Human Rights

Abstracts

Judging Asylum and Immigration Claims: The Human Rights Act and the Refugee Convention
Public Money & Management, June 2001, vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 25-28(4)
Blake C. [1]
[1] Researcher, Royal Holloway, University of London
Abstract:
Immigration appeals have not received much attention from legal scholars or from public administrators. This is despite the increased interest in asylum law, practice and decisions. There is much to be considered in relation to the jurisdiction of the immigration appellate process to include human rights issues arising in immigration and asylum decisions taken by the Home Office after 2 October 2000. The nature of the appellate process, especially in asylum cases, is analysed. The question of the best form of hearing (adversarial, inquisitorial) is discussed. Issues of expert evidence, credibility and the form of adjudication are also addressed. Finally, the political context of asylum decisions is considered

Managing Asylum and European Integration: Expanding Spheres of Exclusion?
International Studies Perspectives, August 2001, vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 288-304(17)
Uçarer E.M. [1]
[1] Bucknell University
Abstract:
During the last decade, thhe European Union intensified its efforts to define its external borders in conjunction with its efforts to evolve into a coherent, frontier-free political territory. European policy-makers slowly shaped new norms and rules pertaining to asylum, with increasingly stronger mechanisms to enforce the policy decisions. In the case of asylum and refugee protection, Europe's efforts are nested in the broad global institutional framework negotiated through and carried out by international organizations. However, these developments raise the specter of deteriorating refugee protection in Europe and beyond. This article reviews the norms and rules on which the post–World War II refugee protection regime rests and then points to the recent developments in refugee protection in Europe, which might undermine the goals of the global refugee protection.

Female Asylum-Seekers in the Netherlands: An Empirical Study
International Migration, 2001, vol. 39, no. 3, pp. 86-98(13)
van Wetten J.W. [1]; Bijleveld C.C.J.H. [2]; Heide F. [3]; Dijkhoff N. [4]
[1] Netherlands Ministry of Justice [2] Netherlands Institute for the Study of Criminality and Law Enforcement [3] Information and Analysis Centre, Immigration and Naturalization Service, Netherlands [4] WODC Research and Documentation Centre, Netherlands Ministry of Justice
Abstract:
This article presents the findings from a study into the chances for refugee status, or a temporary residence permit, for three cohorts of male and female asylum-seekers to the Netherlands. The study investigated whether men and women with similar backgrounds in terms of country of origin, social and demographic characteristics have a similar likelihood of obtaining permission to stay in the Netherlands.
The quantitative findings are corroborated with an in-depth qualitative study of refugees' files from the Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND), as well as with an experiment in which decision-making personnel were asked to judge hypothetical case studies of refugees in which gender as well as other gender-specific properties were systematically varied.
We recommend that further in-depth studies be conducted to capture elements in the decision-making process that could not be investigated in our kind of large-scale study.

The Dilemmas of Temporary Protection – the Norwegian Experience
Policy Studies, 1 March 2001, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 5-18(14)
Brekke J-P.
Abstract:
Temporary protection for refugees was a recurring topic on the European agenda during the 1990s. The instrument was first implemented in most Western European states following the mass outflow from Bosnia Herzegovina during 1992-93. In this article the experiences drawn from the use of temporary protection for Bosnian refugees in Norway are discussed. What were the main challenges that the government faced in the implementation of temporary protection, and what dilemmas emerged? Were these specific to the Bosnian situation and the Norwegian version of temporary protection, or were weaknesses exposed that are inherent in the temporary model itself? The article is based on research done as part of a larger Nordic study, where the development of the temporary instrument and its effects on the refugees was studied from 1995 to 1998. Four central dilemmas that the government encountered under the formulation and implementation of the temporary instrument are identified and discussed. This is followed by an assessment of the advantages and disadvantages of the temporary reception model. It is focused on a number of processes that start at the time of the refugee's arrival. Together these contributed to making it difficult for the Norwegian government to maintain the premise of return, which was the key element in the temporary policy. It is argued that the model carries possibilities for political costs. The potential use of coercion, which is a key component of the model, is prone to spark controversy. In Norway, the fading support for this restrictive side of the model led to permanent statutes for the refugees. Time is put forward as the main challenge for governments that implement the temporary regime. In the concluding remarks, several general characteristics of the temporary model are highlighted. It has a generous side - it allows for larger groups to be received - as well as a restrictive side. Since the soft side appears first in time, the temporary policy has a seductive character. The instrument is also characterized by being time fragile. As time passes it becomes increasingly difficult for the authorities to uphold the premise of return. If the support for the policy fades during the temporary period, one risks premature termination. The cost of the model - the refugee's uncertain situation - will then fail to serve a higher purpose.

 

Human Rights and Refugees: Enhancing Protection through International Human Rights Law
Nordic Journal of International Law, 2000, vol. 69, no. 2, pp. 117-177(61)
Gorlick B.[1]
[1]Refugee Law Training Officer, UNHCR Regional Office for the Baltic and Nordic Countries, Stockholm
Abstract:
This essay analyses how UN mechanisms of human rights protection – namely the UN Commission and Sub-Commission on Human Rights, the Committee Against Torture, the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Human Rights Committee – can be used as a practical and analytical tool to enhance the protection of refugees and suggests that they can make a significant contribution to refugee protection. Although UN mechanisms may not provide a framework of protection as expansive and reliable as domestic systems, recent developments in international human rights law have contributed to an increasingly important legal framework that can be invoked in support of both specific cases and more broad-based advocacy on behalf of refugees. This article draws on specific examples to argue that UNHCR and refugee advocates can use these laws and mechanisms to enhance protection principles and give effect to forms of enforcement.

 

Internally Displaced Persons and Refugees: Conceptual Differences and Similarities
Netherlands Quarterly of Human Rights, June 2000, vol. 18, no. 2, pp. 215-229(15)
Phuong C.[1]
[1]University of Nottingham
Abstract:
Although the phenomenon of internal displacement has always existed, it has only become the subject of significant concern for the international community since the end of the 1980s. This paper explores the relationships between the two categories of displaced persons, and in particular the distinct conceptual basis which has seen different frameworks of protection applied to the two groups. It considers why the current refugee definition excludes internally displaced persons from its ambit, and the arguments for situating the two groups under a single legal status. Distinctions between the categories can be arbitrary and arise from factors that have no connection with the merits of the claims for protection, but may be critical to the protection actually afforded. Central to the discussion is the concept of State sovereignty, as the internally displaced remain under the domestic jurisdiction of their country, and without that country's consent, beyond the reach of the international community. As refugee law cannot apply, international protection can only be afforded to internally displaced persons through international human rights law, and in some cases humanitarian law.

Locating internally displaced people in the field of forced migration
Norsk Geografisk Tidsskrift, 6 September 2000, vol. 54, no. 3, pp. 90-95(6)
van Hear N. [1]
[1] Centre for Development Research, Gammel Kongevej 5, DK-1610 Copenhagen V, Denmark
Abstract:
There appears to have been a shift in the nature of forced migration since the end of the Cold War: the total number of refugees worldwide has been declining since the latter part of the 1990s, while the number of internally displaced people has risen. This paper reflects on some aspects of this shift. First, it attempts to place internal displacement in the broader arena of forced migration: it locates internally displaced people within a simple schema which seeks to account for different forms of forced migration and to show the connections between them. Some cases of internal displacement in Sri Lanka are examined to show the close links between different kinds of migratory movement. The paper then suggests some reasons, apart from the increase in numbers, for the increase in interest in internally displaced persons in both the academic and policy arenas. Specifically, it attempts to set the issue of internal displacement within the current debate on the 'refugee regime', especially the controversy about 'containment' of would-be asylum seekers in their countries of origin. The paper concludes that understanding the complex dynamics between different forms of migration, internal and international, is needed for the construction of an effective 'refugee regime'.

'Why should I send my child to school?': A study of Burundian Hutu refugees' experiences of exclusion from education and how this motivates education in Tanzanian exile
Norsk Geografisk Tidsskrift, 6 September 2000, vol. 54, no. 3, pp. 116-121(6)
Skonhoft C.G. [1]
[1] Gratangen, N-9470 Norway
Abstract:
This paper focuses on Hutu refugees from Burundi who, as a consequence of the mass killings in Burundi in 1993, were forced into Tanzanian exile. The actors in the study are the refugee teachers who have participated in the development of the educational programme in Lukole refugee camp in Ngara, Tanzania. The aim of the research was to explore Burundian Hutu refugees' experiences of exclusion from education in Burundi, and how this in turn has motivated education in Tanzanian exile. Before this could be accomplished, the need was recognized to investigate socio-political causes of the refugee situation, with special reference to education. As an illustration of how societies develop disasters like those witnessed in Burundi, a 'disaster model' is presented. What is revealed is that the Hutu majority has been systematically discriminated against and excluded from any post-primary education. The educational system in Burundi has, furthermore, been the arena for ethnical-political tension that has repeatedly escalated into violence. As a consequence, sending Burundian Hutu children to school was in many cases seen as a 'risk'. Given the testimonies of the refugee teachers, this fact also affected the refugee community in Tanzania and their willingness to send their children to school in the camp.

Refugee settlement in Britain: the impact of policy on participation
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 1 January 2000, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 75-88(14)
Bloch A.
Abstract:
The settlement of refugees and asylum-seekers in countries of asylum depends on a range of factors that include the policies of the country of asylum as well as the experiences to and attitudes of individuals to exile. This article examines the direction of social policy towards refugees and asylum-seekers in Britain and the impact of policy on participation. Drawing on a sample of 180 refugees and asylum-seekers from the Somali, Tamil and Congolese communities in the London Borough of Newham, this article shows the importance of immigration status, and the associated citizenship rights, on the social and economic settlement of refugees and asylum-seekers. Labour market participation is known to be a key factor affecting the settlement of refugees. Labour market activity is explored along with the impact of policy on participation. The article concludes that the direction of government policy, which continues to erode access to social and economic institutions, has an adverse affect on the settlement of refugee people in Britain.

Party politics and the Bosnian question: the Swedish decision to grant permanent residence
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 1 January 2000, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 89-108(20)
Appelqvist M.
Abstract:
In June 1993 the Swedish right-wing government took the decision to grant 40,000 Bosnian refugees permission to remain permanently in Sweden. The Swedish decision could be seen as being somewhat unique in a context where neighbouring countries (Denmark and Norway) were granting the same group of refugee protection on temporary basis, and where there was increasing debate throughout Europe about temporary protection. While there is a Swedish tradition of granting permanent residence to persons who have been accepted as refugees, question marks have been raised over this policy in the course of the 1990s. Moreover, Sweden's previous (social democratic) government had already established the principle of temporary protection as a model for future occasions. This article discusses the ideological considerations behind this controversial decision in the light of the contrary conceptions of the social democrats. The article draws on the results of a comparative study about the reception of Bosnian refugees in the Nordic countries. The study comprised informal discussions and formal interviews with ministers, civil servants and administrative officers in the Swedish Ministry of Immigration as well as analysis of 179 departmental documents in the ministries responsible for refugee and immigration policy during the 1990s.

Cultural Nationalism, Self-Determination and Human Rights in Bhutan
International Journal of Refugee Law, 1 July 2000, vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 321-353(33)
Saul B.[1]
[1]Australian Law Reform Commission (Syd)
Abstract:
Since 1990, over 96,000 people have fled from Bhutan to refugee camps in Nepal, or were born in exile to refugee parents. The causes of exile remain deeply contested. Refugee leaders claim that they are victims of ethnic and religious discrimination (including torture) arising out of arbitrary, absolutist politics. The Bhutanese Government, an hereditary monarchy, responds that the refugees are illegal immigrants from Nepal, discovered and expelled after a 1988 census. The Nepali Hindu immigrants were also seen as a threat to the cultural autonomy and political order of the northern Bhutanese, descendants of Tibetan Buddhists. The first part of this article places the exodus in the ethnic and cultural contexts that shaped modern Bhutanese society. It then sets out and adjudicates the competing claims made by refugee leaders and Bhutan regarding the causes of exile. It focuses on three interrelated — and discriminatory — sets of laws concerning nationality, cultural protection, and the repression of dissent. It explains how the mass exodus of southern Bhutanese was immediately caused by the enforcement of these laws. The second part looks at key contested human rights discourses framing the exodus. The ambiguous right of self-determination in international law presents positive ways of restructuring the Bhutanese State to overcome the discriminatory and exclusionary impulses built into its power structure and institutions. The paper also deconstructs claims made by Bhutan that (1) ‘first generation’ (civil and political) rights should follow after ‘second generation’ (economic, social and cultural) rights; (2) the content of ‘differential democracy’ in non-western contexts need not reflect basic standards of human rights; and (3) ‘collective’ rights should take precedence over ‘individual’ rights. The article aims to elucidate the opportunities for peaceful coexistence in Bhutan, by linking the causes of exile with the solutions to it.

The Purpose of Asylum
International Journal of Refugee Law, 1 July 2000, vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 354-379(26)
Nathwani N.[1]
[1]European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia, Vienna, Austria
Abstract:
The institution of asylum faces a serious crisis in Europe. At the root of this problem lies the perception that refugee law and asylum practice obstruct the efficient enforcement of a restrictive immigration policy. It is also seen to weaken the deterrence effect of the main instruments (punishment, forcible expulsion) used to combat unwanted immigration. This crisis highlights the need to explain the following question: Why should asylum be granted, given that EU Member States are committed to a restrictive immigration regime. Past explanations of the purpose of asylum are not fully satisfactory on this account. The theory of diplomatic protection by Paul Weis and the theory of de facto statelessness by Atle Grahl-Madsen are designed to explain the difference of treatment between a refugee and a normal alien resident abroad; these theories therefore presuppose the fact of immigration, and cannot explain why unwanted immigration should be permitted exceptionally. The human rights theory is capable of explaining asylum practice against the background of a restrictive immigration regime, but relies exclusively on altruism. Also, the proliferation of human rights results in the plea for asylum for all human rights victims conflicting with a restrictive immigration policy. If the human rights theory were taken seriously, States would find it difficult to realise the policy goal of restricting immigration. The human rights theory therefore appears to be utopian. The concept of necessity offers a useful approach. Morally, necessity explains the conditions under which it would be unfair to fight off unwanted immigrants by deportation and punishment. Practically, necessity explains the conditions under which immigration control is not feasible at a reasonable cost versus desperate individuals. Instead of forcing refugees into hiding, the flow of forced migrants needs to be managed instead. The institutional means to do so is asylum. It follows that both, morally and practically, necessity trumps a restrictive immigration policy and qualifies as a robust explanation of the purpose of a limited, but fair asylum policy.

 

The Meaning of ‘Protection’ in the Refugee Definition
International Journal of Refugee Law, October 2000, vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 548-576(29)
Fortin A.[1]
[1]The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
Abstract:
Lack of national protection is one of the constituent elements of the refugee definition embodied in the 1951 Refugee Convention and in the Statute of UNHCR. To be recognized as a refugee under these instruments, a person who is outside their country of nationality must establish, among other matters, that he or she is unable or, owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for any of the relevant reasons, unwilling to avail themselves of the protection of that country. The author argues that the meaning of this requirement is often misunderstood in current discussions on international refugee law. According to one view, the protection to which the refugee definition alludes is ‘internal protection’, that is, the protection that the State must provide within its territory to victims or potential victims of persecution. In the view of the author, this view is not supported by the drafting history of the refugee definition, and is not consistent with the wording of the relevant texts. On the contrary, the term ‘protection’ in this context means ‘diplomatic protection’, that is, the protection accorded by States to their nationals abroad. The article further considers the circumstances and parameters within which the notion of ‘internal protection’ is relevant to the determination of refugee claims.

 

Principles of Protection for Internally Displaced Persons
International Migration, 2000, vol. 38, no. 6, pp. 81-101(21)
Mooney E.D. [1]
[1] Special Assistant, Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General on Internally Displaced Persons; and Human Rights Officer, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva
Abstract:
For forced migrants who have not left their country but are internally displaced persons, human rights law provides an important framework through which to analyse and address their plight. Two principal reasons underpin this assertion.
First, owing to the compelling need: human rights violations cut across all phases of internal displacement, causing its occurrence, characterizing the conditions of physical insecurity and material deprivation in which the internally displaced often find themselves, and impeding equitable and lasting solutions.
Second, as internally displaced persons remain within the territory of their state, refugee law does not apply and, instead, human rights law provides the fundamental basis for addressing their plight. In addition to human rights law, other standards of international law are also relevant, namely international humanitarian law when displacement occurs in situations of armed conflict and refugee law by analogy.
Drawing on these three standards of international law, Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement have been developed which set out what protection should mean for internally displaced persons in all phases of displacement. This article traces the origins and provides an overview of the content of the Guiding Principles, the text of which is reproduced in full in the Appendix.

 

The Dark Side of Democracy: Migration, Xenophobia and Human Rights in South Africa
International Migration, 2000, vol. 38, no. 6, pp. 103-133(31)
Crush J. [1]
[1] Southern African Research Centre, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario and Director of Southern African Migration Project
Abstract:
South Africa prides itself on having one of the most progressive constitutions in the world. The Bill of Rights guarantees a host of basic political, cultural and socio-economic rights to all who are resident in the country. Yet there have been persistent reports that citizen intolerance of non-citizens, refugees and migrants has escalated dramatically since 1994.
This article documents this process through presentation of results of national public opinion surveyed by the Southern African Migration Project (SAMP).
The surveys show that intolerance is extremely pervasive and growing in intensity and seriousness. Abuse of migrants and refugees has intensified and there is little support for the idea of migrant rights. Only one group of South Africans, a small minority with regular personal contact with non-citizens, is significantly more tolerant.
These findings do not augur well for migrant and refugee rights in this newly democratic country, or early acceptance of the UN Convention on the protection of migrant workers.

