A large proportion of refugee children living in the region of Calais in northern France are unaccompanied, and authorities have failed to provide protection to these minors, the report "Six Months On” concludes. "The majority have suffered from police violence, including tear gas and beatings. The lack of safety combined with an absence of resource to information, advice and support, is striking."

The report was released by human rights organization Refugee Rights Data Project, a UK registered charity that conducted research in Paris in January and in the Calais region in April this year. 213 respondents were interviewed for the study, among them 86 refugee minors.

Following the tumultuous closure of the Calais camp last October, an estimated 1,500 unaccompanied children were transferred to other accommodations in France and 350 children were relocated to the United Kingdom. Many, however, have also disappeared into destitution and have gone into hiding.

Exploitation and police violence

Around 400 displaced people are now living without shelter and recourse to state support in the proximities of Calais (excluding Dunkirk), the report finds. Most of them were reluctant to apply for asylum in France because they are still hoping to go to the UK. They remain hidden without access to healthcare. Minors are particularly vulnerable, sleeping on the street or trying for dangerous onward journeys across Europe. The report warns of physical and mental health concerns, violence and exploitation.

89.2 percent of all respondents said that they had experienced police violence, tear gas being the most frequent form of violence, and almost 60 percent of respondents reported they had experienced abuse by citizens, either verbal or physical. Responding minors indicated a more frequent encounter with abuse - 96.5 percent report of police violence.

One 16-year old respondent from Eritrea reported that he had been tasered when the police found him in the port area. Another boy explained that he was about to be crushed by some wooden panels while hiding inside a truck, and therefore had to come out voluntarily. When he came out, the police gave him an electric shock,

Access to information an issue

Most minors interviewed indicated that they wanted to go to the UK to join family members, among other reasons. However, nearly 80 percent had not applied for official family reunification under the Dublin regulation. Only 4.8 percent of the minors said they had access to information about European immigration laws.

You can read the report here: Six Months On by Refugee Rights Data Project  @RefugeeData