Tahriib - Journeys into the Unknown

This book presents an innovative approach to migration by exploring Somali youths' 'journeys into the unknown', known as tahriib, and the intimate details of their lives en route. In describing their migration as a journey into the unknown, young Somali women and men refer to the uncertainty materializing on their journeys.-An important element of this uncertainty is the way in which their movements become defined as illegal as a consequence of laws and policies restricting the right to cross national and supra-national borders. Based on fieldwork conducted among young Somali women and men mainly from Somaliland, this book analyses the various ways in which young Somalis en route practice, perceive and position themselves in a world where circumstances are constantly changing, before and during the so-called migration crisis that began in 2015. The author shows that a vital part of tahriib is the constant search for information on possible routes ahead, and how this search intensifies as the journey progresses. She further explores how specific policy responses, such as biometric registration, influence practices of gathering and sharing information, and what these responses mean for the creation and shattering of hope and the experience of time en route. The objective of the book is to demonstrate that tahriib is ultimately about spending one's time wisely and about creating and maintaining hope in what may seem like hopeless situations.