The minority within the minority: refugee community-based organisations in the UK and the impact of restrictionism on asylum-seekers
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 1 October 2000, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 675-697(23)
Zetter R.; Pearl M.
Abstract:
Since the mid-1990s, policies and legislation for refugees and asylum-seekers have become increasingly restrictionist in the UK. Disentitlement to housing and welfare benefits and fragmented service delivery have caused widespread social exclusion and destitution amongst asylum-seekers. The article examines some of the consequences of these policy shifts for refugee community-based organisations (RCOs). The article shows how, on the margins, RCOs have articulated the needs and expanded their activities for their client groups in an increasingly constrained policy arena. However, the vital resources that RCOs could provide are often as neglected and marginalised as the groups they serve. Financial and legal constraints to RCO action have resulted in pragmatic responses, a generally poor quality of service provision, very limited access to public resources, lack of co-ordination and networking, and limited professional capacity. These shortcomings are underpinned by institutional and structural determinants which the 1999 Immigration and Asylum Act reinforces. These flaws in the current framework of provision are explored. Some ways in which practice can be improved are outlined. Pessimistically the article concludes that, despite the rapid increase of demand for RCO services, the scope for major repositioning of RCOs away from the margins is unlikely.

The Refugee: The Individual between Sovereigns
Global Society, June 2003, vol. 17, no. 3, pp. 297-322 (26)
Haddad, E.
  Abstracted by: Michael Neil
Abstract:
In addition to being the consequence of persecution, the refugee phenomenon is part and parcel of a wider system of states that developed before the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 and evolved during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The development of sovereign states with territorial boundaries, according to Emma Haddad in “The Refugee: The Individual between Sovereigns”, creates refugees when these nations fail to ensure adequate protection for all of their citizens. Instead of being protected by states bounded by certain territorial limits, refugees fall into the cracks. They cannot fit nicely into the citizen-state-territory grouping and are often unable to take advantage of international protection schemes that rely upon individual states to surrender certain prerogatives in order for international aid projects to succeed. These aid projects may move forward if the sovereign prerogatives of states are re-envisioned.
Recent interventions in Kosovo and Somalia suggest that the international community may be slowly undermining the process of national sovereignty, or, at least, redefining its sphere of application. Just as with refugees, international efforts with IDPs (internally displaced persons) challenge the “citizen-state-territory hierarchy” inherent in the traditional system of states. Like refugees, IDPs are trapped between sovereigns despite their inability to cross national boundaries. In both the case of a refugee and an IDP, sovereignty reveals a dynamic of inclusion and exclusion. The system of sovereign states requires that boundaries be defined by their relationship to outsiders, according to Haddad. Refugees serve this purpose. Sovereign states can demand ethnic or religious homogeneity, thereby providing absolute exclusion for members of the community who do not conform. Expulsions throughout history have shown the different responses possible for the international community as a reaction to the problematic reality of national sovereignty.
In 1685, the exile of Huguenots from Catholic France provided the first example of refugee flight. In contrast to many future refugees, these French Protestants were hardly a strain on the international community, especially Britain, since they brought resources, labor, and money into their new host countries. For France and Britain, refugees and the formation of a sovereign state reinforced one another. In France, the development of religious homogeneity “necessary” for a centralized state leant a hand in refugee production. In Britain, French Huguenots contributed to the development of the process of naturalization of immigrants, thereby establishing a key function of statehood.
During the French Revolution and beyond, both refugees and citizens began to be defined by their allegiances to their nation-state. Ideologies developed around ethnic and national considerations, which would become even more acute with the nationalism of the 19th and 20th centuries. As states validated themselves as national-ethnic units, refugees, who were not imagined as belonging, became perceived enemies and attempted to join together with fellow minorities. In response, nations developed elaborate laws designed to restrict the flow of immigrants and refugees, relegating the latter status only to those who exhibited extreme persecution.
As long as states were the primary agents of relief for refugees, conflict between the ordering principle of states and refugee populations continued. While minority protection regimes, developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century in the guise of the Berlin Declaration and the League of Nations , aided refugees to some degree, stateless people proliferated. After World War II, intergovernmental cooperation began to supersede state efforts in refugee protection. This did not change the statist predominance in international relations, nor will it in the near future, despite international interventions in Somalia and elsewhere, as Haddad notes. Though a change to the hegemonic states system that would force the creation of a, cosmopolitan system of governance is almost impossible to imagine, increasing humanitarian interventionism in Somalia, Liberia, and elsewhere, does offer some consolation for refugee relief, at least a regional level.

Immigration, Social Citizenship and Housing in Germany Welfare
International Journal of Urban & Regional Research, 1996, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 83-98 (16)
Faist, Thomas and Haußermann, Hartmutt
  Abstracted by: Michael Neil
Abstract:
During the twentieth century, a vast influx of immigrants of varying legal and social status has led to unrest concerning the ability and willingness of states to provide them with the social service entitlements of the past. In the 1990s, contentious political battles developed over the feasibility of nation-states continuing provision of social services, designed for their citizenry, to unanticipated and often unwelcome immigrants, while maintaining desired cultural identity. Within the context of a relatively strong welfare state, such as Germany , how is this problem addressed?
According to Faist and Häußermann, the unified German state has struggled with resource allocation through the 1990s and beyond. Today, immigrants of various types constitute at least 8% of the total German population. With the increase in immigration during the late 1980s and 1990s resulting from the fall of the German Democratic Republic, other ex-Communist nations in Eastern Europe , and the Former Soviet Union, the German government tightened immigration policy and began the systematic, yet informal, exclusion of “unwelcome” groups. It tightened criteria for asylum. Restrictions limited movement into the nation, as well as made qualifications for residency and work permits more stringent, while they curtailed housing and work provisions, as well as some political rights. Immigrants, in general, including guest workers, refugees from East Germany , migrant laborers, seasonal workers, and asylum seekers and receivers, vied and continue to compete for pieces of the shrinking German social service budget.
De facto German provision of social services as well as qualifications for citizenship were, and continue to be, largely based on ethno-cultural criteria. As such, ethnic Germans from formerly communist Eastern Europe achieved full benefits under resident non-citizen legal status upon arrival, a benefit shared by recognized refugees, though the latter must remain for at least five years to acquire citizenship while ethnic Germans qualified immediately. Settled guest workers, including Turks and Yugoslavs, can receive services immediately and qualify for citizenship after ten years, but temporary workers cannot receive either entitlement, and their employment conditions are tenuous. Asylum-seekers who do not obtain prior official legal recognition can receive education and unemployment insurance but no social security or housing.
This denial of access to both the private housing market (because of poverty) and subsidized housing often produces alienation. Even when asylum seekers achieve legally recognized status as refugees, they experience isolation and separation from the social fabric and governmental process of Germany . Even though these recognized refugees might acquire subsidized housing, this entitlement, which often places them in crowded, poverty-stricken, urban centers, manifests in tension and violence with German neighbors. Hostility has also increased with the insertion of new immigrants from East Germany and other European nations during the 1990s and the post-Cold War immigration crisis remains one of the most contentious political issues within Germany and Europe as a whole. Xenophobic right-wing political parties have used the issue of cultural homogeneity and the undesirable dilution of social services for citizens in acceptor nations to gain support for increasingly stringent anti-immigrant budgetary and social policies across much of Europe, especially in France, Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Italy. These measures are popular with many in a heretofore social-democratic European society that now seeks to build “economic prosperity,” at the cost of social programs, for successful participation in the European Union.
Thus, a chain reaction has significantly reduced the expectation of an economically viable and certain future for both immigrants, and nationals. The catalyst of historical political upheaval with its attendant resettlement of displaced peoples has created hardship on the part of nations accustomed to largely homogeneous cultures. Overburdened social services budgets have collided with attempted international political federation in the European Union, resulting in states denying the poor within their borders a social safety net in order to consolidate monies for economic ventures.

Education in a Rebuilding Nation: Renewing Special Education in Kosovo
Exceptional Children, Summer 2004, vol. 70, no. 4, pp. 485-495 (11)
Bartlett , B., Blatch, P., and Power, D.
  Abstracted by: Michael Neil
Abstract:
By the end of the Bosnian Civil War, the educational system in Kosovo, including special education, had been decimated. Though devastating, the consequences of this destruction provided an opportunity for innovative restructuring of special needs education for individuals with disabilities. In “Education in a Rebuilding Nation: Renewing Special Education in Kosovo”, Bartlett, Blatch, and Power discuss the successful projects initiated by the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) in conjunction with activists within the Kosovar educational community. This article also focuses on a neglected field of study encompassing the unique needs of people caught within the intersection of disability and displacement and social needs, including education.
Reestablishment of an educational system, which can impart literacy and other necessary skills, becomes paramount in the effort to regain functional self-government after ethnic conflict and other violence have disrupted governmental and societal institutions. The ideal reconstruction and renovation of educational systems requires rebuilding infrastructure, as well as replenishing supplies, but particularly focuses on multiculturalism and inclusion when training teachers and administrators. In the case of Kosovo, scarce building materials and limited school supplies did not deter the desire of both teachers and students to reestablish and improve their traditional schools, reclaiming and amending their previous system.
In pre-war Kosovo, special education operated under a “withdrawal” model, which separated deaf, blind, and intellectually impaired students from the community at large and from each other. Impediments to attendance for these special-needs students included transportation and safety issues. In many cases, children lived far from a designated school and the connecting roads were studded with land mines. Additionally, trained special-education teachers were scarce. Ethnic segregation exacerbated the problems. Serb, ethnic Albanian Muslim, nomadic Roma schools were separated from one another bureaucratically and geographically. Division by ethnicity segregated the already enisled special needs children.
By 2000, with the fall of Milosevic and the end of the Kosovar civil war, terrorized and neglected students populated the remnants of the parallel school systems run by Albanian Kosovars. The UNMIK provided almost immediate relief. It appointed wardens to protect students and hired teachers committed to ethnic as well as disability integration. To aid this process, the deaf community purged teachers and administrators unwilling to discard archaic views, integrated classes, and created Kosovar Sign Language.
In the blind community, UNMIK took a secondary role to school and community leaders who had shielded blind students, whose parents had fled without them, from roving militias during the conflict. In staying to protect the children, professional teachers including those with special education training and administrators remained, as did the proper educational equipment they preserved. Even before the conflict, adapted mainstream curricula were in place. Conditions existed which allowed for easier normalization, rebuilding, and reform.
While Kosovo has experienced enormous challenges, the resilience and resourcefulness of the special education system stands as an exemplar of ethnic and disability tolerance, a valuable asset to national reconstruction. The experiences of UNMIK and grassroots educational groups in Kosovo have shown that permanent disintegration of social services is not inevitable in a post-conflict situation and that rebuilding efforts can provide unique opportunities for community improvement.

Social Work Interventions in Refugee Camps: An Ecosystems Approach
Journal of Social Service Research, 2003, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 67-92(26)
Drumm R D, Pittman S W, Perry S
  Abstracted by: Jaime Rall
Abstract:
Little empirical research has been conducted with the purpose of lessening the negative effects of the camp experience on refugees, and yet social workers have a professional obligation to offer empirically and theoretically sound interventions at all times. Appropriate interventions in refugee camps are especially important, given the well-documented influence of environmental factors in determining outcomes for refugees. However, interventions and research have focused on the provision of basic humanitarian aid such as food, water, and shelter, rather than considering refugee needs more holistically. To redress the balance, this study offers both empirical and theoretical bases for a range of social work interventions in refugee camps. Empirical data about the concerns and emotional needs of refugees in camps were drawn from a qualitative needs assessment with Kosovar refugees one month after arrival in Albanian refugee camps. In-depth interviews, focus groups, and observations were utilized at four different Albanian camps with children and adults. Data was analyzed using conventional qualitative methodology, e.g. concurrent collection and analysis, peer debriefing, and thematic coding. Despite potential inaccuracies based on the use of interpreters, ethnic variations, gender bias, and time and technological limitations, nevertheless clear and consistent themes emerged. These themes, in order of the refugees' sense of urgency, were: 1) the experience of trauma and the need for emotional help 2) lack of information about family and events in Kosovo, and subsequent anxiety, and 3) boredom and the need for meaningful activities and involvement in tasks of everyday life. Recommendations for social work interventions addressing these themes are theoretically grounded within the framework of Bronfenbrenner's (1979) well-known ecological model of human development. Bronfenbrenner's model presents four levels of analysis and intervention. The first level is the microsystem, characterized by the face-to-face contexts in which people interact daily (e.g. home, school, the workplace). On this level, recommendations include on-going quality social work mental health care, use of technology (e.g. databases, radios, televisions) to connect refugees with information about family and current events, involvement of refugees in tasks of daily living, and providing education and play for children. The second level of analysis and intervention is the mesosystem, the relationships that connect the microsystems. Interventions on this level could include increasing communication among front-line workers and providers and facilitating relationships between the camp managers and relief organizations. The third level is the exosystem, comprised of larger institutions and policies that influence the individual but with which the individual has no direct contact. Exosystem recommendations include on-going research and innovation by relief organizations, and incorporating cultural context into service delivery. The final level of intervention is the macrosystem, where the invisible influences of culture and ideology on all other systems are assessed. Interventions here include building host country capacity and decreasing corruption, establishing governmental policies for improved communication and access to utilities, and promoting peace at all levels. It is hoped that implementing this theoretically-driven model for intervention may provide a basis for further empirical research and empirically-driven intervention models for handling mass human need.

Elusive Ingredient: Hamas and the Peace Process
Journal of Palestine Studies, Summer 2004, Issue 132, no. 3. pp.39-52
Milton-Edwards, B. and Crooke, A.
  Abstracted by: Paula Broadwell
Abstract:
This essay argues that the significant shift in the political power balance in the Occupied Palestinian Territories towards Islamist movements like Hamas has major implications for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, and must be taken into account if there is any chance for a successful resolution. Indeed, all the plans put forward since the outbreak of the second intifada to end the violence and return to negotiations have failed. The authors, who have first-hand involvement with conflict resolution and negotiations with Hamas, survey the movement's evolution on the ground and its implications on Palestinian refugee human rights, its participation in cease-fire and intra-Palestinian talks to date, and its positions on power accommodation with the other Palestinian factions and on eventual participation in peace talks or governance.
Many Palestinians have come to believe that the PLO/Palestinian Authority (PA) no longer has a credible national strategy capable of leading to a just solution of the conflict with Israel. Since 2000, political support for the PA had ebbed further under the impact of the general militarization of the Palestinian environment; persistent Israeli military incursions, curfews, and closures; and the withering of its own basic service provision as a result of the above. In the PA's stead, Hamas has filled a leadership void in these areas, for Palestinians in Israel and those in refugee camps in neighboring countries. Hamas is an historic movement whose leadership presides over a major social-welfare, political, and armed structure that rivals the PLO in terms of its presence and roots in the Palestinian arena. Its popularity has surged in recent years, making it a major political force. And while it is true that armed struggle appears to define Hamas's present relationship with Israel, it is also true that it has demonstrated considerable political pragmatism in the past and that, more recently, it has shown itself to be open to political maneuver as well as to armed resistance as a dual policy of maximizing its position in the local arena.
At present, Hamas is the second largest armed faction in Israel, and unless it is brought into the political process there is little likelihood that it will disarm either before or after an Israeli evacuation. Yet despite its power, both as a political and as an armed force, Hamas remains marginalized from the political track of conflict resolution by Israel and key members of the international community. There has been some recognition of the shortsightedness of this policy, and efforts by the European Union did begin to yield results in terms of mediating a dialogue with Islamists. Such activities were politically foreshortened, however, by the intervention of stronger external actors (e.g. the US) that objected to dialogue with those they had come to consider in the same camp as the al-Qa`ida extremists. The role of external actors in rebuffing Hamas and equating it to al-Qa`ida ignores the stark reality and changed perception on the ground. The authors refute the view that Hamas is quintessentially committed to terrorism and incapable of the kind of journey from armed struggle to negotiated settlement. They conclude that current peace frameworks, by ignoring Hamas's weight and its indications of readiness for political incorporation into peacemaking, are ignoring what could be the “elusive ingredient” for peace.

Zionism, Racism, and the Palestinian People: Fifty Years of Human Rights Violations in Israel and the Occupied Territories
Dalhousie Journal of Legal Studies, 1999, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 1-55
Imseis, A.
  Abstracted by: Paula Broadwell
Abstract:
The multitude of Israeli human rights violations against the Palestinian people has been well documented by independent scholars, and intergovernmental, and non-governmental organizations for decades. Juxtaposingly, there has been little written concerning the role the official Israeli state ideology–including exclusivism-has played in implementing the Jewish state's policies vis-à-vis Palestinian rights. This article surveys Israel 's prolonged violation of Palestinian human rights and argues that the Jewish state is a racist state guided by its overzealous commitment to Zionism.
Analyzing the tenets of modern political Zionism, the author highlights the evolution of the movement from the days of political in-fighting and resistance from pro-assimilation Jews, for example, to the current trends and global movements that support such beliefs and actions. He claims that in order to understand Zionism, one must be cognizant of the following three prerequisites regarding Zionism's stated goal of establishing an exclusively Jewish state in Palestine: first, conquest of the land; second, the ingathering of Jewish immigrants; and third, the transfer or expulsion of the indigenous Arabs from Palestine. As history has shown, these tenets seem to have become the basis of numerous Israeli laws and policies that have engendered five decades of flagrant human rights violations against the Palestinian people.
The author attempts to present a detailed examination of Israeli law and polices that contradict international standards for protecting civil and human rights. Israel's history of military engagements illustrates exceptionalism towards international law. Among other examples, the 1967 incursion where Israelis took the West Bank and Gaza Strip and subsequently imposed complete martial law on the 1.4 million Palestinian inhabitants without affording them citizenship status. Over the next thirty years, Israel then legislated hundreds of ‘occupier's laws' in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law. These laws made it legal to confiscate Arab lands, construct Jewish settlements on those lands, demolish homes, arrest, search and detain without explanation, exploit natural resources, deport local leaders, and impose curfews and collective punishment. The author describes in detail the obligation Israel has to Palestinian refugees under the multitude of international declarations and human rights documents–most of which are regarded with impunity.
Although Israel claims to be a democratic state, the author purports that it is in fact a racist state whose existence is predicated on notions of exclusion and discrimination against those classified as ‘non-Jews' under Israeli law. This chronic persecution has led to violations in several key areas: the right of refugee return; the right to nationality; the right to ownership and protection of property; the right to work; the right to protection against arbitrary arrest, detention or exile; the right to protection against torture, cruel and inhuman punishment; the right to freedom of expression and opinion; and the right to education.
The author summarizes with his concern for the moral and political implications of Israel's continued persecution of the Palestinian people. The roots of this protracted conflict are to be found in Zionism, an ideology that has conferred rights and privileges on Jews while simultaneously denying them to non-Jews. The author concludes that it is highly unlikely that as long as Israeli state policy remains wedded to Zionism's program of exclusivism and racism, it is unlikely that a just peace will ever be achieved.

