Somali Re-education Camps Target Danish Children

Edward Walgwe

December 10, 2025
2:20 pm

Disturbing Somali TV ads promoting “re-education” trips for immigrant children have sparked strong reactions in Denmark. Authorities and experts say this practice deeply concerns them and affects Danish children with Somali backgrounds.

Ads Promoting Re-education Camps

New discoveries from TV 2 Østjylland reveal shocking commercials broadcast on Somali television and shared online. These ads offer parents the chance to send their so-called “disobedient” or “too Westernized” children to Somalia for re-education. The message is direct: for a few hundred dollars a month, teenagers can be sent to “centers” that promise to restore discipline, religion, and cultural values.

The practice, known locally as dhagan celis—meaning “returning to one’s culture”—has become a growing concern among immigrant communities in Denmark. Some of these centers openly advertise religious and moral correction as part of their curriculum while claiming to treat addiction and behavioral problems.

Centers Operating Openly in Mogadishu

TV 2 journalists contacted two rehabilitation centers in Mogadishu that promote themselves online. One, called Xarunta Dhaqan Celinta Gargaar, confirmed that boys aged 15 and older are often enrolled for about $250 a month, and that several Danish teenagers have attended in recent years. Another center, Al-Saacid, said it focuses only on Somalis from the Mogadishu area but admitted to posting similar promotional videos.

Staff members insisted that physical violence was not part of their program, describing the camps instead as places offering medication, religious studies, and cultural lessons. However, both experts and survivor testimonies from Denmark seriously dispute those claims.

Links to Danish Somali Communities

For years, young people of Somali descent who immigrated to Denmark or were born there have reported being sent back to Somalia against their will. One young woman from Aarhus described experiencing torture-like treatment and extreme religious indoctrination during her 18-month stay in a camp.

According to Denmark’s Center for Documentation and Action Against Extremism, there is growing evidence that re-education centers in Somalia are becoming a structured and profitable industry. Many parents see the trips as a way to protect family honor or reconnect children with traditional values. Others react out of fear of crime, drug use, or mental illness.

Cultural Pressure and Family Motivations

Some parents who have struggled to integrate into Denmark explain that they feel torn between two cultural worlds. They worry that Danish norms weaken their children’s connection to Islam or Somali customs. Others mistrust the Western social system and look for solutions based on familiar cultural practices. This tension has created a shadow industry in parts of East Africa, fueled by parental fear and community expectations.

Experts note that the conditions in such camps vary but can often resemble prisons. Reports include forced isolation, physical punishment, denial of food or water, and psychological abuse. Danish social workers and security consultants have helped repatriate several young people with severe trauma after extended stays abroad.

Official and Community Reactions

Kenneth Schmidt Hansen, head of the national center tracking extremism, says these revelations show how deeply cultural re-education is embedded in Somali society. He emphasizes that when minors from Denmark are sent away and mistreated, it is considered abuse under Danish law. Activists like Kefa Abu Ras from the organization Sisters Against Violence and Control are calling for immediate government action, arguing that ethnic minority children must be protected under the same laws as all other Danish citizens.

A Growing and Dangerous Industry

While exact numbers are unclear, Danish authorities have received more than 200 reports in recent years involving forced stays abroad or re-education trips. Many cases involve Somali backgrounds. Investigations show that online advertising in Somali-language TV and social media increasingly targets families in Europe, including those in Aarhus and Copenhagen.

Those returning from these camps often carry deep emotional scars. Community groups now push for tighter prevention measures and international cooperation to stop the recruitment of Danish youth into foreign re-education institutions.

In the end, the discovery of these ads has reignited a difficult conversation in Denmark about cultural loyalty, parental control, and the rights of immigrant children to live safely under Danish protection.