In a provocative feature article published in Norwegian newspaper, VG, Yusuf argues that many Somali families artificially live apart in legally; while they live in same household in reality. Majority of Somali families are registered as a single parent household. Figures from Norwegian government statistics show that there are 2.5 times as many single parents among Somalis than in other migrant families. According to the same statistics, three of four Somali women do not work; one of the three are divorced and half have more than three children.
In the article Kadra Yusuf asks, “Why people who come from a conservative Muslim country suddenly decide to divorce in Norway?”
Yusuf reasons that many Somali immigrants declare to be single parents to benefit from generous assistance that is provided by the Norwegian welfare system.
She believes the Norwegian welfare system encourages married couples to divorce and reward single mothers with many children. Yusuf argues this lead to poverty trap for Somalis. Somalis should be required to do more than just live off welfare, she says
Politicians are afraid of stigmatizing, but they should be willing to take on the dreary debates too. Benefits for single parents is a social benefit that many use, but it’s being abused and Somali children are the losing end of this sytem, says Kafra Yusuf.
Kadra Yusuf argues that existing welfare system causes many family problems.
The ‘fictional divorce’ is not only legal fraud. Somali men leave their home during the day because of fear that social workers will show up at the house. They usually go Khat rooms leaving family responsibilities to women. This leads to alter the normal Somali family structure.
Kadra Yusuf calls the Norwegian government to reform the social welfare to remove poverty trap that many Somali families find them in.
Norway has one of the best and generous welfare systems in the world. parents are entitled to 12 months off work with 80% pay, or 10 months with full pay. The fertility rate has been a steady 1.8 higher than most European countries. Norwgian welfare’s motto has been, “from the cradle to the grave”. All Norwegians enjoy full health care and free education system throughout their lives.
Insurance Fraud
Magne Fladby, Director of the Norwegian National Insurance Verification and Collection Agency, says that they’re aware of the high risk for this type of fraud among Somalis.
“We get tips that this is widespread among Somalis. This is a benefits area we have a strong focus on in order to discover abuse,” he says.
Fladby says that they don’t have statistics based on ethnicity, and have no special measures directed only at Somalis. “We actively work to uncover abuses among single parents in general,” he says.
The figures on abuse of welfare benefits for single parents increased sharply in recent years. In 2008, his agency uncovered fraud of 2.3 million Kroner (373,000 US Dollar.) In 2010 they uncovered a record high of 8.2 million Kroner ($1,300,000.)
Ethnic perspective
The leader of the Parliamentary Labour and Social Committee Karin Andersen (SV) calls the government to finding a firm solution of this social problem and she encourage the social services to approach this problem from an “ethnic point of view.”
Published by: Mohamed H. Gulaid
Somalis are good at telling lies,good at doing deviant things like defrauding government agencies, never say the truth,abuse welfare so bad that even here in the US they do just what has been reported happenning in Norway.They never work and most of their women are divorces who just sit at home in public housing depending on government handouts.Most of the public housing now has become Somali territories here in the US.The same applies to the men who hang out in somali joints all day drinking coffee, tea and watching TV.The men also never seem to want to work just like the women and you will ask" when do these people ever go to work"
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