Palestinian Refugees and the Politics of Peacemaking
International Crisis Group, Middle East Report N22, February 3, 2004 , pp. 1-25.
  Abstracted by: Paula Broadwell
Abstract:
The plight of the refugees and the demand that their right of return be recognized has been central to the Palestinian struggle since the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. This report seeks to identify those actors and factors most likely to determine how Palestinian refugees will react to a negotiated agreement of the refugee question. After a statistical look at the dispersed Palestinian demographic and a detailed description of the status of the desolate refugee camps throughout the region, the author revisits the history behind and centrality of the refugee question in resolving the two-state solution.
Recalling the initiatives of the Oslo Accords, the more recent Geneva Initiative, and the People's Voice movement, the authors infer that these proposals have precipitated a renewed campaign of activism on behalf of Palestinian refugees with which the leadership on both sides must contend. Palestinians warn that a dissatisfied, angry refugee community whose core demands remain unmet could undermine any peace agreement. The author claims that it is the sole issue around which political mobilization and political condemnation can most readily be achieved. This issue cuts across social, political, and geographical barriers. Israelis, who reject this return, suggest that the issue has been kept artificially alive by the Palestinian leadership and supportive Arab states. With this background, the report offers recommendations to the various key players that must be involved in any successful policy implementation.
The PLO and other political organizations remain the dominant voice within the Palestinian political arena. If they do not represent true Palestinian beliefs and desires, organizations like the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Hamas or other radical Islamist groups will continue to capitalize on the refugee question as an effective instrument for discrediting not only Israeli leadership, but PLO/PA and Fatah as well. In light of this, the report recommends the following for the Palestinian Political Organizations: formalizing a forum with representatives from various Palestinian national institutions to seek an acceptable consensus on the resolution of refugees; working with refugee camp representatives to improve camp conditions; and discussing details for implementation of a permanent settlement of the refugee question based on the assumption of repatriation to a Palestinian state, normalization of status in host countries, relocation to third-countries and/or symbolic return to Israel, and compensation.
In spite of the over four million refugees in the region, there is little question that Arab states have neglected the refugee camps, typically refusing to contribute to their improvement on the grounds that refugees are an international responsibility and seeking to exploit the humanitarian plight for their own political ends. With this in mind, the report recommends the following to the League of Arab States: willingness to resettle significant numbers of refugees, conducting a public campaign aimed at the Israeli public to explain Arab League initiatives; and engaging the PLO leadership regarding the status of Palestinian refugees remaining in Arab host countries.
International players remain a key element to any peaceful resolution, both for the Israeli-Palestinian issue, and the greater Israeli-Arab conflict. To the United Nations and its member governments the report recommends: increase funding to the UNRWA programs to enable the organization to meet the basic needs of the refugee population, particularly those residing in camps; establishment of an international commission to examine repatriation, resettlement and compensation issues in detail. To the Quartet (US, EU, UN, Russia ), the report recommends the proposal of a comprehensive political settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including a just resolution of the refugee question.

“A Dark Obverse”: Maya Survival in Guatemala ,: 1520-1994
Geographical Review, Latin American Geography, July 1996, Vol. 86, No. 3, pp. 398-407
Lovell G.; Lutz C.
  Abstracted by: Christine VanDerwill
Abstract:
From the time of the Spanish conquest the Maya Indians of Guatemala have endured warfare, slavery, disease, exploitation, forced migration and resettlement. In spite of these atrocities, the Maya have sustained a population growth rarely recorded in Native American cultures. This article examines democratic trends of the Maya in Guatemala dating from the time of the Spanish conquest (1520) to present-day (1994) with emphasis on the percentage of Maya in relation to the total population of Guatemala. It provides a historical and geographical context in which to analyze the marginalization of the Maya by the state of Guatemala despite their ability to maintain a decreased but significant population inside of and out of Guatemala. The data outlined in the article indicates a significant decline in population during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries–owing in large part to disease - followed by significant recovery and growth until the end of the nineteenth century. By the 1880s the Maya constituted nearly 70% of the total population of Guatemala; however, growth would decline in subsequent decades and by the 1960's the Maya constituted only 42% of the total population. From this point on the Maya would officially be a minority within Guatemala and an ethnic and numerical inferiority would now coincide. The decreases in population are attributed to labor reform and consequent forced migration and later seasonal migration from the Highlands to the Pacific piedmont under Guatemala's developing commercial agricultural programs. It is argued that the massive movements out of their ancestral lands in the Highlands and the subsequent disruption to sedentary life contributed to lower fertility rates. The authors also point to the possibility of inadequate documentation and “statistical manipulation” on the part of the Guatemalan government in an attempt to illustrate a “whitening” of the overall population. The civil wars of the 1970s and 1980s further uprooted the Maya and led to massive flight and resettlement into Mexico , the United States and Canada which further obscures official census counts. Looking at present-day figures, the authors estimate that 5 to 6 million Maya have survived the recent civil war, and although many are internally displaced and nearly 1 million have migrated to the U.S. and Canada , they still account for a significant portion of Guatemala 's population. The authors conclude that Maya population history and trends are significant in a socio-political context when looking at how the Maya fit into the modern day nation-state of Guatemala and their future prospects to gain cultural and political equality. As the Maya resettle in exile and repatriate to their ancestral lands in Guatemala their capacity to sustain population levels will be a critical factor in shaping modern Guatemala.

Beneath the Rio Negro
Sierra Magazine, November/December 2000, pp. 73-75
McConahay M.
  Abstracted by: Christine VanDerwill
Abstract:
This article gives an overview of the forced migration that took place in the highlands of Guatemala as a result of a World Bank-subsidized development project and the subsequent plight of the environmental refugees displaced from 15 villages in the Rio Negro Valley. The author presents an ecological dimension to the conflict in Guatemala, while drawing upon issues of refugee protection and resource allocation. In 1975 the Guatemalan government began plans for the construction of the Chixoy hydroelectric dam in the Rio Negro Valley. The project completed in the early 1980s has displaced 5,000 Achi Maya Indians from their ancestral lands and villages. The author suggests that the relative scale of movement as a result of the Chixoy dam compared to other contemporary dam projects in China and India is minimal; however, the consequences for the Achi Maya Indians have been as equally fatal. The land was a source of livelihood for the villagers, as well as a link to their Mayan past and culture. The ancestors of the Achi Maya had lived in the Rio Negro Valley for at least a thousand years and sacred ceremonial and burial sites were flooded. The Achi Maya were never consulted on the project nor was any dialogue facilitated between the government and the villagers to discuss the project. Initial protests on the part of the Maya led to the promise of relocation and possible compensation from the government. However, between 1980 and 1982, the efforts to negotiate and organize dissipated as civil patrollers and soldiers raped, kidnapped and killed the protestors. The author illustrates that environmental refugees can easily fall victim to acts of violence during times of conflict and certainly require the same legal and physical protection as political refugees. Civilian populations are increasingly the targets of military action as was the case in Guatemala's violent civil war. Initially, the massacre at Rio Negro became another tragedy in the war and the government was quick to brand the Achi Maya as guerillas or subversives essentially legitimizing the killings. By 1983 the dam project was completed and the remaining Achi Maya were displaced to sites closer to major towns and military bases. Living in resettlement schemes hours from their ancestral lands, the reorganized Achi Maya have pursued legal action - three of the civil patrollers from the 1982 massacre have been brought to trial and a forensic anthropology team has been assigned to research remains found in the Rio Negro Valley. In concluding, the author points to the irony of the displaced Achi living in towns where electricity is scarce and firewood is found hours away by foot. This further underscores the impact that access to resources – in particular land and water – has on both environmental and political refugees in forming durable solutions in resettlement and integration.

Guatemalan Refugees and Returnees: Local Geography and Maya Identity
Center for Research on Latin America and the Caribbean, Working Papers Series, York University, May 1997, No. 11, Nolin Hanlon C.
  Abstracted by: Christine VanDerwill
Abstract:
The present-day Maya of Guatemala are one of the most geographically dispersed indigenous societies in the Americas . This article examines Maya patterns of flight, exile and return during and after the violent civil war of the 1980s and how the process of resettlement and return has shaped the identity of the Maya. Focusing on the Maya who fled into the Southern Mexican state of Chiapas , the author contends that the decision of flight was a political response to counterinsurgency military operations in the highlands of Northwestern Guatemala . Historical-roots with Chiapas coupled with proximity and a familiar landscape made flight from their ancestral lands into Chiapas a logical geographical response. An overview of exile in Mexico and the avenues of return follow with a focus on the advent of collective voluntary return developed by the Maya in an attempt to return to their lands under starkly different conditions from those which they fled. Voluntary repatriation and resettlement into refugees camps located on the Yucatan Peninsula were met with resistance and the Maya began an unprecedented effort to organize themselves and engage in negotiations. Continued land reform schemes and lack of political will on the part of the Guatemalan government factored in to a slow repatriation process. Impediments to return included low intensity violence, intimidation by the military, denial of access to former lands and denial of land credits. Bowing under pressure from the military and economic elite, the Guatemalan government failed to guarantee the safe return of the exiled. Regardless, the desire to return home to their places of birth even under perilous conditions underscores the strong bond the Maya have to their ancestral lands. In the latter part of the article a link between geography and cultural identity is presented. Two key elements of exile and displacement – the shifting of place and the passing of time – are presented as contributing to a metamorphosis in the identity of the Maya. An identity formally based on connections to land and birth place is transformed by the creation of new communities formed in refugee camps and in exile over the course of a decade. Communities of association and a unified political voice are illustrated as complementing “birthplace” and municipal ties in forming identity. The changing perceptions and powers of the Guatemalan government and dominating class challenge the Maya identity as well. In conclusion, the author maintains that culture and ethnic identity is dynamic particularly for those Maya that have been in exile and struggle to return to their homeland. The resultant transformation of the Maya will also contribute to the restructuring of Guatemala, future geographic movements and prospects for returning populations.

Protecting Refugee Women and Children
International Migration, 2003, vol. 41, no. 1, pp. 75-86(12)
Fagen, P.W.
  Abstracted by: Natalie Huls
Abstract:
Women and children face special difficulties as refugees. They are more likely than men to be the victims of violence and discrimination. In recognition of these statistics, the UNHCR made protecting refugee women and children a priority. Fagen's article discusses the findings of two independent evaluations of UNHCR operations regarding women and children. Valid International received a UNHCR commission to evaluate UNHCR practices with respect to children. The American and Canadian government commissioned the Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children to assess the UNHCR's progress with female refugees. Unsurprisingly the evaluations overlapped in their practices, and achieved consistent conclusions. Fagen begins by highlighting the positive steps undertaken by the UNHCR as revealed by the two evaluations. Positive areas include UNHCR Guidelines standing as a basis of treatment regarding refugee women and children, the expansion and creation of UNHCR specialist posts, enhanced training and capacity building initiatives available to UNHCR staff and partners, and strategic partnerships established by the UNHCR. However, the author also explains that the evaluations found the UNHCR lacking in effective protection methods and in successful organizational structure. The evaluations established a definitive link between protection and assistance and explained that refugee women and children need legal, physical, and social protection. The UNHCR mistakenly limits protection to the legal field. Protection officers work to protect the refugee community from outside attacks, but frequently neglect attacks that take place within the community itself. The author recommends that engaging or creating latent social systems and networks could be an effective means of protecting refugees within camps. Fagen continues her article by taking examples from the evaluations regarding when women and children are especially vulnerable to attack. These examples include that men receive more food than women do and that women and girls have to “trade” sexual favors for food, that women often gather firewood alone, that separated children do not have parents to protect them, and that organizations often deprioritize social protection during the initial crisis. The findings of the evaluations with respect to organizational structure emphasize the importance of improving collaboration and cooperation between organizational divisions, and the importance of improving lines of accountability and clarifying lines of responsibility. The evaluations also found that emphasis on special programs had the potential to be more detrimental than beneficial to the needs of refugee women and children. In the conclusion to her article, Fagen describes the two major UNHCR shortcomings as the narrow approach to protection, and the need for a better balance between general and targeted responses to refugee situations. The author states that leadership is key to protection, that protection is not only legal, and that the needs of refugee women and children exist within the needs of the whole refugee community.

Refugee Children in Canada: Searching for Identity
Child Welfare, September/October 2001, vol. 80, no. 5, pp. 587-596(10)
Fantino, A. M. and A. Colak
  Abstracted by: Natalie Huls
Abstract:
Children have a difficult time developing a personal identity in society. Refugee children have the double difficulty of developing a personal identity in society and developing that identity in a new society. Fantino and Colak discuss the integration of refugee children into Canadian society. Canada has a consistent record of resettling refugees and other immigrants within its borders. The authors state that about 800,000 refugees resettled in Canada since the end of World War II. Between 1995 and 1999, more than 300,000 immigrant children resettled in Canada. Using these numbers, the authors compare the experiences of refugee and immigrant children. They explain that both groups face the challenge of achieving acceptance at school and acting as “cultural brokers” for their parents at home. The children face the stress of living in two cultures, but Fantino and Colak state that the main threat for refugee and immigrant children is the stress of belonging to no culture. However, there are obvious differences between refugee children and immigrant children. Refugee children often come from a tragic and traumatic background and are less likely to be able to return home. Refugee children need to grieve their losses, but the process goes unrecognized. The authors explain that social services are instrumental to helping children adapt to a new culture. Social service settlement assistance includes first language translation services, help in locating permanent housing and accessing English language classes, community orientation, referrals to health and social services, and other services. These services help families and children adjust to the new culture. A special Canadian program for children, the National Play Program for At-Risk Refugee Children serves to help heal traumatized children. The authors cite several examples where the Play Program and community connections helped refugee children and their families heal from their experiences and begin integration into Canadian society. To conclude, Fantino and Colak explain that integration of refugees requires efforts by the newcomers and by mainstream Canadians to accommodate each other. Refugee children need to learn to integrate their history with their present and future lives in Canada. To ensure successful integration, host countries must have the willingness, ability, and resources to provide refugees with culturally sensitive services.

Canada's Treatment of Separated Refugee Children
European Journal of Migration and Law, 2001, vol. 3, no. 3/4, pp. 347-381(35)
Sadoway, G.
  Abstracted by: Natalie Huls
Abstract:
Canadians justly take pride in their long-standing humanitarian tradition and generosity with respect to refugees. Canada has one of the best non-government organizations for refugees. The country was also the first to publish guidelines on gender-related persecution and on procedural and evidentiary matters in determining child asylum claims. However, Sadoway explains that Canada's immigration department is inadequate when it comes to reunifying refugee families and dealing with separated refugee children. The focus of the article is the treatment of unaccompanied refugee children. Sadoway explains that the Canadian federal government provides funding to the provincial governments to pay for immigrant settlement services. However, services within each province vary greatly. The variance does not significantly affect adults, but does affect refugee children. The author compares the situations of separated refugee children in Quebec, British Colombia, and Ontario. Quebec has the most satisfactory services dealing with refugee children. Quebec has a special para-public organization, Service d'Aide aux Réfugies et Immigrants de Montréal Métropolitain (SARIMM), that deals with immigrants and refugees. Citizenship and Immigration Canada immediately refers unaccompanied children to this organization. SARIMM acts as the Designated Representative for children during their asylum cases, helps children contact relatives who may already reside in Canada, and places children with families from a similar ethnic background if they are without relatives. SARIMM also helps children apply for permanent resident status if their refugee claim was successful. The situation for separated refugee children is less satisfactory in British Colombia. In this province the Ministry of Children and Family Development decides to place children in care or to “remove” them to their home country. However, the Ministry does not stay involved in the lives of the children unless it acts as a child's Designated Representative. Ontario has the most numbers of refugee children but the least satisfactory system of dealing with these children. Child welfare agencies only deal with children under the age of 16. These agencies also need a formal wardship order from the Ontario Court to act as guardians of the children. No formal agreement exists to provide unaccompanied refugee children with a Designated Representative. Instead, the Immigration and Refugee Board developed a list of immigration lawyers who, when requested, act as Designated Representatives. Sadoway continues her article by describing the detention process of refugee children in Canada, and describing the process of determining refugee status for children. The guidelines on procedural and evidentiary matters for child refugee claimants recognize that children are likely to forget certain events due to the stress and trauma of fleeing their home countries. The author identifies a further problem with assessing refugee claims in the lack of emphasis placed on family unity. Parents may apply for asylum on behalf of their children, but children may not apply for asylum on behalf of their parents or siblings. This results in the separation of children from their parents. The author concludes her article by stressing the inconsistencies and gaps that exist in the protection and care system for refugees in different provinces. Sadoway states that separated refugee children are especially vulnerable because they constitute a small proportion of claims. She recommends specialized training for immigration officers, provincial child welfare authorities, the courts, the lawyers, and the refugee and immigrant settlement workers who come into direct contact with separated refugee children.

