background who migrate to Belgium often settle permanently (Demart et al 2017). For instance, in 2021, 2.6% of all people who have a first foreign nationality were from DR Congo, 66.6% of them acquired a Belgian nationality (Myria Federaal Migratiecentrum 2022).…”

“…During the colonial era, Belgium's colonization of the Congo and Ruanda-Urundi (which later became Rwanda-Burundi) created initial connections between East Africa and Belgium. However, the movement of people from Africa to Belgium at that time was rather minimal, and only involved special social groups such as children from both Belgian and African inhabitants (Demart et al 2017). This changed following the independence of various East African countries after 1960.…”