Some Somali parents residing in Finland have chosen to send their children to disciplinary institutions in Somalia—places where reports of severe abuse, including shackling and beatings, have emerged from a recent investigation by Yle.
Wali Hashi, a journalist with Yle’s Somali-language news unit, uncovered this harrowing reality in a report produced by Yle’s Investigative Journalism unit, MOT. By posing as a father searching for help for his son, Hashi was able to gain access to these institutions in both Somalia and Kenya.
His inquiry was sparked during a conversation with his son while they were preparing for a holiday in Somalia last year. Concerned and wary, the young man questioned whether the trip was merely a pretext for sending him to a disciplinary institution, given that several of his friends had faced similar fates—lured with the promise of a vacation only to be taken to remote camps marked by harsh punishment and isolation.
The motivations behind such decisions often stem from a desire to protect children from perceived dangers, including drugs, crime, and an overly liberal Western lifestyle. This cultural phenomenon even has its own term in Somali: Celis, meaning a ‘return to culture.’
Inside the Institutions
Following his son’s unsettling inquiry, Hashi embarked on a journey to expose what truly happens in these camps. Anticipating that he would be denied direct access, he cleverly disguised himself as a concerned father seeking assistance for his child.
The footage he captured is central to MOT’s documentary, titled Holiday Changed to Shackles—an unsettling chronicle that is now available for viewing on Yle Areena and will air on Yle TV1 this evening.
Hashi’s first stop was a camp in Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital. The facility was daunting, surrounded by electrified barbed wire and guarded by armed personnel. Upon entering, he met with the institution’s director, who unsettlingly detailed the arrival process for new youths: heads are shaved, shackles applied if there is resistance, and a forced shower follows.
The True Nature of Rehabilitation
Disguised as rehabilitation schools, these institutions claim to help young people learn proper behavior. Yet, many parents unknowingly send their children into a nightmare, unaware of the true conditions behind the walls.
Hashi’s secret recordings revealed alarming treatments—youths chained to beds and punished with physical assaults and the deprivation of food. Staff admitted to using violence, expressing a disturbing indifference to the suffering inflicted on the young residents.
An International Crisis
The long-lasting Somali civil war has disrupted the lives of millions, forcing families to flee and creating a complex web of cultural tensions in Western nations for those of Somali descent. Hashi found that children from all corners of the globe are sent to these camps; one particular inquiry in Kenya involved a boy who had traveled all the way from Stockholm. Officials at the facility revealed that even two youths from Finland had been housed there in the past, highlighting a worrying trend where disciplinary camps have become a lucrative industry preying on the fears of parents seeking to “fix” their children’s behavior.
In a Mogadishu institution, families reportedly pay hundreds of euros monthly—a substantial amount in Somalia—to gain admission for their children.
A Voice of Experience
Abdi, a Finnish citizen featured in MOT’s investigation, shared his own harrowing experience of being sent to a disciplinary camp in Kenya at just 12 years old. Afraid of retribution, he spoke under a pseudonym. Abdi recounted the brutal beatings he endured from the moment his parents left him there, detailing the punishments he suffered at the hands of staff, who wielded wooden sticks and other makeshift weapons.
Reflecting on his parents’ decision, Abdi believed their reliance on community advice led them to consider this drastic measure a viable solution to his school struggles and rebellious behavior. He eventually escaped without assistance from authorities.
The Role of Finnish Authorities
While the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for aiding citizens abroad, a spokesperson lamented that details surrounding such disciplinary camps often remain obscure. “We are aware that young people are sent there, but direct information about these cases is sparse,” Jussi Tanner, the ministry’s head of consular services, noted.
A recent report by the Crisis Response Association highlighted that similar cases have emerged from Finland, revealing an uncomfortable truth that demands attention.
The Impact on Families
MOT also spotlighted the story of Jasmin Osman, a young woman born in Denmark to a Somali father and a Ugandan mother. When she was 19, her parents suggested a trip to visit relatives in Uganda. Instead, she found herself trapped in a disciplinary camp in Somalia after being forcibly removed from the plane during a stopover.
Osman recalled how her parents believed this harsh solution would “fix” her Western lifestyle, which they deemed inappropriate. At the center, she faced egregious punishments, including psychological and physical torment, administered under the guise of moral correction.
Now 28 and living in the United States, Osman attributes her parents’ decision to well-meaning but misguided attempts to protect her. After enduring unfathomable abuse, she escaped, with her tale shedding light on a pervasive culture of silence.
A Call for Awareness and Change
The institutions exposed in MOT’s documentary market themselves to Somali parents as effective disciplinary schools, claiming to provide strong foundations for young people. However, what appears to be moral correction often results in severe trauma.
Sahfana Ali Mubarak, a special envoy at the Norwegian embassy in Kenya, echoed these themes, stressing that many youths emerge traumatized and face difficulties reintegrating into their communities.
Parents, in their pursuit to help, may inadvertently plunge their children into deeper distress—a phenomenon that needs urgent awareness and intervention to prevent further suffering among vulnerable youth.