Calling Upon the Sacred: Migrants' Use of Religion in the Migration Process
International Migration Review . Winter 2003, vol. 37. no. 4, pp. 1145-1163.
Hagan, Jacqueline. Ebaugh, Helen Rose
  Abstracted by: Leah Persky
Abstract:
This article explores the role religion plays throughout the migration process. The authors believe the religious component to migration has been overlooked by most research and literature in sociology and immigration studies. They explain how religion plays a very important role in the migration process, by providing spiritual resources, informing the decision to migrate, influencing attitudes of migrants, and creating social networks. The authors study a Maya community from the western highlands of Guatemala, and their ties to Houston, Texas. Through field study in both the highlands of Guatemala and Houston , the authors have found migrants and their families to increasingly turn to the Pentecostal church as a result of the increasing dangers of migration. The town the researchers focused on in Guatemala has strong ties to Houston, as a great number of townspeople have migrated there. The cost of undocumented travel to the U.S. both in terms of expense and danger has increased a great deal in the past few years, causing residents to turn increasingly towards the Pentecostal church for counsel, prophesizing and religious services. The authors paid special attention to services called ayunos, which are informal prayer services, where pastors who lead them are believed to have the power to hear the will of God and to predict the future. Many people attend ayunos, in order to hear the pastor's final decision on if their migration should take place and if so when their migration should take place. The authors found that as undocumented travel becomes more difficult, the number of ayunos, and the people attending them increases dramatically. The authors support the idea that for many Pentecostal Maya: “The decision to migrate, though driven by economic considerations, can ultimately be based on the advice or premonitions of Pentecostal pastors. . . (and) helps the migrants and their families feel more comfortable with whatever decision is made.” (p.1152)
The authors divide the migration process into six stages: deciding whether or not to migrate, preparing for the journey, the journey, the arrival, the role of the ethnic church in immigrant settlement, and the development of transnational religious linkages. Through out the migration process, the migrants keep in touch with their home community, family, and pastors through phone calls, mail and in the later stages by visiting family in Guatemala. The concluding hypothesis the authors make is that migrants come to rely more heavily on religion when they feel little or no control over their situation, and when they must confront many risks during their journey. This being the case, the authors believe that religion will be an important component/resource for other groups of undocumented migrants around the world. They see evidence of their hypothesis in other groups such as undocumented catholic Mexicans. They briefly mention that particular religious beliefs and practices of Pentecostalism may account for the use of religion in undocumented travel, but more research across religious groups must be undertaken to test this hypothesis.

Perceived Racial Discrimination, Depression, and Coping: A Study of Southeast Asian Refugees in Canada
Journal of Health and Science Behavior , Sep. 1999, Vol. 40, No. 3, pp. 193-207.
Noh, Samuel; Beiser, Morton; Kaspar, Violet; Hou, Feng; Rummers, Joanna.
  Abstracted by: Leah Persky
Abstract:
This article explains results from research and interviews with 647 Southeast Asian refugees in Canada . The authors explore the effects of perceived racial discrimination, access to resources, and social status on personal identity, health and well-being. This area of study was taken up because many past studies on the effects of discrimination on diverse populations have demonstrated that the experience of discrimination was associated with high levels of stress and psychological distress.
The authors focus on individual experiences of refugees and how they cope with racial discrimination. They believe the coping mechanisms that individuals exhibit allow them a degree of power over stressful situations. The interviews found confrontation and forbearance to be the most common responses to discrimination. Direct confrontational responses reduce the sense of helplessness and victimization, but this type of response may also cause distress through the escalation of the conflict and hostility.
The authors explain how direct confrontation may be difficult for Southeast Asian refugees and other powerless groups because of lack of social networks, cultural and social barriers, and direct confrontation may cause fear. The authors have found that forbearance is one of the most viable coping mechanisms for S.E. Asian refugees because it allows individual to passively accept and disassociate from the discrimination and to avoid distress and hostilities, and possible salvage a degree of their self-esteem. Forbearance is the preferred coping mechanism of Southeast Asian refugees in this study because it reflects the cultural norms and values of this population and the collective nature of their community which gives high value to the preservation relationships. This research has also given legitimacy to the idea that cultural differences in values and norms lead individuals to prefer a certain type of coping mechanism.
The evidence of this research study supports the authors original hypothesis that “perceived discrimination constitutes a significant stressor which can jeopardize the physical and mental health of ethno-racial minority group members.” (p. 195) The authors also researched the relationship between ethnic identity and the level of depression associated with perceived racial discrimination. Their original hypothesis was that the strength of ethnic identity would directly affect the amount of depression associated with discrimination. But, they found no direct relationship exists between levels of ethnic identity and the level of depression. The explanation to this lack of correlation was explained by the authors as stemming from the stress-moderating effect of forbearance on refugees who held a stronger attachment to traditional cultural and ethnic values. Overall, this paper provides the empirical evidence for the relationship between perceived discrimination and the occurrence of symptoms of depression.

The Evolution of the International Refugee Protection Regime
Washington University Journal of Law and Policy. The Institute for Global Legal Studies Inaugural Colloquium: The UN and the Protection of Human Rights, 2001.
Feller, Erika.
  Abstracted by: Leah Persky
Abstract:
Feller begins on a high note stating that today refugee protection is a human rights issue rather than an act of charity by states. This is a great accomplishment for the fifty year anniversary of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. The author explores the history of the 1951 Convention, beginning with its origins after World War II. The history of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is also explored. In 1950 the UNHCR was created for a three year period, with a budget $30,000 and a staff of 33 people—the organization has grown a great deal in the past 50 years, as of 2001 their budget was almost $1 billion and a staff of 5000. This is a dramatic increase which speaks to the scope of this global problem.
In 1951 refugees were welcomed in many countries because: they were relatively small in numbers, they helped meet labor shortages, and they reinforced Cold War objectives. Today things are different, and refugees are usually not seen in such a positive light. There is often social stigma or discrimination aimed at refugees, who have lost the protection of their native lands, and who are searching for protection on an international level, from the UNHCR. Today the protection of refugees is much more complex than it was in 1951. The author explains the increase in complexity is due to: the changing nature of displacement, the expensive and varied costs of hosting refugees, the increase in migration and trafficking of people, and a gap between instruments we have available and their applicability for helping refugees in the real world.
Even though there has been a dramatic increase in the numbers and complexity of issues relating to refugees since 1951, the author explains how the 1951 Convention: “put in place the enduring foundations of refugee protection by setting out baseline principles on which the protection of refugees was to be built.” The establishment of the 1951 Convention is invaluable because it has set important standards such as: legal standards, cooperation of states with the UNHCR is essential, the idea that forced return is unacceptable (nonrefoulement), and protection of refugees should be extended to all without discrimination. All of these principles are the foundations of refugee protection regime today.
The author traces the development of the 1951 Convention into the 1960's and 1970's. She describes how the basics of the Convention were developed as refugee numbers increased, especially in Africa ; as the repatriation process was undertaken, and regional instruments were developed to cope with the increase in refugees around the world. This article also explores the development of the human rights and refugee regime during the 1980's and 1990's as the number of refugees grew in great numbers (25 million in 1995), as internal and interethnic conflicts increased, and human rights abuses and breaches of humanitarian law were common military tactics. These political and social changes forced the UNHCR to begin to provide long term aid to millions of refugees.
The author traces the evolution of the UNHCR and focuses on the current challenges to the regime, the shortfalls of the Convention, where further development is needed, and the future of the UNHCR in an ever changing world. The author concludes with the idea that the Convention is an invaluable tool which has established the foundations of refugee protection world wide, but is under constant strain to develop and change to take on the new challenges of refugee protection world wide.

“Active and “Passive” Resettlement: The Influence of Support Services and Refugees' own Resources on Resettlement Style
International Migration, 2003, vol. 41, no. 5, pp. 61-91(31)
Colic-Peisker V., and Farida T.
  Abstracted by: Cindy Bosley
Abstract:
Refugees approach the resettlement process with a wide variety of attitudes. This article attempts to explain how these attitudes are formed and how they affect the lifestyles and level of adjustment among refugees. To answer these questions, the authors conducted interviews and focus groups with refugees in 2001 and 2002 in Western Australia . Based on the research data, the authors conclude that there are four major resettlement styles that describe refugees' approaches to the resettlement process. Active approaches to the resettlement process include “achievers” and “consumers,” while passive approaches include “endurers” and “victims.” After exploring these categories, the authors conclude that a refugee's choice of resettlement style “depends primarily on refugees own resources, but is also significantly influenced by the philosophy and policies that inform the resettlement support refugees receive in Australia” (78). Refugees who espouse active approaches have positive attitudes, are goal-oriented, and look toward the future. They are typically well integrated within the sub-community of refugees from their native country or region, as well as the larger Australian society. Within the broad group of active refugees, the authors identify the sub-approaches of achievers and consumers. Achievers are identified by the authors as the “ideal type,” and are very goal oriented refugees who look to the future. They value education and language training and view their migration experience as a challenge or opportunity. Consumers also are goal-oriented and tend to be involved with their community fellow national or regional refugees. However, their primary motivation is to earn income and legitimize their success through accumulation of material goods. Refugees identified with passive resettlement styles tend to be fatalistic and nostalgic about their pre-migration (and pre-conflict) life. They also tend to be isolated from both mainstream society and from the larger community of refugees. The first of two sub-groups within the passive classification are the endurers, who are very fatalistic and feel that they endured irreparable loss during migration. Men endurers are often extremely affected by a loss of purpose due to a lower-status job or unemployment. Victims, the second sub-group, feel a great lack of control over their situation and often just give up. They are described by the authors as disappointed and bitter. Refugees classified in this group have often been diagnosed with mental and/or physical illnesses and spend much time and energy obtaining treatment. The authors believe that refugees espousing the active style are more successful at gaining social and emotional security, whereas the passive style, which is partially created by resettlement agencies gaining almost complete control of refugees' destinies, causes a feeling of helplessness among refugees. While the authors note the importance of providing treatment for mental and physical health problems, they warn that too much emphasis on treatment can lead to “pathologizing” refugees by emphasizing the problems. Instead, the authors promote emphasis on job placement, training, language tutoring, and the development of support networks for providing more ease through the resettlement process.

Refugee Flows as Grounds for International Action
International Security, Summer 1996, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 43-71(28)
Dowty A. and Loescher G.
  Abstracted by: Elizabeth Ervin
Abstract: The contemporary refugee phenomenon is one of increasing proportion, with domestic issues spilling over into the international arena. This article focuses on making governments more aware of human rights abuses and political upheaval that affect the increase in refugee flows; attempting to make governments more accountable through action and intervention before crises erupt. The authors highlight the dramatic growth in migrants crossing borders, internationalizing national problems. The argument is that such refugee movements have become an international norm in both theory and practice, and are more frequently seen as sound reasoning for both humanitarian and military action. The increasing movement of refugees and the legitimizing of intervention can be linked to: 1) customary law, 2) intervention that is not solely humanitarian driven, and 3) intervention as a de facto norm. The norm of intervention is applicable in order to prevent the occurrence of refugee flows and conflict spillover into the international community and therefore providing a reduction in threat to global security. The burden on the international community is already large and steadily growing; 1996 figures present 14.5 million refugees worldwide and 23 million internally displaced peoples. Because of the satellite age, as well as photos and video clips on local news channels, the international community has become numb with “compassion fatigue” which is therefore reflected in a lack of policies adopted to manage mass refugee movements. While the wealthy countries pay a large cost for relief and assistance, many times the budget of the UNHCR, the poor nations are bearing the greatest cost as they accept thousands of refugees to the detriment of their meager resources, as well as to the detriment of their economies, politics, and security systems. Many experts agree that the root causes of refugee movement and displacement should be the focus. Rather than an attempt to ameliorate a crisis in process, more needs to be done preventively. More focus should also be placed, with regard to customary law, on the shoulders of the states producing the refugee populations, as well as the consequences of domestic policy on the material interests of neighboring states. The 1972 Stockholm Declaration supports this, avowing, “States have…the responsibility to ensure that activities within their area of jurisdiction or control do not cause damage to the environment of other States or of areas beyond the limits of territorial jurisdiction.” Regarding armed intervention, the 1986 “New Flows” group affirms that refugee populations are a great risk to peace and security, thus making it possible to use action through UN Chapter VII. This conduct of producing refugees leads to the internationalization of a states’ domestic policy and overrides sovereignty. This form of intervention also must focus on changing the root causes of the refugee movement, to not solely rectify the immediate humanitarian crisis, but also the issues that comprised the overall threat to peace and security. In the final hour, humanitarian aid is not what provokes nations to act, rather the reason lies in material state interest and self-defense. A framework is needed to establish a refugee policy that balances intervention with humanitarian aid, as well as solutions to domestic problems, before they become global nightmares reflected in massive refugee flows. More action is needed on behalf of the international community–a solution to refugee movements should be an interest of global security.

Refugees and the Global Politics of Asylum
The Political Quarterly, August 2003, vol. 74, i1, pp.75-87(12)
Crisp J.
   Abstracted by: Elizabeth Ervin
Abstract:
The patterns of global displacement are changing over time with great implications to the international community, the UNHCR, and the displaced peoples themselves. There is an increasing unwillingness to host refugees for various reasons and many, as they are displaced are not solely entering into a neighboring country, but instead, for reasons other than political, look toward entering regions that offer more stability politically and economically. Therefore, displaced peoples primarily move from the developing to the developed world. The author recognizes a number of different causes for these changes in previous displacement patterns, giving the following as examples: 1) a decrease in the number of refugees, but an increase in the number of internally displaced people, 2) a continued rise in armed conflict and communal violence, 3) increased levels and forms of political violence through repression. As these causes lead to displacement, neighboring countries, and countries of second, third, and further asylum, are hesitant to accept refugees across their borders due to economic and security concerns. Some states have gone so far as to create and enforce laws that serve to the detriment of refugees. This means that it has become more difficult for people fleeing persecution to be ensured acceptance by neighboring states. Local jealousies and resentment are common in a refugee displacement setting when international and/or national aid and assistance is handed out. This is especially prevalent in developing states with a population made up of very poor people in highly unequal statuses. For these reasons, many displaced people have remained within their own borders, and hesitate to flee to other states in the vicinity. The other issue can be the lack of accessibility to entry to other states. Since there is a broader group of international migrants that have primarily economic reasons for departure, there are many people looking toward entry into the developed world. However, in response to this phenomenon, some developed states have placed greater restrictions and barriers to entry across their borders in order to regulate the flow of economic refugees. This means that some of those who are most desperate will turn to illegal and highly dangerous means to gain entry into the developed state of their choosing. The author also stresses that the international community must focus on the state producing the refugee flow, not only on the states accepting displaced peoples, even though this might breach some terms of sovereignty and non-intervention protocols. Governments must be held accountable for their actions, instead of hiding behind the cloak of immunity while still in power. The UNHCR is also changing and is working now, more than before, in conflict zones and areas that are creating the displaced people that the organization is mandated to protect, rather than only working within the refugee camps in surrounding states. Thus, the UNHCR has become more of a “humanitarian action” organization than one of “refugee protection.” This is not an unbiased or impartial undertaking. The author discusses alternative approaches to the displacement problem and concludes that a singular attempt to manage refugee flows is perhaps a counterproductive exercise.

Seeking Asylum Alone: Treatment of Separated and Trafficked Children in Need of Refugee Protection
International Migration, 2004, vol. 42, no. 1, pp.141-148(7)
Bhabha J.
  Abstracted by: Elizabeth Ervin
Abstract:
The legal effectiveness of protection provided for children asylum seekers is the article’s central focus. Children make up a significant proportion of the global refugee movement. At least 50 percent travel with their families and a smaller number of children who have been separated from their families travel alone. These children face distinct problems from adults because they are rarely given asylum seeker or refugee status. The problem particularly associated with this group is child trafficking, a political issue of recent notoriety. Because displaced children are not readily given refugee status, they become especially susceptible to dangerous and discriminatory practices. The loophole through which they fall is the legal language provided within the 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. The normative assumption has been that the provisions within this convention only apply to adults. Thus, “children are treated differently rather than equally.” This creates invisibility of children’s concerns and issues under international law. The author’s emerging research will concentrate on answering the following questions: What has been the impact of the 1951 Convention on children traveling alone? Is child persecution and discrimination being ignored or emphasized? And who or which agency has provided the most assistance/deterrence to the problem issue area?

Spirits and the Cross: Religiously Based Violent Movements in Uganda
Small Wars and Insurgencies, Vol 14, No.2 (Summer 2003), pp 113-130
Lawrence E. Cline
  Abstracted by: Simon Madraru Amajuru
Abstract:
The article provides a detailed analysis of the havoc caused to humanity in Northern Uganda , resulting from various rebellions since 1986. A combination of the doctrines of traditional and "modern" religions; ethnicity; marginalization and external forces played complementary roles in the rise and sustenance of the terrorist forms of rebel movements in Uganda . In comparing the insurgent groups of the Holy Spirit Movement (HSM) and that of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda with similar movements in other parts of the World, the article clearly portrays the uniqueness of the two movements. They used traditional and religious methods combined with violence as a method of mobilizing and indoctrinating recruits, more so from their own people. Several factors led to the popularity and rapid expansion (from about 150 fighters to almost 10,000 fighters) of the short lived HSM of Alice Auma Lakwena (popularly known as Lakwena). Ethnic solidarity that emerged out of the marginalization of northern Uganda, a legacy left by the Colonial government, played a big role in mobilizing fighters (mostly former soldiers of former President Tito Okello, an Acholi) against the government of President Museveni (an Ankole from Western Uganda). The local people already believed in Lakwena as a healer and this made it easy for her to mobilize followers towards her “vision of removing Museveni’s government and proclaiming the word of the Holy Spirit”. Lakwena instilled a strong sense of discipline in her combatants and this made her fighters more popular than the government soldiers who were involved in torturing and looting property of the local people. Therefore, the creation of a rebel movement with a strong mix of spirits and some Biblical lineage raised the moral of the Acholi fighters against the government forces. No wonder the HSM forces encountered many problems as their forces expanded to other ethnic tribes in Eastern Uganda. The defeat of the HSM by the government was not felt because Kony swiftly took over as the leader of a more aggressive rebel movement: The LRA. Apart from using spirits and religion, this time a combination of Christianity and Islam, Kony introduced violence on the civilians as a strategy to mobilize his fighting force and sustaining them. Looting, abducting, torturing, rapping and killing became so normal in northern Uganda and Acholi land in particular. The brutality of the government soldiers on the same civilians just added injury to an already bad situation. Most of the “rebel combatants” the government claims to be killing are from among the over 10,000 children abducted by the LRA, some of whom have been killed by leaders of the LRA when ever they attempted to escape. A blessing in disguise for the LRA is the claim of Uganda government support to the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army (SPLA), which resulted to an open support to the LRA by the Sudan government. Thus, making them a powerful force to sustain pressure from the Uganda People’s Defense Force (UPDF) and although the Sudan government is said to have stopped giving support to the LRA and allowed the UPDF to fight the LRA inside their territory, the war has not ended. Despite the costly war, in terms of resources, suffering, and “human blood,” talking peace to end it is not an alternative being considered by both the government and the LRA. There is simply no trust between the two forces, yet they are also uncomfortable with peace initiatives from outside. The Acholi Religious Leaders’ Peace Initiative is trying but there is no sign of breaking through.

A Basic Human Rights Approach to Democracy in Uganda
Journal of Contemporary African Studies, February 2002, 20, pp 203 (20)
Susan Dicklitch
  Abstracted by: Simon Madraru Amajuru
Abstract:
Dicklitch’s article discusses with clear quotations from various reputable sources how the “internationally” respected no-party movement system in Uganda has failed to develop into a rights-protective regime (one that strives to ensure basic rights for all, including rights to physical security, minimal economic security and political participation) and rights-respective society (that which has an active civil society to act as watch dog of the state and of itself). With a human rights approach, the author concludes that Uganda falls short of both a rights protective regime and a rights- respective society thereby undermining prospects for consolidating the transition to democracy that seemed to have started in 1990s. The British Colonial regime in Uganda planted seeds of divide and rule that bred the negative ethnic classes and hatred that is being experienced to-date. The civil wars and many military coups that have characterized the history of Uganda are results of the colonial legacy. The post colonial regimes did not reverse this sad situation but instead consolidated it. In the 1970s the military government of President Amin forced Asians to leave the country. The governments after Amin did not help as the country went into more chaos. The rebel National Resistance Movement (NRM) of Museveveni took state power in Uganda in January 1986 and introduced a new type of democracy based on a Ten-Point Program. The NRM democracy that is based on a “no party system” where politicians are elected into power based on their individual merit promised parliamentary democracy, popular democracy and decent living for every Ugandan. The NRM government was generally accepted in most parts of the country and donors supported its positive economic growth policies and its toleration of existing political parties that were inactive. It established a broad based government, where key opposition members were invited to join the NRM in 1986 but this was short lived because NRM started to consolidate its rule and blamed previous governments and political parties for the past political instability of Uganda .
In what the author calls “the stability-democracy trade-off”, the article discusses how the NRM has contributed to more political instability with massive killings and displacement of civilians as more rebel and terrorist groups like the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), the West Nile Bank Front (WNBF), the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), the National Army for the Liberation of Uganda (NALU) and many others formed. The “alternative democratic” systems created from the village level to the district level have not performed to expectations of many people. The Local Council (LCs) structures that were created are controlled from above, lack resources and became corrupt. The movement government has become more intolerable as exemplified by cabinet reshuffles being used as mechanisms to punish cabinet ministers who oppose the views of the government and the President.
The article gave credit to the NRM for a better human rights record than the previous governments. They established democratic institutions like the Constitutional Commission, the Human Rights Commission, the Office of the Inspector General of Government and the Electoral commission. However, the limited civil and political liberties, repression of society, foreign driven economic and development strategies that are poor unfriendly and the chronic problem of corruption have hindered their development into a rights- respective regime. The paper also identified the weak and fragmented civil society, divided political parties and lack of human rights consciousness as impediments to the development of a rights- respective society in Uganda . The NRM government became an economic success story to many donors, especially the World Bank and IMF when the government started to implement the Structural Adjustment Programs.

Bringing Order Out of Chaos: A Culturally Competent Approach to Manage the Problems of Refugees and Victims of Organized Violence.
International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, 2004, pp 123-131(9)
Maurie Eisenbruch, Joop T.V.M. Jong and Willem Van De Put
  Abstracted by: Simon Madraru Amajuru
Abstract:
This paper describes how the Transcultural Psychosocial Organization (TPO) designed, and is now implementing a multidisciplinary, collaborative, sustainable and culturally sensitive trauma intervention program for refugees and other victims of organized violence. Over the years much focus of support to refugees has been on provision of relief aid with the resultant effect of dependency. Despite evidence of severe torture cases and their negative effects to refugees and victims of violence, no attention has been given to come up with sustainable means of addressing them. The TPO trauma intervention program has a strong component of capacity building that is aimed at ensuring sustainability.
With one case study each from Africa and Asia , this paper describes how the TPO program that integrates traditional and western healing methods work. The starting point in this program involves research into the local understanding of distress and coping mechanisms. A training manual, in both the local and foreign language is then formulated on the basis of the research findings. A core group from the local community is then trained as trainers for sustainability purpose since TPO eventually hands over the program to local people to manage, through an indigenous NGO. The team is beefed up by training community and civil leaders in the field of psychosocial assistance and mental health.
Inline with the strategy of combining local and western methods, the TPO trainers and the local trainees share knowledge and skills about the consequences of trauma. Traditional healers and traditional birth attendants are integrated into the whole program and some of them are trained to become part of the core team. In societies, where traditional healers almost lost their important role of handling traumatized persons, this system of health and stress management enhanced their revival and they worked closely with the medical personnel. Both preventive and curative methods are used in handling mental health problems making it a very compatible community based approach. The article proclaims demand driven interventions from the program because of the participatory approach. Program evaluations are also done with full participation of the local community. The article quotes that over 150,000 refugees and over 500,000 nationals from neighboring refugee camps in northern Uganda have been assisted by the TPO program. While these numbers likely are overstated, the point about refugee pressures still pertains. By use of diverse interest groups as informants, discussions were held, not only on the nature and scope of the problems confronting refugees, but also on their opinions about positive coping strategies, help –seeking behaviors, health care facilities, relief organizations and traditional practitioners. The information collected generated base line data from which priority problems were identified and analyzed. In order to be able to adapt the program to the local situation, an anthropologist independently investigated from traditional healers on problems related to families and children, trauma-related folk illnesses, emotional expressions and idioms of stress, relevant rituals such as healing, purification, reconciliation and mourning rituals. During implementation after the program design, major psychiatric disorders were referred to medical staff who received training in integrating mental health into primary health care. The government of Uganda has already included a mental health component to the national primary health care program. The case study of Cambodia in Asia was similar to the Ugandan case, although it was applied to the rehabilitation process of the different groups of Cambodians- those settled, those repatriated and the internally displaced persons.

Risks, Safeguards, and Reconstruction: A Model for Population Displacement and Resettlement
Risks and Reconstruction: Experiences of Refugees and Settlers, Washington , D.C. : The World Bank: 11-55.
Cernea M.
  Abstracted by: Lisa Kunkel
Abstract:
The author elaborates his model of Impoverishment Risks and Livelihood Reconstruction (IRLR) which was originally formulated in 1997 for communities displaced by large scale development projects. In this discussion, the model is applied to refugee populations as well and evaluated in terms of empirical studies of its application. The model was developed to address the inadequacies of typical cost-benefit analyses. Its premise is that resettlement risks can be identified, addressed, and even reversed through a more rigorous and complete model. The principle impoverishment risks identified for displaced populations include landlessness, joblessness, homelessness, marginalization, food insecurity, increased disease and death rates, loss of access to common property (i.e. a burial ground or nearby forests), and community disarticulation. The author recognizes “differential risk intensities” for the entire displaced population, such as flight during the rainy season, as well as for particular segments of the displaced community including women, children, and the elderly. Although risks to the host population are more peripheral to the model, these are also identified with the understanding that they will impact the level of acceptance and the degree of integration extended to the displaced community. Cernea argues that his model can serve four functions by providing a predictive and diagnostic framework, as well as prescribing interventions, and establishing a research model. He calls the intervention component “problem-resolution” in that each of the risks listed above can be “stood on its head.” For example, if landlessness is a risk, then land-based resettlement becomes the corollary intervention. The objective is to provide a framework for redevelopment—given recognition of the range of risks and consequences involved in displacement—rather than providing inadequate or short-sighted relief.

Conflict-Induced Displacement and Involuntary Resettlement in Colombia : Putting Cernea’s IRLR model to the Test. Disasters, 2000, vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 198-216.
Muggah, H.C.
  Abstracted by: Lisa Kunkel
Abstract:
The author explores the utility and applicability of a model designed for development induced displacement (DID) for conflict induced displacement (CID). Cernea’s Impoverishment Risks and Livelihood Reconstruction model (IRLR) is applied to the experiences of internally displaced people in Colombia. The author argues that Cernea’s model is an improvement over cost-benefit frameworks but is perhaps too narrowly focused on economic issues. Some risk dimensions are added to the model in order to account for the impact of conflict induced displacement including access to education, opportunities to participate in the political process, and the ongoing risk of violence. According to the author, a more fundamental limitation of the model is that it is “effects based” and does not address the human rights violations that precipitate displacement. Application of the IRLR model is also less problematic in DID than CID because the state can prepare for resettlement and may have more of a political incentive to do so in order to enhance the popularity of large-scale development projects. Conflict displacement is much less predictable and poses greater challenges to planning and intervention. The author also highlights important features of the Colombian case to illustrate both the advantages and shortcoming of the IRLR model. Government, guerilla and paramilitary forces all play a role in conflict induced displacement in Colombia . As such, both the blame and responsibility are dispersed and the state feels less pressured to address the needs of IDPs. The pattern of conflict displacement in Colombia also poses challenges for comprehensive resettlement and redevelopment. Families often initially move to a nearby town or community so that they can periodically check on their land and property with the hope that they may be able to return when the conflict de-escalates. The result is that IDPs make multiple moves before reaching a resettlement community. By then it is quite possible that certain impoverishment risks have taken their toll. The author evaluates impoverishment risks for both rural and semi-urban IDP resettlements to empirically evaluate the model. She concludes that the IRLR model provides a useful set of criteria for assessing problems that arose for IDP communities, particularly when modifications for CID were included. Increased impoverishment according to IRLR variables is documented in both communities. Within the communities, perceptions of risk differed according to age and gender. For example, adult men worried primarily about the lack of employment, whereas women were often concerned with their children’s access to education (which also impacts whether women can work during the day). Adolescents sited violence as their primary concern in addition to worries about their future. Though the model provides a fairly comprehensive assessment and analysis tool, the intervention component is quite difficult to utilize in the case of Colombian IDPs. The idea of being able to turn factors “on their head” is less plausible in the Colombian conflict than in the context of DID given the state’s inability to plan for CID, as well as the state’s complicity with causes of displacement and its lack of political will to address an overwhelming problem.

Peacebuilding in a war zone: the case of Colombian peace communities.
International Peacekeeping , Summer 2003, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 107-118.
Sanford , V.
Muggah, H.C.
  Abstracted by: Lisa Kunkel
Abstract:
This article analyzes the role of different governmental and non-governmental institutions in supporting Colombian peace communities and is based on the authors experience with a UNHCR-sponsored delegation. Colombia ’s peace communities are formed by internally displaced people who have chosen to return to their communities of origin and to declare the neutrality of their community in the civil conflict. With the support of local, national, and international organizations, they prohibit the entrance of armed actors into their community whether they be governmental, paramilitary, or guerilla. Peace communities are assisted through accompaniment, material aid, and promotion of national and international awareness and scrutiny. Each of the supporting organizations and state agencies shares the goals of community protection and humanitarian aid. However, the author argues that they employ different strategies of protection, some of which more effectively support peace communities and their self-determination. The UNHCR strategies tend to focus on “state strengthening” measures that will aid IDPs. However, in the case of the Colombian government, the state’s ties to paramilitary organizations and the strength of the military are principle sources of displacement and violence. Given these dominant forces, state agencies that are part of the human rights apparatus are relatively weak, with little or no enforcement potential. In this particular case study the author and the UNHCR-sponsored delegation, made up of state and non-state agencies at the international, national, and local level attempted to escort a small peace community in a journey to join with a larger community in order to deter potential massacres. The state’s human rights representatives were willing to abandon the IDPs when their own security was threatened. To make matters worse, they blamed aborting their protective mission on international volunteers claiming that they needed to protect the “gringas”. Though this was not a truthful account, international NGOs did pull out of high risk accompaniment missions. A new delegation with local church-based NGOs (and the author of the article) returned to the community and successfully accompanied them to the larger peace community. They were stopped by guerilla and paramilitary forces that threatened violence to community members. However, through church based NGO solidarity, the new delegation and peace community members were able to keep one another safe. Given this experience, the author concludes that the human rights regime ought to focus on empowering IDPs and peace communities, rather than state strengthening measures. As the strength of peace communities and their supporters grow, there is more leverage and legitimacy to pressure the state to prevent displacement and provide adequate support to effected citizens rather than being a key actor in violence and displacement.

Caring at a Distance: (Im)partiality, Moral Motivation and the Ethics of Representation - Asylum and the Principle of Proximity
Ethics, Place & Environment; Oct. 2000, Vol. 3 Issue 3, pp 313-318 (5)
Gibney, M. J.
  Abstracted by: Sabra Barnett
Abstract:
Although during high-profile refugee cases, such as Elian Gonzalez, the West has mustered great public support for refugees, Western states have simultaneously begun to erect high entrance barriers for refugees and asylees. The author posits that the refugees are now treated as illegal immigrants, with Western states preferring that they be contained in the troubled regions from which they come. The author believes that there is no ethical basis for showing partiality to certain refugee groups if all humans matter equally. However, to Westerners, the suffering of foreigners often appears to be distant except when something connects the West to a refugee group, such as cultural affinity or responsibility for the refugees’ flight. Although some see adherence to international refugee law as a remedy for this partiality, the author believes that international refugee law, especially the principle of non-refoulement, uses a morally arbitrary criterion for determining the responsibility of states: the refugee’s proximity to an international boundary. Although historically, protection of those fleeing persecution is a well-founded principle, such as in the Judeo-Christian tradition and in the writings of Grotius, it was not until the 1951 Convention that the principle was codified in the international rule of non-refoulement. Through this international law, states are not required to provide aid to any refugees that are not inside that state’s borders; the animating principle that obligates the state is need plus proximity. Non-refoulement has its advantages in that it speaks to our common moral sense that we must help those in need in close proximity to us while it still limits and simplifies the state’s responsibilities and obligations and protects the state’s sovereignty. The author posits that the current crisis in the international refugee regime exists because there are limitations in a system based on proximity that cause injustice since only the elite among refugees have the ability reach the borders of wealthy, democratic states. Non-refoulement also creates a disparity in the burdens states share; those that are situated close to refugee-producing areas must assume the most responsibility regardless of their capability. These inequalities have led to some poorer states closing their borders to refugees and to some Western states imposing restrictions such as preventive visas. As a result, many refugees are now “confined to the world’s poorest states, sapping legitimacy from the international regime” (p. 317). The author concludes that we must move to a system of impartiality where all humans matter equally. There are three aspects to this move. First, it must be decided whether proximity makes a moral difference in states’ obligations. Second, it must be decided what proximity should mean in a world of advanced technology; there will be implications to basing responses on human equality. Finally, an alternative view of justice will need to be formulated if proximity is to be no longer used as the basis for assigning obligations to states regarding refugees.

The limits to ‘transnationalism’: Bosnian and Eritrean refugees in Europe as emerging transnational communities
Ethnic and Racial Studies, 1 July 2001 , vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 578-600 (23)
Al-Ali N., Black R. and Koser K.
  Abstracted by: Sabra Barnett
Abstract:
The study of transnationalism emerged in the late 1990’s and at once began to challenge the ideas of nationalism and has been used to explore multiple disciplinary fields. The authors state that transnationalism is considered to be the way in which migrants’ economic, political and social relations create social fields and networks across political borders that are maintained over time. This article explores the limits of this term as it applies to the experience of migrants in areas of the world besides the Americas . The three elements considered here are: the role of historical contexts in transnationalism, the role of the state and the role of social and political factors that stimulate transnational actions. The case studies explored in this article are Bosnian refugees in the UK and the Netherlands and Eritrean refugees in the UK and Germany. The authors consider both communities in light of the three elements, historical context, the role of the state and of social and political factors, analyzing both extensions and limitations of transnationalism. For example, Bosnian refugees tended to avoid transnational activities because doing so was perceived as possibly jeopardizing their legal status in their new country. Significantly, Bosnians also saw their “home” country as having disappeared since Yugoslavia had disappeared. On the other hand, Eritreans had less legal troubles and therefore were free to pursue transnational behaviors, especially by maintaining strong ties with those back in Eritrea. Additionally, the Eritrean State has encouraged such behaviors. The authors also show that social pressures have created “forced transnationalism,” as different kinship, bureaucratic and political pressures force refugees to remain involved in their home countries even if they do not wish to return. For example, those who did not flee often regard Bosnian refugees with resentment as being “traitors,” and as a result, refugees will hide their hardships while consistently sending home remittances. Similarly, Eritrean refugees respond to social and bureaucratic pressures by continuing to pay a “tax” to the Eritrean State that has become closely linked to social status and acceptance. The article stresses the importance of these elements in producing highly uneven patterns of transnational activities both within and between these two groups of refugees. The authors conclude that neither the Bosnians nor the Eritreans studied constituted clear examples of “transnational communities;” they were in a dynamic, evolving process, not a “state of being” and were not “locked into fixed social fields or practices” (p. 17). They further conclude that there is a distinct difference between the Bosnian and Eritrean forms of transnationalism, most related to the way in which the Eritrean State has dealt more effectively with its diaspora. Related to this, many factors including the state and cultural positions combine to push transnationalism in a certain way and create “enforced transnationalism.” Finally, conditions including the refugees’ time frames, education and social background do exist that foster one type of transnational interaction over others.

Globalization: implications for immigrants and refugees
Ethnic and Racial Studies, September 2002, vol. 25, no. 5, pp. 707-727
Richmond, A. H.
  Abstracted by: Sabra Barnett
Abstract:
Neither globalization or migration are new phenomena; what is new is the acceleration of these phenomena facilitated by air transportation and communication technologies that have transformed the global system into a postmodernist “network society.” As authoritarian regimes fail, we see a new freedom of movement as borders open as well as reactive, forced migration as governments and groups seek to “cleanse” their societies and/or reunite ethnic groups separated by arbitrary political borders. There is almost no distinction between proactive and reactive migrants as borders erode but rather a continuum integrating elements of choice and elements of circumstance. As these factors come into play, technology is transforming the perception of individual and collective identities, social networks and even human consciousness itself, leading to nationalistic movements and the abdicating of power to non-governmental organizations. As the global system transitions, this cultural nationalism, fueled by the global arms market, has risen and created internally displaced persons and refugees while NGOs are powerless to help these people because of their inability to use coercion. Through globalization, temporary and permanent migrants are no longer distinguishable and migration has taken on a structure that utilizes worldwide network linkages with family, friends and the international labor market. This has given rise to “transilience,” or the ability to move back and forth between cultures. Proactive economic migration is the lubricant that keeps the wheels of the global capitalist system turning because, though some occupations require the worker to be present and permanent, many others depend upon labor mobility. Richmond argues that this system of globalization precludes the enforcement of nation-states’ immigration policies. The result for asylum seekers and refugees is that they have been turned into “vagabonds:” they are not allowed to stay where they are, nor can they search for a better place. The dark side of this global capitalist system is human trafficking and worker exploitation, as well as immigration control policies that often split families or harm deportees. Richmond argues that globalization, coupled with degradation of the natural environment, has contributed to inequality and ethnic conflict, thus creating more displaced persons. He believes that the UN Convention on Refugees was outdated once the Cold War ended and needs to be replaced with international laws that will protect all migrants against discrimination and include universal recognition of multicultural policies. The author concludes that globalization will only be successful if transnational corporations step up to their role as global leaders, individuals and governments resist the urge to impose uniformity on an ethnically diverse world and institutions embrace the ideals of equality, self-actualization and the positive response to the needs of communities. The analysis concludes with five policy implications. First, the economic benefits of globalization must be spread equitably between the communities of the world. Second, the exploitation of resources must be contained. Third, the ILO draft ‘Convention on the Protection of the Rights of all Migrant Workers and Members of their Families’ must be ratified by all industrialized countries in order to facilitate population movement that encompasses all dimensions of human rights. Fourth, international migration should be managed multilaterally, according to the recommendations of the Commission on Global Governance. Fifth, a “global neighborhood” should be created by governments promoting both civic pride and an understanding of the rest of the world.

Lessons from Conflict: The Role of a Strong Judiciary and the International Community in Protecting Human Rights for Successful Humanitarian Aid
Denver Journal of International Law and Policy, Vol. 31, No. 4, Fall 2003.
Greenwood , Scot W.
  Abstracted by: Cara Dilts
Abstract:
The effectiveness of humanitarian aid and nation-building in post-conflict situations is dependant upon protecting refugees and IDPs during reconstruction, and ensuring that a functioning legal system is in place. A strong judiciary is necessary to protect the human rights of returning refugees and IDPs, and thus ensure that humanitarian aid and nation-building efforts have sustainable, long-term positive effects. This article examines three recent post-conflict situations in order to demonstrate the importance of the judiciary in successful humanitarian operations: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and East Timor. In Bosnia, despite the establishment of a Human Rights Ombudsman and Human Rights Chamber, the judicial system lacked enforcement mechanisms. In the case of the Ferhadija Mosque, the international community interceded after local officials repeatedly denied a Human Rights Chamber directive to rebuild the mosque in order to protect the religious rights of returnees. The international community responded, successfully exerting pressure upon officials to implement the directive. This event influenced the creation of an Independent Judicial Commission (IJC) to provide assistance in judicial reform. Positive effects of the IJC and the international community’s bolstering of the enforcement of Human Rights Chamber decisions can be seen in the marked increase in successful property claims made by refugees and IDPs returning to Bosnia. The UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) recognized the importance of laws that created a sense of security and confidence in returned refugees and IDPs. UNMIK issued regulations that established domestic laws that consistently applied to human rights violations in Kosovo. Once the applicable law was established, the international community needed to rebuild the physical infrastructure and provide the resources for a functioning legal system. Although the latter tasks were slow to be realized, once the international community solved these problems, evidence of the gradual reduction in the numbers of returnees leaving the province, as well as the reduction in post-conflict violence, could be attributed to the stronger judiciary in Kosovo and the related increased protection of human rights. As in Kosovo, the United Nations assumed initial responsibility for administration of the judicial system in East Timor. In the beginning, the judicial system was burdened with a lack of resources and unfinished court facilities, so the international community established the National Return and Reconciliation Commission. The Commission alleviated the burden on the courts, strengthening the overall judicial system, and provided a means for returnees to quickly and adequately address human rights abuses. The success of the Commission is evidenced by the stabilization of East Timor’s transition to independence in May of 2002. These three case studies demonstrate that a strong judicial system that protects human rights is a key factor in ensuring that humanitarian aid and nation-building efforts are successful. As such, when developing plans for reconstruction and humanitarian aid in Afghanistan and Iraq , the success of the operations will depend upon the international community’s commitment to ensuring strong judiciaries that protect the rights of refugees and IDPs.

Rights, Refugee Women & Reproductive Health
American University Law Review, Vol. 44, No. 4, April 1995, pp. 1213 – 1252
Gilbert, Lauren
  Abstracted by: Cara Dilts
Abstract:
Refugee women need special protection and assistance. Refugee women are vulnerable to sexual violence, in particular, because they are destitute, often without documentation, and have no effective access to legal or administrative resources. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) outlines in its Guidelines on the Prevention of and Response to Sexual Violence Against Refugees how refugees, those working with refugees, and host governments can work to prevent sexual violence and respond to incidents of such violence. The Guidelines on Sexual Violence explicitly adopt a rights-based approach on issues of sexual violence, recognizing the applicability of local and international enforcement mechanisms for refugee women. Sexual violence is seen as violating a whole series on nonderogable rights, including, but not limited to: the right to security of person, the right to freedom from slavery, and, when it results in the death of the victim, the right to life. Refugee women’s access to adequate food, shelter, and health care, however, have generally been viewed as assistance issues rather than within a rights-based framework, even though these issues are often directly linked to incidences of sexual violence. For example, women who are unable to feed, clothe, and shelter themselves and their children may be more vulnerable to manipulation and sexual abuse in order to obtain such necessities. Women also need access to specialized healthcare, as STDs, including HIV/AIDS, and unwanted pregnancies, are a direct results of sexual violence against women. Aside from the specialized health care needed for women who are victims of sexual violence, refugee women are also entitled under international law to adequate social services, including health services which encompass family planning services. However, these issues are not viewed as a priority in refugee settings, where relief agencies focus on curative health services where men, such as injured soldiers, are the primary users. Basic needs for women, such as adequate cloth and washing facilities for menstruating women, are overlooked. Refugee women may also not receive treatment for serious conditions such as vaginal infections and cervical cancer. The absence of female health practitioners has been one of the barriers to health care, as has been the opposition of many health workers to providing family planning services. Cultural barriers, and lack of information available to women, also prevent the utilization of existing services. In order to alleviate these barriers to refugee women’s access to healthcare, the author offers a number of recommendations, including: that refugee women be consulted on the implementation of family planning programs; that UNHCR staff focus greater attention on gathering data on both the causes and rates of maternal mortality and morbidity; that UNHCR and member states not allow religious mandates to interfere with adequate provision of reproductive health services; that the international community focus greater attention on violence against women and on the effects of that violence on women’s lives and their reproductive health; that UNHCR issue a strong policy statement reaffirming the broader reproductive health needs of women and update the Guidelines on the Protection of Refugee Women; and that UNHCR consider the adoption of an independent enforcement or monitoring mechanism.

Amputation as a Strategy of Terror in Sierra Leone
High Plains Applied Anthropologist, Vol. 24, No. 2, Fall, 2004, pp. 158 – 173
Fogelberg, Kate and Thalmann, Alexandra
  Abstracted by: Cara Dilts
Abstract:
In Sierra Leone during the 1990s, between 50,000 and 70,000 people were killed, and 20,000 maimed. Initially, Sierra Leone was ignored by the global community and written off as another small-scale, local, civil war. The Revolutionary United Front’s (RUF) terror campaign had been going on for nearly ten years by the time the international press finally started reporting on the atrocities. Analyses of the crisis attributed the “unexplainable violence” to tribalism and cultural conflict, but recent theories have shifted to include an explanation that includes economic and global influences. Prior to the introduction of the diamond industry in the 1930s, Sierra Leone enjoyed relative prosperity and peace. Now, Sierra Leone holds the lowest rank on the Human Development Index (HDI) and quality of life continues to deteriorate. The diamond-smuggling business is the most highly developed and organized industry in the region. Government officials have become embroiled in this profit-making industry, causing corruption to run rife and essential services to be ignored. In 1990, only 30 percent of the nation’s youth were enrolled in school at all levels, and a large number of uneducated youth turned to the illicit diamond mining industry or to the RUF, who provided a social network and sense of belonging to the young soldiers. The RUF also abducted youth into their swelling ranks. Amputation included political, sociopolitical and economic purposes for the RUF. Amputation was used as a political tool to control the masses. People’s hands were cut off if they dared to vote. The hands were sent to the President in a symbolic gesture to demonstrate the government’s inadequacy and powerlessness to control the RUF. As a sociopolitical tool, the RUF used amputation to ensure combatants’ loyalty to the group. Children were forced to maim or kill their own relatives as a rite of initiation. The forms of suffering brought about through amputation impacted the stability of the social order by transforming the physical workforce and transforming the psyche of victims. The economic ramifications of amputation included using terror strategies to displace people away from diamond-mining areas, giving the RUF control of the mines. The RUF could then purchase enough Liberian arms to sustain their war and enough drugs to coerce their combatants into committing more atrocities. During harvest time, amputation was used to keep the population dependent upon them for food. Basically, amputation was cheap and effective. The war has now been officially over for three years, but the effects of ten years of amputations permeate Sierra Leone. Efforts to rehabilitate both amputee victims and child soldiers have been largely ineffective, and the state continues to be overrun by extreme poverty. Sierra Leone has a long road ahead to strengthen its political, economic and social institutions to ensure that future conflicts do not occur.

Refugees and the Spread of Conflict: Contrasting Cases in Central Africa
Journal of Asian and African Studies, 2003, vol. 38, no. 2-3, pp. 211-231 (21)
Whitaker B.
  Abstracted by: Keely Tongate
Abstract:
This article addresses how refugee movements exacerbate the spread of conflict using the Rwandan refugees fleeing to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania in the 1990s as a case study. It argues that while refugees do generally change the landscape of a receiving country this transformation does not always result in conflict. There is limited research on refugee flows and the spread of conflict. However, research addressing the internationalization of conflict is being developed. The research has given two main examples of refugee flows advancing the spread of conflict. The first is when refugee flows affect the balance of power by either shifting the ethnic make-up of a society or limiting access to resources. The second example is when refugee flows bring new belligerents into the host country thus escalating the political context. The Rwandan refugees did spread conflict into Congo (formerly Zaire ) but not to Tanzania. The article gives three reasons for the divergent outcomes: regime legitimacy, extent of politicization of ethnicity, and the domestic political decisions of the leader. The Rwandan refugees that fled to Zaire found a failing state, highly politicized ethnic groups, and a dictator willing to exploit the refugee situation in order to maintain his power base. The refugees fleeing to Tanzania found a country in the process of politico-economic liberalization, a lack of tension along ethnic lines, and incentives to promote peace and stability. The examples of Tanzania and Congo depict the factors that could potentially exacerbate the domestic situation in a host country and increase the likelihood of conflict spillover. The usefulness of these indicators is not limited to Tanzania and Congo. An analysis of Angolan refugees in Zambia and Mozambique refugees in Malawi strengthen the author’s argument. The two relatively stable states were able to absorb the refugees without the spread of conflict. The situation surrounding the Greater Horn of African refugee populations do not directly correlate with the author’s contention. Cote d’Ivoire presents the strongest argument for the author’s argument. Cote d’Ivoire was a model of stability and a long-time refugee acceptor. However, a changing domestic political environment created the scenario for conflict spillover. Thus, the author seeks to address the point that conflict is not always spread by refugee flows. What is clear is that refugees are both affected by and affect established political environments. If the essential destabilizing factors already exist in a given state, conflict could arise. In the interest of both the receiving country and the refugee population it is important to analyze a host country’s specific politico-economic dynamics to predict if the spread of conflict is likely. Then, governments and the international community can take the proper steps to mediate escalating situations.

Somali and Oromo Refugees: Correlates of Torture and Trauma History
American Journal of Public Health, April 2004, vol. 94, no. 4, pp. 591-598 (8)
Jaranson, J, Butcher J, Halcon L, et. al.
  Abstracted by: Keely Tongate
Abstract:
Refugees and asylum seekers have a high risk of experiencing politically motivated torture, most studies cite between 5% and 35%. However, estimating torture prevalence and posttraumatic stress disorder among refugee communities is an extremely difficult undertaking. This five-year community-based epidemiological study of Somali and Ethiopian (Oromo) refugees in Minnesota tasks itself with determining torture incidence and associated problems. The methodology of the study included a comprehensive questionnaire to a sample of 1,134 East African refugees. It sought to identify demographic characteristics, torture methods, and pre and post flight circumstances surrounding the refugee sample. The study used the United Nation’s definition of torture as the foundation for identifying torture victims. Persons acting in an official capacity intentionally inflicting physical or psychological pain in a discriminatory manner is the basis for the UN definition. The participants of the survey were deemed torture survivors if they responded affirmatively to any of the three questions asking directly if they had been tortured or had experienced one of the torture techniques that were construed as fundamentally part of a “torture session.” The results of the study found that torture incidence ranged from 25% to 69%, a figure markedly higher than previously found. Those most often exposed to torture were Oromo men (69%) and Somali women (47%). This study, in contrast to other works, show that women and the less educated are just as likely to be tortured as men and those with higher education levels. The most significant finding was the link between torture exposure and the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms. The study highlighted the importance of education, economic solidity, social support and religion as the foundation for healthy refugee communities. Not surprisingly, the more prevalent trauma and torture instances was reflected in more generalized problems within the refugee community. Thus, the impact of torture and trauma has a clear impact on refugees that needs to be addressed in resettlement communities. This study was limited to noting torture prevalence between two East African refugee communities. However, it seeks to highlight the absence of information about the effects of trauma and torture on wider refugee groups. It demonstrates the lack of treatment facilities for torture survivors worldwide. It also recommends screening East African and women refugees for possible torture exposure. However, it notes that less than 1% of the highly traumatized population sampled chose to follow-up with mental health services. This phenomenon demonstrates the need to evaluate why the limited services for torture survivors are being under utilized both for the study’s East African sample group and the greater refugee population.

The Protection of Refugee Women and Children: Litmus Test for International Regime Success
Forum: Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, Winter/Spring 2002, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 37-44 (8)
Young W.
  Abstracted by: Keely Tongate
Abstract:
Eighty percent of the world refugee population is made up of women and children. However, their protection under the international refugee regime is lacking. This deficiency is seen in the limited legal protections as well as the physical insecurity they face while in refugee settings. This paper addresses the competency of the international refugee regime to address the rights and needs of refugee women and children. The first obstacle the article addresses is the physical protection of refugee women and children. The UNHCR, with the encouragement of women’s and refugee rights advocates, has developed specific guidelines to tackle the particular concerns of refugee women and children. Yet, in field situations, the guidelines are consistently pushed aside in favor of the more vital concerns of food, shelter and sanitation. Thus, the women and children are more often vulnerable to abuses such as rape, sexual slavery, forced prostitution, abduction, and forced military service. Refugee advocacy groups are increasingly documenting these shortcomings and creating an environment for reform. Then it is left to the UNHCR to institutionalize successfully these reforms. The second obstacle the article addresses is the legal protection of refugee women and children. Gender and age related persecution is received under the “membership in a particular social group” category of the refugee definition. Developed states are increasingly encompassing gender persecution as a basis for refugee protection. UNHCR has monitored gender related persecution claims and made headway toward signifying that women may constitute a social group. However, as of yet there is no basis for universal recognition for women as a social group within the refugee definition. The identification of refugee claims based on age is even less probable. The United States has only recently granted children’s asylum claims under the social group category. Children have been granted asylum in the U.S. of late because they were child brides or subjected to labor or sexual exploitation. The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service has established gender and age related persecution guidelines to handle fairly these specific asylum claims. This development causes refugee advocate groups to feel optimistic yet vigilant for the potential progress for refugee women and children’s legal protections in the U.S. The international community and the larger refugee regime cannot ignore the importance of protecting the majority refugee population, women and children. With this fact in mind the article ends with three pieces of advice to the larger international community. First, the guidelines established by the UNHCR regarding the protection of refugee women and children need to evolve from policy into practice. Second, programs should be initiated to evaluate their success. Lastly, refugee women and children should be recognized as identifiable social groups within the refugee definition.

The Geopolitics of Afghan Refugees in Pakistan
Refugee Manipulation – War, Politics, and the Abuse of Human Suffering, Stedman S., Tanner F. (eds.), 2003, pp. 57-94
Grare F.
  Abstracted by: Marie E. Ott
Abstract:
Manipulation of refugee populations by the host country’s government and/or other groups is not uncommon during conflicts. President Zia-ul-Haq of Pakistan took advantage of the large Afghan refugee presence in his country in order to improve the economic and political security in Pakistan. The refugees’ participation in resistance against the Soviet occupation in Afghanistan was a vital part of this plan to serve Pakistan’s geopolitical objectives. This article explores how the Afghan refugees became a vital part of the resistance against the Soviet occupation in Afghanistan while strengthening the geopolitical position of Pakistan. Unlike other cases of refugee manipulation and refugee camp militarization such as Rwanda and Cambodia, the Afghan refugees had a greater freedom to choose to participate in the resistance. Additionally, the refugees’ resistance was seen as legitimate by the international community. The article presents the causes of Afghan refugee flight into Pakistan as well as the environmental, economic, domestic security and geopolitical threats that Pakistan faced by hosting the refugees. Pakistan’s policy toward refugees was a key factor in the political manipulation of the Afghan refugees by President Zia-ul-Haq. The Pakistani government did not want the primarily Islamic Afghan resistance in exile to unite and become too powerful. The government recognized seven separate Islamic Afghan resistance political parties within Pakistan and required all Afghan refugees to join one of the parties. International public opinion considered the presence of these parties as a legitimate form of Afghan resistance against the Soviet occupation, especially since it seemed that the parties had the support of the Afghan population. The international community sent financial assistance to Pakistan in support of its Afghanistan policy and its humanitarian treatment of refugees. The Pakistani government, however, was not able to pursue much longer the manipulation of the Afghan refugees without some consequences. When the resistance parties began to attack each other, Pakistan supported the Taliban and aided the group’s recruitment of refugees to fight for them in Afghanistan. As it became more clear that the Taliban identified with Islamic fundamentalism and had a poor women’s rights record, international public opinion, led by the United States, became critical of Pakistan’s link to the Taliban. In conclusion the article states that it would be ideal to create new refugee regimes that eliminate political manipulation of refugees by states and conflicting parties. However, this would not get to the root of the political problem. As is shown by the case of Afghan refugees in Pakistan, Pakistan’s objective was not only politically self-serving, it was also accepted by the international community.

Trust Building from the Perspective of Survivors of War and Torture
Social Service Review, March 2004, vol. 78, no. 1, pp. 26-40
Behnia, B.
  Abstracted by: Marie E. Ott
Abstract:
Refugees who have survived war and torture have experienced unthinkable situations. These traumatic events continue to negatively affect the lives of the survivors even after they have arrived in the country of refuge. For a refugee survivor there may be feelings of vulnerability, extreme guilt for having survived when family and friends did not, as well as inability to adapt to the new culture. These factors contribute to the refugee survivor’s negative self-concept and a loss of trust in others. This article addresses the mechanisms surrounding trust building between a refugee survivor client and a service providing professional. In Western countries, in order for the professional to help the survivor, the survivor will need to disclose the traumatic events that he or she experienced. For this to happen, the survivor needs to trust the professional. Based on theoretical aspects of the interactionist perspective, this article contends that trust is a result of a complex process involving the prospective client’s interpretation of his or her social relationship with the professional. This article discusses the reasons why trauma has an adverse impact on a refugee survivors’ self-concept and trust. Because of the nature of how acts of torture are carried out, a person who has experienced torture will not know who to trust and who to distrust. For survivors of war and torture, the process of trust building is especially complex. A framework is presented on how a service providing professional can earn the trust of a prospective client, from the client’s perspective. In a session the prospective client assesses the trust-worthiness of the professional through observation and interaction. The client observes not only professional’s office setting in which the encounter is taking place, but also the professional’s appearance and mannerisms. In addition, the client verbally engages the professional and may pose questions to learn about the professional’s values, beliefs, and knowledge. With this information the prospective client is able to define the professional and predict his or her possible future actions. As the client collects and interprets these observations and interactional cues, the client assesses them along three parameters: self-concept, perceived self, and definition of the professional as a significant other. In the concluding remarks, it is underlined that in order for survivor clients to disclose their painful histories, they must build a trustful relationship with the helping professional. Before this happens, the professional must be perceived as a competent and sincerely caring person. Survivor clients are not passive. Rather, they actively seek information in order to determine the trustworthiness of the professional. The framework presented in this article will help professionals understand the trust building process from the client’s perspective.

The Use and Abuse of Refugees in Zaire
Refugee Manipulation – War, Politics, and the Abuse of Human Suffering, Stedman S., Tanner F. (eds.), 2003, pp. 95-134
Adelman H.
  Abstracted by: Marie E. Ott
Abstract:
Following the defeat of Rwanda’s genocidaires by the Rwandese Patriotic Front (RPF), over 1,600,000 Rwandese Hutu fled the country. Most of them were routed by the surviving genocidaires into neighboring Zaire (Democratic Republic of the Congo). The international community mobilized to help those fleeing Rwanda and established refugee camps along the Zairian border. But much of the international community, including the Western public, continued to remain ignorant about the history and circumstances surrounding the Rwandan conflict. The media coverage of the fleeing refugees led many observers to falsely believe that all of the refugees were innocent. This article presents the crisis that ensued in the Zairian refugee camps, where the extremist Hutu groups were able to regroup, recruit, and plan to carry out the unfinished genocide of the Tutsi. By building and funding refugee camps that unexpectedly came to harbor extremists, the international humanitarian community was a key player in assisting the genocidaires’ “quasi states” and their manipulation of the Hutu refugees. In addition, Rwanda’s civil war and ethnic cleansing spilled over into Zaire. The Zairian government and army assisted extremist Hutus and allowed them to attack Zairian Tutsis. This article looks at the circumstances surrounding the flight of the refugees in 1994, the creation of the refugee camps and the factors that allowed them to be a safe haven for the genocidaires, repatriation issues, and the operations launched by militants from within the camps. It also describes the roles of Rwanda, Zaire, other regional states, the international community, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) from the start of the refugee flight in 1994 to their initial repatriation in 1996. Western states, the United Nations, international humanitarian agencies, NGOs, and the media coverage all contributed to the cause of the genocidaires, as they witnessed but did very little to stop the abuse of refugees in Zaire. In conclusion, the essential issues in this crisis had to do with the way that the international community implemented its assistance to the refugees. Genuine refugees were not separated from the refugee genocidaires and nothing was done to stop the genocidaires from using the camps as a home base for further manipulation and slaughter. Despite incidences of tragic aftermath, the refugee problem was eventually resolved after the militants in the camps were defeated and the refugees were free to return home.

Trafficking in Children in West and Central Africa
Gender & Development , 2002, vol.10, no. 1 (2002): 38-42(5)
Dottridge M.
  Abstracted by Elizabeth Stands
Abstract:
The sensational account of a ship carrying “slave children” in West Africa (revealed in the Western press in April 2001) again brought the West’s attention to the plight of trafficked children. Dottridge is quick to criticize, however, the Western press’ willingness to take credit for revealing the trade in trafficked children. He insists that it was, in fact, efforts by West African NGOs and journalists, through research and advocacy, which truly documented and illuminated the organized trade in children. He is critical, not only of praise of the Western press in revealing the problem, but also in its inferences of an African ‘culture of slavery’ and its choice to publicize the more sensationalist elements of the trade without concerning themselves with identifying the realities and underlying causes of child trafficking. Dottridge uses this article to describe efforts by various West and Central African organizations and governments to address the problem of child trafficking, focusing primarily on trade within African countries. Before discussing these efforts, the author notes some of the cultural traditions which unwittingly support the trafficking in children, and particularly highlights the role of gender inequality in perpetuating the trade. Traditionally in West and Central African societies, girls in rural areas are sent to more affluent homes to work as domestic laborers. The practices in these societies, wherein communities are accustomed to seeing girls leave their homes for marriage, where girls are kept out of school to work in the home, and where laws of inheritance do little to ensure security for women and girls, all contribute to a complacency in allowing girls to leave the community, on the pretence of improving their situation and unwittingly being pulled into the trafficking trade. The majority of children trafficked are girls and almost all are coerced into the trade by traffickers intent on placing them in situations of forced labor. Boys more often find themselves on farms, doing the physical labor which complements their traditional role in their culture. Dottridge acknowledges the reality of girls forced into prostitution in Europe , but chooses not to expand the scope of this article to discuss their plight. Instead he looks at the situation throughout Western and Central African and identifies organizations such as the Constitutional Rights Project in Nigeria, the WAO-Afrique NGO based in Togo, and ESAM (a Beninois NGO) all of which work to report on and create solutions to the problem of trafficking. Dottridge observes that the impact of the African media writing reports on the trade resulted in the governments of Côte d’Ivoire and Mali creating a commission of inquiry, which resulted in an agreement to reduce the traffic. The work of local and regional NGOs caught the attention of larger international actors, such as UNICEF and the World Bank, resulting in regional workshops and increased efforts to create programs. Despite this flurry of activity, however, the author highlights the unfortunate lack of coordination of these agencies in program delivery, agreeing on methods of protecting trafficked children once identified, and determining what systematic action to take to help these children. Dottridge concludes by reinforcing the negative impact that gender inequality plays in minimizing efforts to coherently deal with the problem of trafficking. He points out that too many governments in the region leave the issue to women’s ministries, instead of using more powerful actors, such as Ministries of Labor, to initiate plans of action. He believes, “…this would almost certainly be unacceptable if the majority of trafficking victims were men and boys.” (p41)

Migration in West Africa
Development , 2003, vol. 46, no. 3, pp. 37-41(5)
Adepoju A.
  Abstracted by: Elizabeth Stands
Abstract:
Adepoju discusses the changes in historical trends in migration in West Africa, looking at factors which are influencing these changes and noting states’ responses. Adepoju begins with an account of traditional migration in West Africa, noting that West Africans have consistently moved around the sub-region for a variety of reasons, including opportunities for better employment and escape from environmental disasters and armed conflicts. Until recently, inter-regional migration followed certain patterns, with some countries being understood as generally labor-exporting and others labor-importing. Changes in economic and political stability as well as job opportunities are shifting these traditional patterns, so that, for example, more women are engaging in the short- to long- term seasonal job migrations in which men had typically dominated. This applies not only to women engaged in commercial trade, but high-skilled, professional women as well. Trafficking in illegal immigrants has increased as people seek to reach Europe and further abroad to fulfill dreams of economic prosperity. Trafficking in children for forced labor and prostitution is prolific, based in part on traffickers taking advantage of the traditional child-fostering system. Adepoju highlights the underlying force behind migration changes, including women’s greater participation and increased trafficking: poverty. The author emphasizes the effects of resource and environmental constraints, including desertification; decline in real incomes; limitations in rural growth, resulting in urbanization; and macroeconomic restructuring. He also notes that some of the traditional labor importing countries, such as Côte d’Ivoire and Nigeria, have experienced political and economic upheaval, limiting employment opportunities, while other countries, such as South Africa, have more opportunities, influencing the choices migrants make when moving, particularly highly-skilled professionals. Changing economic and political realities have generated various responses by state governments, many protectionist in nature. Adepoju discusses particular countries’ strategies to regulate the flow of persons such as identity cards; using ethnicity and religion to define nationality; registration of aliens; and compulsory exit visas for all residents. Immigrants are being used as scape-goats for countries’ economic and political woes, potentially exacerbating tensions which could become explosive. The armed conflicts spreading throughout West Africa have created an enormous flow of refugees throughout the region, challenging the capacity of the refugee regime to respond adequately and reinforcing states’ defensive attitudes. Despite the formation of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to handle, in part, migration issues, states continue to use expulsions and deportations to rid their territory of immigrants seen as threats. Yet, ECOWAS is simultaneously the mechanism that has provided some potentially controversial solutions to the changing migration patterns and related impacts which the author supports. ECOWAS promotes the free movement of persons without visas, has introduced ECOWAS traveler’s checks as well as the creation of an ECOWAS passport. Adepoju also recommends advocacy and public education to off-set negative stereotypes of immigrants and to promote an understanding of the potential for changing migration patterns to aid all countries in the region in development.

Modern-Day Slavery?
African Security Review, 2003, vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 81-89(9)
Fitzgibbon, K.
  Abstracted by: Elizabeth Stands
Abstract:
Human trafficking, the exploitation in men, women and children for forced labor and sexual exploitation, is a major threat and challenge for Africa. Fitzgerald provides a concise and thorough account of the various kinds of trafficking, the reasons for its growth, and the impact of trafficking on individuals, families, societies and states, focusing particularly on West and Central Africa . Much of the research used to support her points comes from reports from the United Nations, International Labour Organization (ILO), and UNICEF. The author notes how some African customs inadvertently play a role in the proliferation of trafficking. The traditional practice of sending children to affluent homes to afford greater educational opportunities, the custom of traveling to distant locations to engage in seasonal labor, and the more recent trend in seeking a fortune in “the West” make it easier for traffickers to mislead children’s parents and coerce individuals into a trafficking scheme, relying on promises of a better future. Once entrapped by the traffickers, enforced debt, physical brutality (such as beatings and rape), and forms of imprisonment ensure that those trafficked will rarely escape. In West and Central Africa , the ILO estimates that 200,000 to 300,000 children are trafficked each for forced labor and sexual exploitation; West Africa is the most prevalent location for women trafficked to Europe for prostitution. Fitzgerald emphasizes how the population of marginalized individuals most vulnerable to traffickers is increasing due to civil unrest, natural disasters and armed conflicts. People fleeing these situations (namely, refugees), facing physical and economic insecurity, are highly susceptible to manipulative promises of financial success and outright abduction. Traffickers receive high profits and face minimal risk in being captured or prosecuted. Government militaries and rebel militias often benefit from trafficking in the form of bribes, child soldiers, and sex slaves. Thousands of trafficked Africans die every year through mishap, disease, abuse or murder. State actors whose role it is to combat trafficking often are constrained by a lack of political will to effectively address the situation, limited funding, and an absence of a coordinated effort by agencies and organizations with similar mandates. The author notes the international community’s complacency in permitting trafficking by failing to mobilize around the human rights violations of the trafficked or to prosecute traffickers of war crimes in war crimes tribunals. The effects of trafficking on West African nations are devastating. Fitzgerald describes the myriad impacts of trafficking, including the perpetuation of poverty and illiteracy; inhibiting the creation of a future, skilled work force; depressed wages and an inability to fully engage in the global market; failure of the state to demonstrate its authority or protect its citizens; and the loss of cultural knowledge and tradition as adults and children pulled out of their communities are unable to give or receive their heritage. Unfortunately, without serious political will and the mobilization of anti-trafficking actors, traffickers will continue to “victimize African men, women and children, depriving them of their basic human rights, depriving countries of critical human capital to compete in the global economy, and depriving all governments of the ability to establish law and order within their own borders.” (p.88)

Bosnian Refugees and Socio-economic Realities: Changes in Refugee and Resettlement Policies in Austria and the United States
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, January 2003, vol. 29, no. 1, pp. 5-26 (21)
Franz B.
  Abstracted by: Carol Vernon
Abstract:
When refugee and asylum applications accelerated in post-1989 Western Europe, states responded by lowering admission ceilings. A shift occurred from prior emphasis on resettlement and political asylum to temporary protection and repatriation as the most desirable “durable solutions.” This article addresses some of the legal and political changes and their effects on the refugee population by comparing two vastly different resettlement schemes: that of the US and Austria. This study was based on in-depth interviews in 1999 with 26 Bosnian refugees resettled in Vienna and 20 in New York City, plus interviews with key personnel in both governmental and non-governmental organizations. In spring and summer of 1992, more than 30,000 Bosnians entered Austria. Due to its geographic location, it was the first Western European state inundated with a large influx of Bosnian refugees. Fearing that foreigners would swamp their country, the Austrian government set the precedent in Europe by giving temporary protected status (TPS) to refugees from the Balkans area, instead of classifying them as refugees under Article 1 of the 1951 Refugee Convention. The Federal Asylum Office made the criteria for applying for asylum so difficult that most Bosnians were prohibited from applying. Of those that did apply, over two-thirds were rejected. Since Austria denied Bosnian refugees the Convention asylum status, they held an uncertain residence status for a number of years and most could not seek legal employment or travel freely throughout the country. A majority found work, however, through the black market. Those Bosnians who came to the US prior to August 10, 1992 were also given TPS status, which allowed them to seek employment and travel freely throughout the country. TPS status ended on February 10, 2001. Most Bosnians who came to the US, however, came under the refugee resettlement program and, as such, were treated as Convention refugees. With a US policy that provided a wide array of services through public-private partnerships, it could be surmised that the Bosnian refugees would fare much better in terms of economic success and upward mobility. Conversely, the two groups showed similar patterns of upward mobility. Both groups took similar types of jobs initially; Bosnian women in Austria, however, disproportionately shouldered the initial socio-economic adjustment due to the particular demands of the black labor market. Through their individual determination, many were eventually able to convert these jobs to permanent guestworker positions. As guestworkers, they gained social service benefits for themselves and their families. In the US, settlement agencies encouraged early employment for the heads of household in mostly entry-level jobs. An analysis showed that the two groups adapted socio-economically quite similarly, leading to the conclusion that this was due more to individual initiative and persistence than to state policy.

EU Enlargement and the Challenge of Policy Transfer: the Case of Refugee Policy
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, October 2002, vol. 28, no. 4, pp. 701-721 (21)
Lavenex S.
  Abstracted by Carol Vernon
Abstract:
With the post-1989 transition to democracy, the ten candidate countries for EU membership from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) have largely acceded to international refugee and asylum conventions and treaties, including the signing of the Geneva Refugee Convention. They are also rapidly evolving from sending to receiving countries. Given these monumental changes, as well as increased refugee flows from the East and the South, there is a growing need to develop the necessary social, legal, and administrative infrastructure to handle such challenges. In this article, all ten candidate countries are shown to exhibit a similar pattern of refugee policy reform, although each has had very different experiences with asylum. Since each had to adopt general asylum and immigration legislation in order to acquire EU membership, the first reforms were seen as liberalizing, in that they guaranteed fleeing persons the right to the asylum process. The second stage of reform showed increased restrictions as borders became tighter. The principals of “safe third country rule”, “safe countries of origin”, expedited expulsions and returns, and the tightening of visa requirements were also implemented. The third stage has involved a balancing of each country’s reforms based on its reaction to deficits exposed by an annual EU report. While it has been generally accepted that refugee policy transfer among EU candidate countries is due to pressure and coercion from the EU, upon further review, however, it appears that these domestic changes are chiefly due to the impact of policy reforms by neighboring EU member states. Interestingly, the UNHCR has had very limited impact on legislative developments in CEE countries. Instead, the candidate states have largely been influenced by the (often uncoordinated) efforts and activities of individual neighboring states, extending to bilateral readmission agreements and arrangements between these states. Another interesting development is the Twinnings’ Program, the practice of pairing established asylum agencies in Western states with their counterparts in the CEE. The program’s aim is to help candidate countries establish the structures, human resources, management, and leadership skills in the refugee arena so that they can achieve the same standards as member states. Given that the CEE countries did not participate in the international refugee regime before, their inexperience and uncertainty in the refugee field may lead to eventual conflicts of interest about what kind of protection should be offered and for whom.

The United States Refugee Program: Reforms for a New Era of Refugee Resettlement
A Commissioned Study by the State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, 5 July 2004
Martin D.A.
  Abstracted by Carol Vernon
Abstract:
The US Refugee Program has been at a crossroads since FY 2002. At that time, the steady and predictable programs of resettlement for the Indochinese, the Soviets, and those fleeing former Yugoslavia had largely come to an end. The September 11 terrorist attacks led to enhanced security measures and a decrease in refugee flows. As the US enters a new era of refugee admissions, it is predicted that these admissions will involve smaller-scale programs in difficult locations that will shift from year-to-year. This commissioned report draws on the experiences of US government agencies, NGOs, IGOs, and refugees, whose suggestions and observations will help shape the future of the US Refugee Program through the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM). This new era will require quicker, more flexible decision-making on resettling specific groups. One recommendation is the formation of a Refugee Admissions Committee that meets biweekly to develop common standards and procedures for group designations. This committee would consider potential groups, select candidate groups to further investigate, and eventually designate groups for whom resettlement processing would be initiated. The report also details suggested improvements in refugee adjudications by including better training for officers on country conditions, the commitment of a developing expert Refugee Officer Corps to be deployed as circuit riders, enhanced interview-site security, and technological innovations such as video hookups to permit interviewing in remote locations. Fraud has become a larger problem in recent years with modern technologies and communications, as well as the growth of organized fraud scheme enterprises. Enhanced UNHCR registration can minimize fraud with the use of biometric identifiers, mobile fingerprint labs, and DNA testing. Other recommendations for the US Refugee Program include viewing the presidential proposed annual refugee admissions as a goal, not a ceiling, repealing the ceiling on annual asylee adjustments, and admitting overseas refugees as lawful permanent residents, rather than having them wait a year to adjust their status. Proponents of a wider view of refugee resettlement argue the US program should consider resettlement as a durable solution to a wider set of dangers, not just imminent harm. This view includes the “rescuing” of those languishing in protracted refugee camp situations. As the US seeks to clarify its aims and thrust in this new refugee era, clear channels of feedback from participating NGOs, oversees processing entities, the UNHCR, and governmental agencies, will enhance responsive changes to a newly-developing vision of refugee resettlement.

“The Road Home. The Faili Kurds. Expulsion. A Forced March. And the Loss of Nationality.”
Refugees Magazine, United Nations High Commisioner for Refugees. Volume 1, Number 134, 2004, pp. 11-13
Marie-Helen Verney
  Abstracted by: Keesha Egebrecht
Abstract:
People all over the world have been persecuted for their beliefs, values, culture, identity, nationality and much more for eons. The problem persists to the present day, as evident in articles such as ones published in Refugees magazine. This article aims to bring awareness to the general public about refugees and their tragic stories. The Faili Kurds are a group of people that have a long history of persecution due to their nationality. The offenders are Saddam Hussain, the former dictator of Iraq, and his followers. Before discussing the article, it is important to familiarize the reader with the Faili Kurds. They are a group that has come to embrace Islam since the beginning of the Islamic conquest of Iraq and Iran. They originally lived in the area between Iraq and Iran , but many moved to Bagdad in the early 20 th century. Currently there are around 2.5 million in Iraq and around 3 million in Iran. Since their move to Bagdad , they have been actively involved in the economic and political arena. Because of this, Saddam felt his power threatened and decided to, unsurprisingly, confiscate their capital and property and banish them to Iran. He declared them to be Iranians and not genuine Iraqis, even though many generations of people were born in Iraq. The article discusses an account of one Faili Kurd who was exiled to Iraq 24 years ago. When this refugee was dispelled, there were thousands of other civilians of all nationalities who were also forced to flee. Not only were they forced out, but officially stripped of their nationality, having their documentation papers ripped up in front of their faces. This one particular man had evidence that his grandfather, father and he were all born in Iraq, but were still exiled. However, his brother, who was ordered to serve in the army, was excused from being a Faili Kurd, and was said to still be Iraqi. This man and his family have been in the Azna refugee camp for 24 years and have not gone one day without thinking about returning home, just as many of the world’s refugees. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) prefers voluntary repatriation, but it is often a true challenge because of the need to rebuild schools and clinics in destroyed areas, remove land mines covering their homeland, and try to integrate with the people who had stayed behind. The UNHCR says that overcoming the problem of nationality is challenging. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states, “Everyone has a right to a nationality” but there are as many as 9 million stateless persons worldwide. Despite these abundant obstacles, the UN refugee agency has recently been working with the 192 member countries to get the “big picture” and help governments solve the problem. For the Faili Kurds, the picture looks a little better as there was a meeting last year with the new Iraqi authorities to address their statelessness. The new government claimed that the Faili would indeed be allowed to return.

“The Road Home. Dreams and Fears. ‘I Am Going Back to the Land God Gave Us’ ”
Refugees Magazine, United Nations High Commisioner for Refugees. Volume 1, Number 134, 2004, pp. 3-10
  Abstracted by: Keesha Egebrecht
Abstract:
This article addresses the important subject of repatriation for refugees. There are always many emotions and motivations for returning to one’s homeland and this article aims to articulate them. One particular case discussed was about a girl who fled from Mozambique because she was fearful of both government troops and guerillas. She claims she would have been killed had she stayed home. Mozambique has been through much turmoil, beginning with the colonial struggle against the Portuguese and then a brutal civil war. Around 6 million people abandoned their homes; in this girl’s case she fled to neighboring Zimbabwe . As with many other refugees, the thought of returning home kept her sane through the long years of pain and hardship. When that day finally came, she felt immediate euphoria followed quickly by feelings of doubt and apprehension. Over the years she had come to feel safe in the refugee camp where she was able to feed her children and make many friends. Often refugees are scared to abandon what they know to return to a situation that is unstable and unknown. During a 30-month period in the early 1990’s 1.7 million refugees returned back to their homes in Mozambique. Then another 4 million came out of hiding in nearby villages and “the bush” and returned home, making it one of the most successful repatriations in modern history. During and after WWII, the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) helped an estimated 7 million people repatriate. However, the global political climate has changed and now the preferred solution is voluntary repatriation. Many refugees face the decision of returning to a region that is peaceful, while there is fighting in a neighboring one. Often the desire to go home is stronger in older refugees because of the memory of home, compared with younger refugees who are not tied to the land like their elders. Approximately 50-60% of refugees fall into this category because many have been in exile for so long the young tend to outnumber the old. Not every homecoming is pleasant though; one man returned to a situation where he found his father dead, his friends had left and his village completely destroyed. The UNHCR has played an integral part in many refugee repatriations. It has come to recognize the importance of including local communities as well as returnees in key economic, social and cultural projects.

“ Ukraine. On the Outside Looking In.”
Refugees magazine, United High Commissioners for Refugees., Volume 2, Number 135, 2004, pp. 14-17
  Abstracted by: Keesha Egebrecht
Abstract:
Central Europe is again “rising to the top” of European affairs, this time on the challenging issue of refugees. There are three countries, Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus , which do not have resources to aid the refugees or to monitor the borders to Western Europe. This article aims to bring awareness and to create the necessity to take action by addressing some of the existing challenges in Central Europe ’s refugee situation. During WWII, Ukraine and the surrounding area turned into Europe ’s killing fields. Over the last century, towns and villages have traded their names and/or allegiances at least thirteen times. Also, during the last decade, Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus have fallen on the “outside” of the European Union, which is causing some severe hardships for the citizens of those nations and the refugees trying to escape to Europe. Over the last few years the EU has given its new members more than 1 billion dollars to strengthen their borders, immigration and asylum systems. However, these three countries have received almost nothing in comparison. The EU’s eastern neighbors are among the continent’s most impoverished countries. It is obvious that in order to improve the situation and to have everyone win, resources need to be spread throughout the continent. However, the opposite is happening; the imbalance of resources continues to influence the number of people reaching Western Europe illegally or not at all. The situations in Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus affect every nation in the European region. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is heavily involved in asylum and refugee issues there, but is pushing for stronger moves to increase the necessary resources. However, this causes complications because there are too many conflicting initiatives. Their efforts overlap, resulting in waste and inefficiency. Despite the challenges facing them, Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus have made progress in meeting the immigration and asylum challenges facing them. They have all acceded to the 1951 Geneva Refugee Convention. However, there are many problems that still exist. At least forty-five local laws still need to be synchronized with the 1951 Convention and subsequent international instruments if asylum seekers are going to be allowed to stay and enjoy their full rights. For the many that do get caught, the conditions are terrible. The guards claim, as soon as they get paid off, the refugees will be deported back, which is a breach of international and national law. In 2002 and 2003, because of the isolation, lack of news and horrendous conditions, riots broke out and there were mass escapes from detaining sites. These incidents were played up in the news, adding to the latent xenophobia. Many perceive foreigners to be troublemakers and that they receive better medical facilities and food than the poor locals. A gentleman in the article was quoted as saying, “You can build as many walls as you like, but this will not stop people trying to reach Europe. Walls are no match for poverty and desperation.” The article wraps up by reaffirming the region is again at the center of European affairs, but with a new set of problems to overcome.

Training Refugee Mental Health Providers: Ethnography as a Bridge to Multicultural Practice
Human Organization, Summer 2004, vol. 63, No. 2, pp 203-208 (6)
Elzbieta M. Gozdziak
  Abstracted by: Alexandra Nichols
Abstract:
Over the past decade there has been a significant increase in the number of refugees and internally displaced people around the globe. While this number has increased and continues to do so, the number of programs providing psychological services to such refugees has also simultaneously grown. This significant and rapid expansion of mental health programs in both western and nonwestern countries leads us to the question of whether mental health professionals in this field are in fact adequately trained and prepared to address the particular needs of a diverse range of refugees. The article attempts to address this issue through a close look at the various aspects of Western training programs for mental health professions as well as an exploration of the ways in which anthropology can contribute to the mental health field. The article initially gives an explanation for the possible growth of this field, being due not only to a common assumption that all refugees having been exposed to armed conflict and civil strife are in need of immediate access to counseling and psychological service but also due to a substantial increase in the number of diagnoses of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Gozdziak provides us with several examples of the prominence of mental health professionals in refugee settings including such areas as Rwanda, Kosovo, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia. It is important to note as Gozdziak points out that while these programs are developed and expanded in the West they are then implemented in nonwestern countries. Therefore these programs are implemented through the use of western trained mental health professionals which leads to various drawbacks and shortcomings. Gozdziak argues that Western psychiatry and psychology are not equipped to properly and adequately serve refugees. She initially focuses her argument on a variety of inadequacies and gaps in the training provided to these professionals. Some examples include training programs not providing certificate or degrees focusing on refugees and immigration issues, courses taught solely by adjunct professors, a lack of financial support for this area of study and inadequate course content. The largest problem according to Gozdziak however is the cultural and philosophical gap that remains. Western training programs for mental health professionals rely on biomedical models and Western diagnostic categories not taking into consideration indigenous cultural habits and ways of expressing distress and fear. To address this, the article continues with an analysis of what exactly suffering means and to then explore the term “to medicalize human suffering,” putting a medical slant on issues that were not previously considered medical issues. This has resulted in what is called the “trauma model.” Though many suggest the model is applicable to nonwestern societies, Gozdziak argues that in fact the value system by which it is supported is not in fact in line with the majority of the values refugees tend to hold true. To ameliorate this situation Gozdziak suggests an increase in the use of anthropological studies in training mental health professionals to work in the refugee field. By exploring the work and research of Harvard psychiatrist Arthur Kleinman, Gozdziak argues for an increased use of anthropological and ethnographic studies to bridge the gaps and to incorporate the social and cultural aspects rather than continuing a sole medical and psychiatric approach when working with refugees with respect to the mental health field.

Dying in Darfur – Can the Ethnic Cleansing in Sudan be Stopped?
The New Yorker, Aug. 30, 2004 pp56-73 (17)
Samantha Power
  Abstracted by: Alexandra Nichols
Abstract:
“Dying in Darfur ” by Samantha Power provides us with an extensive and thorough look into the current situation in Darfur, Sudan. Through the use of interviews with both government and janjaweed members and local accounts by Arabs and Africans as well as a brief historical background analysis Samantha Power begins to show us just how inextricably complicated the situation in Sudan is. Power explores not only the current situation in Darfur and the events leading up to it, but also addresses the issue of relative silence from the international community as a whole. Power asks what can be done to put an end to the ongoing atrocities. She sets the stage for the reader by providing essential background information dating back to the 1990’s and US government involvement in Sudan. The Clinton administration led a rather confrontational approach involving sanctions, the withdrawal of the US Ambassador in 1996 and followed by a tomahawk missile attack. This was carried out due to Sudan’s role in harboring terrorists. The US government approach then took a turn with President Bush, who restarted the multilateral peace process talks. It is however important to note as Power points out the significance of the 1997 executive order barring US companies from operating in Sudan. The civil war might have to come to an end with peace having to prevail before the US could begin to tap its oil sources. Peace talks were therefore pursued with vigor in hopes of soon opening the oil market. As the situation began to look promising however, things took a turn for the worse and those groups not involved in the US backed peace talks rose up. In response southern Sudan began a bombing campaign in western Sudan, thus bringing the peace process to a standstill. Power then brings us back to the 1980’s and the root of tension between Arab and African Sudanese. We see here that this is in fact a very deeply rooted problem. With the recent uprising in 2003, the Sudanese military began its bombing campaign while using Arab militia men on the ground to combat insurgents. This only added fuel to a fire already there. Through interviews with Musa Hilala, the implicit coordinator of the janjaweed in Darfur (appointed by the government) and later Salah Abdellah Gosh, the head of the National Security and Intelligence Service Power demonstrates just how linked these two are. She also provides us with accounts by young men recruited for what they were told were “border-forces” to bring peace. Power shows us to what extent the janjaweed and Sudan’s government are not only so incredibly intertwined but how they have developed methods for deflecting criticism of the current situation while also attempting to hide evidence of the ongoing ethnic cleansing. The Sudanese government has gone so far as to try to pass off previously arrested criminals as janjaweed members. What has remained unclear however is what the governments’ agenda is for leading this campaign in Darfur and for arming and funding the janjaweed. Power draws on two theories to try and answer this question. One holds that the campaign is part of a larger plan to “Arabize” the region while the second theory holds that the Sudanese government (following the agreement in 2002 to grant secession to rebels in the South) could no longer afford to assuage another rebel group.
Nonetheless Power points to the fact that of even greater importance is that of getting the international community which has remained divided on the issue, more involved. What currently appears to be the most realistic route for peace keeper intervention is that coming from the African Union.

Treating Refugee Victims of Torture: Creation of the Rocky Mountain Survivors Center
Journal of Immigrant Health, Vol. 1, No. 3, 1999 pp 155-164 (9)
Peter W. Van Arsdale and Dennis F. Kennedy
  Abstracted by: Alexandra Nichols
Abstract:
“Training Refugee Victims of Torture” focuses on the creation of the Rocky Mountain Survivors Center ” (RMSC) which emerged from the “Refugee Mental Health Access Project” (RMHAP) in Denver, CO. Van Arsdale and Kennedy provide us with the broader theories behind RMSC’s philosophy and the ways in which these theories are put into practice. The article exemplifies the roles that both anthropology and psychology play in broadly dealing with refugee issues, as well as mental health and human rights. In looking at the role that RMSC plays in the Denver community working with refugees, Van Arsdale and Kennedy begin by laying out the theoretical and conceptual foundations within the international context. This is done through definitions of torture and a review of domains and literature that focus on this area. In reviewing domains of study and literature pertaining to this field, the authors note that a domain focusing specifically on suffering and pain has not been clearly defined but that it does however intersect with the 5 domains mentioned in the article. They are also sure to make mention of the fact however that both torture and treatment are not to be conceptualized as a “field” but rather as an experience that one goes through. This can however be an area of sub-specialization within health care. In discussing these theories at the national level, the authors explore how while psychiatric interventions are at times necessary when working with survivors of torture, it is necessary to approach this in a multidisciplinary manner involving expertise from fields such as anthropology, sociology, as well as non-clinically trained social behavioral scientists. Expertise from each of these areas will have insight into challenges to be faced. A number of these therapeutic challenges developed by psychiatrist JM Jaranson are discussed in the article. These challenges focus primarily on the matching of patient needs and expectations with those of the counselor to develop a cure as well as the counselor’s expectations to integrate the client into the community. Additional challenges occur in understanding the clients cultural context in relation to the context of American culture as well as understanding conflicting concepts of mental health with clients most notably fearing mental illness. Van Arsdale and Kennedy bring these theoretical concepts to the local level by beginning to link them to practical perspectives. Van Arsdale and Kennedy lay out a model constructed by Antonio Martinez that is based on four interrelated subsystems which can be used for “tracking” both torture and therapeutic interventions. These subsystems include: 1) the individual level, 2) the family and community, 3) the larger societal subsystem including state level forces and 4) the macro subsystem including international/global consideration. While the RMSC focuses primarily on subsystems 1 and 2, understanding all 4 can provide additional insight into both power and control structures and well as intervention action at the RMSC, Van Arsdale and Kennedy provide us with several case studies. The first illustrates the “tracking” which Martinez refers to. The second applies Jaranson’s therapeutic challenges and a third case denotes the difficulties surrounding some interventions and why a traditional medical model may not be as effective. Since RMSC’s first emergence in 1996 it has considerably grown in both numbers as well as breadth of services provided. Key findings of “what works” for RMSC have included a social service/case management model, accessing a wide range of community-based resources, trained volunteers, delivery of care in non-threatening, no-hospital like settings and tapping diverse sources of information and available resources.